Monte Carlo help for elderly parents

[DEELOUX]

HI All,

 

My parents are traveling Oct 1 on the Brillance of the Seas. One of their stops is in France where they want to go to Monte Carlo. My parents are 75 and 80 years old. I have a couple of questions for them (Dad is in great shape-golfs 3 days a week, mom slow in walking). What is the best way to travel to Monte Carlo ? bus? train? etc.? My mom read somewhere where tennis shoes are not allowed in the "Royal Casino". Is that true? If so, what can she wear? Is there alot of walking to get to this Casino. Any other tips would be helpful. They are experienced cruisers. Thanks

[BiggiB]

Hello and bonjour, Deeloux

 

To see and learn most about Monaco in a short day, while your ship is in France, it is always advisable to take the ship's tour, especially when you are a little older than most of us. Usually - and this you can read from most of the comments on CruiseCritic - the tours are well organized, informative and worth the money.

 

The Principality is rather small in size, but quite big in sights to see in the various parts of town. The tour busses bring you directly to assigned parking spaces in Monaco Ville (the Old Town, with the Palace, the Cathedrale and charming cobble-stone streets), in Monte-Carlo (for the Casino and shopping) and some also stop at the famous Exotique Garden on the outskirts of the Principality with gorgeous views.

 

Walking is not a problem. The Old Town is almost level, except for 2 gardens with smaller ups and downs. If you are tired of walking, sit in one of the gardens and enjoy the views, or sip a tasty chocolate or capuccino in the chocolate factory coffee shop next to the city bus line stop. Best souvenir shopping is in the Old Town, too.

 

The Casino gardens and terraces as well as the Casino square are sloping down a soft hillside, but if you take your time to walk slowly, it's easy. There is a public elevator connecting the excursion bus stop at the port to the Casino and the Casino Terraces. There is much to see: The beautiful view from the Terraces with their many modern sculptures and the garden front of the Opera-Casino building, the lush Jardin Africque with their ponts as well as the fountains between the Casino and the Office du Tourisme (going uphill). Take the walk up between the shady palm trees of the African gardens and walk down the terraced fountain gardens with spectacular views and photo ops.

 

You can go into the Casino Monte-Carlo also with sneakers, but of course only into the slotmachine rooms. The main and traditional gambling rooms are open only from 3 p.m. and require proper attire. Entrance fees are € 10 and you have to show an ID or passport to get in.

There is an American Casino behind the Café de Paris and the Sun Casino in the nearby Fairmont Hotel, for those who love to gamble already during day-time.

Most fun for us: Sit in the Café de Paris, sip your drink and observe the hustle and bustle on the Casino Square --- all the big cars in town pass by one or the other time and there's always a show going on in front of the famous Hotel de Paris just opposite.

 

 

If your parents decide to visit Monaco on their own, the will pretty much doing the same things as with the excursion, using the public transportation system (busses and bus boat), and checking out the sights in their own time. Busses run every 8 minutes, stops are frequent and all lines are indicated on the city map, which you can obtain from the Office du tourisme. One trip is € 1, but you can purchase a 10-trip ticket for only €6 and use it for both travellers. 1 change of busses is for free, if you have to switch from one line to another.

 

Keep in mind to get back to the ship in time. Busses in the afternoon are usually very crowded and often delayed due to too much traffic on the coastal road. If you are in Villefranche or Nice, there is a frequent service for 1€ each way (busses should run every 10 minutes ... but ...). If you are in Cannes, taking a train is the best solution. However, Cannes is almost an hour away from Monaco and from there, the ship's tours offer the best connections to Monaco - and the ship will wait, if they are late.

 

;) I hope, that answers most of your questions. I hope your parents will have a fabulous cruise and a lot of fun ashore.

Brigitte

-one of the 35.000 Monaco residents -

[DEELOUX]

Thank you

[Hlitner]

I am probably one of the biggest proponents of cruisers doing their own thing (I suspect more than 2000 of my posts are on this subject). However, for folks in your parents age bracket, with little of no experience traveling in Europe, I think they might be smart to simply book a cruise line tour (I hold my nose when I recommend this option). For your Mom, just getting up the steps to the train station in Villefranche might be an issue. And in MC, most walking involves slopes and steps. As to the Casino, they do have a dress code, charge an admission fee to tourists, and such is life. For us, it is ridiculous to pay to get inside a casino where they impose a silly dress code on tourists during the day (the only folks that go there in daytime are tourists).

 

Hank