Visa and customs
Since there is no representation of Monaco in Russia, documents for a visa of this country are submitted to the French Visa Application Centers. In addition, it is mandatory to take out medical insurance for the entire duration of the trip.
There are no restrictions on the import and export of foreign currency. If tourists are coming from countries outside the EU, all amounts over EUR 10,000 must be declared.
It is allowed to import duty-free up to 200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos, or 50 cigars, or 250 g of tobacco, up to 1 liter of spirits with a strength of more than 22 ° or up to 2 liters of wine with a strength of less than 22 °, up to 500 g of coffee beans, up to 100 g of tea or 40 g of tea extract, up to 50 ml of perfume and 250 ml of eau de toilette, as well as items and things for personal use. Gold items and jewelry with a total weight of up to 500 g (only for personal use) are imported free of charge, all jewelry over this limit must be declared.
The import and export of drugs, items of historical value, weapons and ammunition, animals and plants listed as endangered species, pornography, certain food products, meat and meat products from African countries is prohibited.
When importing medicines for personal use, no special permits are required, but for many drugs you need to have a prescription issued by a doctor, certified by a notary.
Tax free
The wealthy public of Monaco rarely bothers with VAT refunds, but the Tax free system still works here. To reimburse 18.6% of the cost of purchased goods, you will need to make a purchase in the amount of 185 EUR in one receipt and ask for a Tax Refund receipt (sometimes it is issued not at the checkout, but in a special department, but first you should make sure that the store is marked with the logo Global Blue). All that remains is to fill in the boxes with personal information and present the receipt along with the sales receipt and unpacked purchases at customs at the airport, and then – already stamped – at the Global Blue point, where the compensation will be transferred to the card or paid in cash.
How to get to Monaco
The easiest and fastest way to get to Monaco is a flight to Nice, then by bus number 100 (about 45 minutes, 2 EUR), train (20-30 minutes, 5-15 EUR depending on the carrier and time of day), taxi (30 -40 minutes, from 75 EUR) or by car (about half an hour and 6 EUR for petrol).
Aeroflot, Air France, Es Seven and Air Baltic operate regular flights to Nice and Paris. The flight Moscow – Nice lasts about 3 hours, tickets with a transfer in Orly – from 75 EUR one way, without transfers – from 140 EUR.
It takes about 4 hours to fly from Moscow to Paris, tickets directly or with a connection in Riga – from 75 EUR one way. The distance from the French capital to the principality is 958 km, which can be covered by train in 6.5 hours and 60 EUR, by bus in 14-15 hours and 45 EUR or by car in 9 hours and 110 EUR for gasoline.
Transport
Given the size of the country, there is no need to talk about a large and developed transport system in Monaco. The city’s bus network has 6 lines connecting tourist attraction areas. Buses run on schedule from 7:00 to 21:00 (on weekdays, the interval is about 10 minutes, on Sunday – more). Tickets are sold from drivers, the price is 2 EUR, but it is more profitable to purchase a daily pass for 5.50 EUR at the office of the carrier CAM (off site in English).
The most original transport is the “water bus”: a shuttle boat that runs between the northern and southern parts of Port Hercule from 8:00 to 20:00. Fares are the same as on regular buses.
At the service of tourists is a small steam locomotive, which circles the main beauty in half an hour. It departs from La Condamine daily from mid-November to the end of January. Tickets – 10 EUR for adults and 5 EUR for children under 8 years old. But there is only one full-fledged railway station, and it is located underground: 1.7 km of tracks are part of the transport corridor between France and Italy. There are also 7 free escalators that take pedestrians up the streets above.
Stations with electric bicycles have been installed throughout the principality: they are pleasant and not at all tiring to ride on the local hills, and the batteries are recharged at large bus stops. The rental price is even nicer: 2 EUR per day and 6 EUR per week.
Taxis can be ordered by phone or taken at the stations near the station and attractions. The average fare is about 16 EUR during the day, the night fare is a quarter higher.
Not so long ago, an open-top Hop-on hop-off sightseeing bus appeared in Monaco with 10 stops, at each of which you can go and board again throughout the day (or two, depending on the ticket purchased). During the trip, you can listen to the audio guide, available in 8 languages. On average, a non-stop tour takes about an hour and covers the main tourist sites, from the Prince’s Palace to the Oceanographic Museum. Tickets for 1 day cost 23 EUR, for children under 11 years old – 8 EUR.
Car rental in Monaco
The modest size of Monaco and by no means modest prices, an abundance of pedestrian zones, hilly terrain, strict speed limits, a shortage of parking spaces are good reasons to prefer walking and public transport to a rented car. But if you have a trip to neighboring countries ahead of you or you just want to splurge, there are rental-a-car offices in any hotel.
The most demanding car enthusiasts will like Rolls-Royces, Ferraris, Lamborghinis and McLarens at a price of 400 EUR per day with a security deposit of up to 5000 EUR. Simpler models are available from well-known distributors like Avis, Hertz and Europcar. The age of the applicant is from 18 years old, you need to have an international driver’s license and a credit card with an amount of about 1000 EUR, which will be frozen as a deposit.
Renting a compact car costs from 95 EUR, middle-class sedans – from 100 EUR, SUVs – from 130 EUR per day. The cost of gasoline is 1.95 EUR per 1 liter.
The maximum allowed speed in cities is 50 km/h, and in some places even lower. The old centers have been given over to pedestrians; only owners of local and French license plates can drive along some streets. Traffic jams are not uncommon, especially during holidays and competitions. There are few parking lots (there are more chances to leave a car in underground parking lots), the roads are marked with colored markings: white lines – parking is free, blue – paid, yellow – prohibited. Average rates are from 2.50-3 EUR per hour and from 20-30 EUR per day.
Climate
Monaco has a subtropical Mediterranean climate, which means that summers are almost always dry and warm, and winters are mild and rainy. The refreshing sea breeze protects from the heat, the Alps surrounding the Principality protect from the cold wind. The average July temperature is +20…+25 °C (sometimes the thermometer soars up to +30 °C), January is +10…+12 °C (frosts down to -3 °C are extremely rare). See Citypopulationreview for weather information.
The sun shines tirelessly for about 300 days a year, with the most precipitation occurring in autumn and winter. The best time to travel is from May to September, when nothing interferes with excursions and beach holidays.
See also the weather forecast for the main resorts and cities of Monaco.
