Above: Albert II, Prince of Monaco (second left)
It’s not often an overseas famil offers the chance to rub shoulders with a royal family. SARAH WEBSTER from Wayfinder Travel in Teneriffe, Queensland, explains how it all came about.
I’d wanted to visit Monaco since I was a child having first learned about the principality due to being a fan of old Hollywood films and finding out that Grace Kelly had become a real-life princess.
My desire to visit grew stronger when I found out last year that the current Prince of Monaco is a (very) distant cousin through shared paternal ancestors.
I’m sure you can imagine my delight, therefore, when the opportunity to join a weekend educational trip to Monte Carlo arose.
Hosted by ‘Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer’ (SBM) and arranged by the Visit Monaco team, the famil was a whistle-stop tour of glamourous Monegasque highlights from start to finish.
After landing at Nice Airport, I was whisked to Monaco by Blade Heli, a helicopter transfer company – a quick seven-minute flight and surely the most appropriate way to arrive to such a glamourous location!
The remainder of the journey to my hotel was by private transfer in a luxury minibus with blacked-out windows – I was already starting to feel very spoiled.
My home during the educational was the famous Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, which has been recently renovated and is located right in the heart of the principality.
After checking in I was escorted to my ‘room’ by one of the incredibly friendly concierge team, only to find that my room was more of a stunning apartment!
I had been allocated a junior suite on the fourth floor that came with two French balconies and a view of the legendary Casino de Monte-Carlo. From my vantage point I had a birds-eye view of Casino Square and beyond, an ideal position to people watch, do a bit of luxury car spotting, see the fantastic Christmas decorations and watch the sun rise over the Mediterranean.
When the educational itinerary commenced it was a perfect blend of excitement, indulgence and relaxation.
Our group of Australian travel advisors first met for lunch at Le Grill, a Michelin-star restaurant perched high above Monte Carlo, offering panoramic views of the Riviera and Italy (we have Maria Callas to thank for the views apparently).
The day continued with each agent visiting Thermes Marins Monte-Carlo for an amazing massage – the extensive spa connects Hotel de Paris to Hotel Hermitage Monte-Carlo (a sister property, itself about to undergo a huge renovation).
After your massage you can lie on a lounger looking out over the harbour towards the Princely Palace or take a dip in the enormous indoor pool. However, we needed to get ready for a unique Saturday night!
Following a quick change we headed to Hotel Hermitage Monte-Carlo for a Champagne and Sake event at L’Abysse Monte Carlo, with a sushi demonstration by Chef Yasunari Okazaki.
An hour later we were located front row behind velvet ropes in Casino Square to see the Princely Family turn on the Christmas decorations. If you squint while looking at any of the official photographs taken at the event you can just about make out a bunch of Australian travel advisors!
Once the royals had moved on to their next engagement, we strolled a few metres to new hot spot Amazonico, where we were treated to the themed “A Night Like Nowhere Else” Gala, hosted by Visit Monaco.
The venue was full of travel advisors from all over the World, enjoying a cocktail party accompanied by a live band playing salsa, then a DJ accompanied by a drummer. It seemed highly appropriate that I had my Brazilian colleague Val with me!
A late start on day two gave us time to have a lie-in and enjoy a leisurely breakfast before the group spent a couple of hours touring the two sister properties (the Princess Grace suite at Hotel de Paris is simply to die for!!).
We then headed to yet another Michelin-star restaurant, Pavyllon, for their infamous Champagne brunch, where the excellent food just kept coming.
Our hosts obviously knew we’d need a bit of a rest after so much food, so our next activity was a vintage car experience through Monaco’s famous streets and up into the hills.
We stopped and walked through the gorgeous medieval hillside village of Èze before an interesting whirlwind tour of the Fragonard perfume factory. We then carried on up into the hills where we parked at a lookout point and enjoyed a couple of bottles of Bollinger while watching the sun set over the Mediterranean.
The final evening of the famil saw us meet up to dine at the recently refurbished – and downright stunning – Café de Paris.
The food was exceptional; a traditional French brasserie menu which included crêpes suzette that were invented there and are still flambéed at the table (so of course I felt the need to order them so that we could all experience the spectacle!).
After our sumptuous dinner we walked across the square to the Casino de Monte-Carlo, collected our €20 chip and took in the architecture and the sense of history while quickly losing any gains made at the tables.
What struck me most was how seamlessly the principality combines old world charm with modern luxury – it almost felt like we were in a fairy tale land, or on a surreal filmset.
The educational was simply superb and the hosts were able to treat us to so many unforgettable moments. I was sad to leave and can’t wait to go back because despite the weekend being jam-packed, we only scratched the surface of what Monaco has to offer.
Despite having completed the online Monaco agent training, there’s no substitute for actually learning from experience and I can’t wait to learn more. Monaco really is like nowhere else!
(Wayfinder Travel is an independent affiliate of Frontier Travel)
