VIva La France: Day Trip to Monaco

VIva La France: Day Trip to Monaco

13 comments

Sunday morning I woke up with a BIG pep in my step because we were going to go to Monaco for the day! I have always loved Princess Grace because of how beautiful she was and then how much good she did once she became a princess. Rich was excited because of the Monte Carlo casino. The day was beautiful, but I did not prepare for how HOT it was! 

We took the public bus right outside of Airbnb to the bus stop. Then, we got on another bus from Nice to Monaco. The bus system was pretty easy, but as I later learned, the city buses are not free and we kept riding them without paying. *Whoops!* I would feel badly, however, I spent A LOT of money in Nice so I think it's ok if I took a couple of bus rides on accident. 

I had been preparing for Monaco for weeks, and by that, I mean I had to find a good restaurant to eat lunch at while we were there and find a dress that I wanted to wear during the day. And don't worry ... I did on both counts. 


When we first arrived in Monaco, I already knew where we were going to eat lunch. At an Italian restaurant called La Salière in Monaco. The menu had so many options, but because something spoke to me when we sat down, I had to get the paccheri with meatballs, cherry tomatoes and pecorino cheese. Every. single. bite. was worth it. It's made me make homemade marinara sauce twice since we've gotten back from our trip. 



Yes, I am drinking white wine with pasta but it was too hot for me to drink red during this lunch. I was so hungry by the time that we got to La Salière that I ate it all. Then I took the bread and cleaned any sauce on my plate. I was so satisfied and full I could have just gotten back on the bus to head back to Nice at that point if it wasn't for the Prince's Palace!  

So, I wobbled along through the city until we made it to the Prince's Palace. It was a LONG way up the hill. There were a few times I had to stop to rest because there were SO many steps in Monaco. If you didn't have a good butt when you got there, you had a good butt when you left. 


The only good thing about all those steps were all the views! It was gorgeous everywhere you looked. The water was so blue and clear you could almost see through it if you looked down. It also made me feel very un-wealthy with all of the yachts everywhere you looked. 


After about a million steps, we found the Prince's Palace! We didn't take a tour inside, and I kind of regret it now, but it was so pretty out the outside. We even timed it just right and saw the changing of the guards. 


Those outfits are VERY white, and they also look very hot. It was a very proper ceremony, and one guard seemed to have a bit of a smile on his face. Wouldn't it be hard to keep a straight face when people are taking photos and videos of you just walking? We hung out at the Prince's Palace for a bit and look at all of the views and people watched. I also had to do some shopping. 


This print was only around $5 and honestly, I would have paid more. I loved it when I first saw it. It was the best souvenir to buy from Monaco that day. 

After we left the palace, we headed towards Monte Carlo. Did I mention how hot it was? I thought I was going to melt into a puddle because there were NO clouds to cover the hot sun. 


Because this was probably my one and only time in Monaco, I really wanted to be in the moment and be as present as possible with Rich. Even if I was whining because it was hot, we had a wonderful lunch, got to see so many cool things, visited the Prince's Palace, and even went inside Monte Carlo. It's SO grand! Everything about it is gorgeous! 


Rich got to play the slot machines though we couldn't go into the larger casino area because of our attire. He even won! I think we walked away with 3 more euro than we walked in with, which was fine to me because that was bus money to get back to nice! 


When I say it was grand, I mean, it was GRAND. Inside the casino you could see large crystal chandeliers, gold everything, and the fanciest bar I have ever seen. The security was very tight though, just to go inside the slot machine area I had to get my bags checked and held by coat check. Sadly and understandably, photos are a big no-no. 


It was SUCH a fun day and everything that I had hoped it to be! After Monte Carlo we headed back to Nice. The buses stop running from Monaco to Nice around 7:30/8 pm in the evening and we didn't want to leave on the last bus in case there wasn't enough room. 

When we got back to Nice we went back to the Airbnb and relaxed for a bit before going to Old Town Nice for dinner at a Portuguese restaurant. After dinner, we headed back to our favorite Le Truc bar! Monaco was one of my favorite days of our adventure and I'm so glad that I was present in the moment. 

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13 comments

  1. Wow, every bit of your trip blows me away! And what a great souvenir! I always fail to get souvenirs lol

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  2. Wow, what an amazing day! I spent a day in Monaco a few years ago and it was just wonderful. Great post. XO, Nicole // www.nicolecoppins.com

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  3. AHH so jealous! I've always wanted to visit! In the meantime, how do you think that pasta would hold up if you overnighted it to FL? ;-) haha!

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  4. Wow! What an amazing trip! Monaco looks awesome! Need to put it on my bucket list!

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  5. Monaco looks like a dream! I had a friend who honeymooned there over the summer but to be honest, it's not a place that had been on my radar before!

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  6. Wow, Monaco looks amazing! Definitely on my bucket list.

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  7. Wow! I would love to go there one day. It is amazing how much you can see in a day if you plan things out.

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  8. Monoco sounds amazing! I can't believe you saw so much!

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  9. Those views are beautiful! I really love the dress that you picked as well, it looks perfect for Monoco!

    xoxo, SS


    Southern and Style

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  10. I love Grace Kelly as well which is one of the reason's I want to see Monaco one day! It looks like you had a great time and that pasta looks delicious!

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  11. That pasta looks so delicious! What a fun day!
    -Nicholle
    www.nichollesophia.com

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  12. Love the color of your dress! And that pasta looks delicious!

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  13. Monaco looks like a lot of fun! I've always wanted to go there!

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