Monte Carlo (/ˌmɒntiˈkɑːrloʊ/MON-tee KAR-loh, Italian:[ˈmonteˈkarlo]; French: Monte-Carlo[mɔ̃tekaʁlo], or colloquially Monte-Carl[mɔ̃tekaʁl]; Monégasque: Munte Carlu[ˈmuŋteˈkaɾlu]; lit.'Mount Charles') is an official administrative area of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is located. Informally, the name also refers to a larger district, the Monte Carlo Quarter (corresponding to the former municipality of Monte Carlo), which besides Monte Carlo/Spélugues also includes the wards of La Rousse/Saint Roman, Larvotto/Bas Moulins and Saint Michel. The permanent population of the ward of Monte Carlo is about 3,500, while that of the quarter is about 15,000. Monaco has four traditional quarters. From west to east they are: Fontvieille (the newest), Monaco-Ville (the oldest), La Condamine, and Monte Carlo.
Monte Carlo is situated on a prominent escarpment at the base of the Maritime Alps along the French Riviera. Near the quarter's western end is the "world-famous Place du Casino, the gambling center ... that has made Monte Carlo an international byword for the extravagant display and reckless dispersal of wealth".[1] It is also the location of the Hôtel de Paris, Café de Paris and Salle Garnier (the casino theatre which is the home of the Opéra de Monte-Carlo). The quarter's eastern part includes the community of Larvotto with Monaco's only public beach, as well as its new convention center (the Grimaldi Forum), and the Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort. At the quarter's eastern border, one crosses into the French town of Beausoleil (sometimes referred to as Monte-Carlo-Supérieur), and 8 kilometres (5 mi) to its east is the western border of Italy.
The initial casino opened in La Condamine in 1862, but was unsuccessful. It relocated several times, before reaching its present location in the "Les Spélugues" (The Caves) area of Monte Carlo. Success came slowly, largely because Monaco was inaccessible from much of Europe. The railway, installed in 1868, brought with it an influx of people, and Monte Carlo grew in wealth.[2]
Saint-Charles Church on Monte Carlo's Avenue Sainte-Charles was completed in 1883. It was restored in its centenary year.[3][4]
The municipality of Monte Carlo was created in 1911, when the constitution divided the principality of Monaco into three municipalities. Monte Carlo encompassed the existing neighborhoods of La Rousse/Saint Roman, Larvotto/Bas Moulins, and Saint Michel. The municipalities merged in 1917, after accusations that the government used them to "divide and conquer". Since then, they became wards. Today, Monaco is divided into 9 wards, which are grouped into 4 quartiers.
Monte Carlo has an area of 28.14 hectares (or 0.28 square kilometers) and faces the Mediterranean Sea, bordered to the west by Ravin de Sainte-Dévote and La Condamine, and to the east by La Rousse and Larvotto.
Monte Carlo is home to a ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournament during the clay court season usually played during the end of March through mid to late April. Monte Carlo is a popular tax haven for many tennis professionals and home to many active and retired athletes.
Monte Carlo is host to most of the Circuit de Monaco, on which the Formula OneMonaco Grand Prix takes place. It also hosts world championship boxing bouts, the European Poker Tour Grand Final and the World Backgammon Championship as well as the Monaco International Auto Show (Fr: Salon International de l'Automobile de Monaco[9]), fashion shows and other events. Although the Monte Carlo Masters tennis tournament is billed as taking place in the community, its actual location is in the adjacent French commune of Roquebrune-Cap-Martin. The Monte Carlo Rally is one of the longest running and most respected car rallies; from 1973 to 2008 and again from 2012, it marks the start of World Rally Championship season, having also served as the curtain-raiser for the Intercontinental Rally Challenge between 2009 and 2011. The rally, however, takes place outside the Monte Carlo quarter and is run mostly on French roads.
Tourism
Monte Carlo has been visited by royalty as well as the public and movie stars for decades. Monte Carlo is one of Europe's leading tourist resorts, although many of the key tourist destinations are in other parts of Monaco, including such attractions as Monaco Cathedral, the Napoleon Museum, the Oceanographic Museum and aquarium, and the Prince's Palace, all of which are in Monaco-Ville.
The Opéra de Monte-Carlo or Salle Garnier was built to designs of the architect Charles Garnier, who also designed the Paris opera house now known as the Palais Garnier. Although much smaller, the Salle Garnier is very similar in style with decorations in red and gold, and frescoes and sculptures all around the auditorium. It was inaugurated on 25 January 1879 with a performance by Sarah Bernhardt dressed as a nymph. The first opera performed there was Robert Planquette's Le Chevalier Gaston on 8 February 1879, and that was followed by three more in the first season.
The hotel has 106 rooms divided into four groups based on type of view, decoration and luxury.[10] The Exclusive City View offers 20 rooms, the Superior Courtyard has 29 large rooms, the Exclusive Sea View 59 and the Exclusive Casino has six.
Additionally, there are 74 suites and junior suites which are grouped similarly, offering more luxury than the rooms. There are single and double suites as well as courtyard junior suites and Sea/Casino Junior suites.[10] There is also one Presidential suite.[11]
In October 2014, a renovation project began, to create a garden courtyard, add a new spa, fitness and pool area, exceptional suites, and a “rooftop villa” with a private garden and pool.[12]
Monte Carlo is featured in Edith Wharton's novel The House of Mirth (1905) as a backdrop for the leisure activities of New York's upper class in the early 20th century.
The first few chapters of the Gothic novel Rebecca (1938) are set in Monte Carlo.
La Dame de Monte Carlo is a monologue for soprano and orchestra composed by Francis Poulenc in 1961 based on a poem from Jean Cocteau’s Théâtre de poche.[16]
The Bold and the Beautiful series (1987–) featured a number of episodes filmed on location in the city in 2016 and 2017. It is the location for the annual Spencer Summit.
Video games
The Gran Turismo series often features Monte Carlo.
^Hough, John (2 April 1990), A Ghost in Monte Carlo (Drama, Romance), Sarah Miles, Oliver Reed, Christopher Plummer, Samantha Eggar, Gainsborough Pictures, The Grade Company, Turner Pictures (I), retrieved 28 February 2021
Monte Monte Carlo method Del Monte Foods Monte Carlo Monte Carlo Rally Monte Cassino Monte-Carlo Masters Monte Ne Markov chain Monte Carlo El Monte, California Monte Bank Monte Carlo integration The Count of Monte Cristo Monte Carlo tree search El Monte Legion Stadium Monte Plata Monte Plata Province El Monte Station Monte Águila Monte Ceneri Monte Carlo Casino Monte Sant'Angelo Castel del Monte, Apulia Monaco-Monte-Carlo station Monte Brè funicular Monte Brè San Jose del Monte Monte Rosa Chevrolet Monte Carlo Fresh Del Monte Produce Monte Cook Monte Carasso Francesco Maria del Monte Philip…
pe de Monte Mineral del Monte Argentine Monte El Monte Flores The Count of Monte Cristo (disambiguation) Monte Moro Pass Mayor of San Jose del Monte Monte Barraù Monte (Funchal) Monte Rosa Hut Auxiliary-field Monte Carlo Monte Cristo Monte Grande Montes Llanos MV Monte Cervantes Hotel Del Monte Monte Ceneri Rail Tunnel Monte Walsh Monte Cassino Polish war cemetery Quantum Monte Carlo Monte Alto culture Monte Carlo Baby South El Monte, California Monte Carlo algorithm Monte Ceneri Tunnel 1992 Monte Carlo Open 2009 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters Castañeo'l Monte Monito del monte Monte Money Monte Melkonian Petronax of Monte Cassino Fortaleza do Monte 2008 Masters Series Monte-Carlo Del Monte, Monterey, California Monte Generoso railway Monte San Salvatore funicular Asciano–Monte Antico railway C.D. Monte Carlo Belo Monte Dam Monte d'Oro Monte Verde Monte Kronio 1973 Monte Carlo Rally Monte Carlo methods in finance Monte Astu Monte Cristi, Dominican Republic 1994 Monte Carlo Open 2008 Monte Carlo Rally Man from Del Monte Castel del Monte, Abruzzo Monte Vista Historic District 1995 Monte Carlo Open Quasi-Monte Carlo method Del Monte Kenya Opéra de Monte-Carlo Monte di Credito su Pegno