Monte-Carlo Casino Undergoes a Major Restoration Ahead of F1 Grand Prix

 

Behind the elegant trompe-l’oeil façade currently covering the legendary Monte-Carlo Casino, an ambitious restoration project is bringing one of Monaco’s most iconic landmarks back to its former Belle Époque glory.

The historic building, owned by the Société des Bains de Mer (SBM), is undergoing a €2.5 million renovation that will be completed just in time for the prestigious Monaco Grand Prix. With thousands of visitors expected to descend on the Principality for race weekend, the timing could not be more significant.

To preserve the visual elegance of the famous Place du Casino during construction, SBM installed an extraordinary 1,500-square-meter decorative tarp printed with a full-scale replica of the casino’s Belle Époque façade. Created using drone photography, the covering conceals nearly 80 tons of scaffolding erected in January, ensuring that tourists seeking Monte Carlo’s famous luxury experience are met with only minimal disruption.

“We couldn’t imagine doing it any less well than this,” said Luc Leroy, Director of Construction and Built Heritage at SBM, emphasizing the high standards expected for a project involving one of Monaco’s most treasured architectural jewels.

Behind the temporary façade, dozens of craftsmen are working meticulously to restore the building’s exterior, tackling everything from masonry and paintwork to the marble entrance staircase and the grand canopy above it. The project also includes the restoration of four statues—two in copper and two in plaster—the two glazed-tile domes and their lightning rods, as well as the architectural lighting that helps define the casino’s unmistakable nighttime presence.

Built in 1863, the Monte-Carlo Casino has been the centerpiece of Monaco’s luxury identity for over a century. While it has undergone smaller maintenance works over the years, this marks one of the most significant restoration efforts ever undertaken on its main façade.

According to SBM, the work is part of a larger heritage preservation campaign that began in 2018, with restoration projects scheduled outside of the summer season and extending across multiple sides of the building over several years.

The renovation comes after major transformations around the casino district, including the redevelopment of Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Café de Paris Monte-Carlo, One Monte-Carlo, the Jardin des Boulingrins, and the entire Place du Casino.

“It is essential that we preserve our heritage,” Leroy explained. “SBM has a very rich history; it’s part of our DNA, and that’s what sets us apart.”

Years of sun, rain, sea spray, pollution, and time had left visible marks on the structure—peeling paint, weather-worn façades, blackened statues, weakened ornamentation, and occasional roof leaks all signaled the need for deeper intervention.

 

Now, with the world’s eyes set to return to Monaco for Formula 1’s most glamorous race, the crown jewel of Monte Carlo is preparing to shine once again.

 

Photos courtesy of Justine Meddah / Nice-Matin 

Nice to Rise for Equality: LGBTQ+ Community Calls for Powerful Peaceful March on May 17

 

On May 17, Nice will take to the streets with pride, purpose, and determination as the LGBTQ+ community and its allies gather for a major demonstration marking the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia.

The call is clear: make some noise for equality and stand firmly against discrimination in all its forms.

Participants are invited to meet at 3 p.m. at the plaza of Gare de Nice-Ville (Thiers train station), where voices will unite in a visible and powerful show of solidarity. Organizers are urging people from across the city and beyond to come together—loud, proud, and impossible to ignore.

At a time when LGBTQ+ rights continue to face challenges across Europe and beyond, this gathering is about more than symbolism—it is about presence, resistance, and community. Friends, families, supporters, and activists are all being called to stand side by side.

Visible. United. Determined. Peaceful.

On May 17, Nice marches for dignity, respect, and equality for all.

Uber Takes to the Sea: Boat Transfers Between Nice and Cannes Launch This June

 

Starting June 26, Uber will officially launch Uber Boat along the Côte d’Azur, allowing passengers to book private boat trips directly through the Uber app—including highly anticipated coastal transfers between Nice and Cannes.

Yes, instead of sitting in summer traffic on the A8 or crawling along the crowded coastal roads, travelers will soon be able to open Uber, tap a new “Boat” option, and head to Cannes by sea.

The move comes through Uber’s partnership with Click&Boat, Europe’s largest peer-to-peer boat rental company, which gives Uber access to a fleet of roughly 50,000 boats across Europe without needing to operate its own vessels.

The Riviera’s New Luxury Commute

For years, private boat charters between Nice and Cannes have been reserved largely for the wealthy, yacht owners, and concierge-booked tourists.

Uber is now trying to make that process far simpler.

Users will be able to reserve:

• Private boat charters

• Skippered day trips

• Coastal point-to-point transfers

• Leisure cruises

• Smaller boats with or without license requirements

The goal is convenience: no separate booking platforms, no charter brokers, no endless WhatsApp negotiations with local operators.

Just book through the same app people already use for airport transfers and late-night rides home.

A Direct Answer to Riviera Traffic Chaos

Anyone who has tried getting from Nice to Cannes during summer—or worse, during the Cannes Film Festival—knows the pain.

Traffic can turn what should be a 30-minute trip into a two-hour ordeal.

Uber is clearly targeting that frustration.

Instead of gridlock, travelers can take the coastline itself, with routes expected to include:

• Nice → Cannes

• Cannes → Îles de Lérins

• Nice → Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat

• Nice → Villefranche-sur-Mer

• Cannes → Saint-Tropez

For tourists, influencers, executives, and festival guests, the pitch is obvious: skip the traffic, arrive by boat.

Because on the Riviera, arriving dramatically is half the point.

Not Cheap—Just Easier

Uber Boat is unlikely to be a budget option.

Since the service pulls directly from Click&Boat’s existing listings, pricing will remain comparable to traditional charter bookings. Skipper fees, fuel costs, deposits, and Uber’s own service fees mean this is more about luxury convenience than affordability.

Uber One members, however, will receive 10% back in Uber credits, which can be used later on Uber rides or Uber Eats orders.

So yes, your yacht transfer might help pay for your hangover lunch.

A Bigger Push Into Lifestyle Travel

Uber announced the expansion during its GO-GET 2026 event in New York as part of its broader push to become more than just a rideshare app.

Hotels, flights, dining reservations, event access—and now boats.

The company wants to own the full travel experience.

In France, launch cities include Nice, Cannes, Marseille, Paris, Annecy, Saint-Tropez, and Toulon.

But nowhere fits the concept better than the Riviera.

Because if there is anywhere on earth where “Uber Boat” feels less like innovation and more like inevitability, it is here.

Cannes 2026: From Post-War Dream to the World’s Most Glamorous Red Carpet

 

Every May, the eyes of the film world turn to the Croisette in Cannes, where cinema, celebrity, and couture collide under the Mediterranean sun. The 79th edition of the Cannes Film Festival begins on May 12 and runs through May 23, once again transforming the French Riviera into the global capital of film.

But Cannes was not born out of glamour—it was born out of resistance.

The festival was originally conceived in 1939 as an alternative to the Venice Film Festival, which had become heavily influenced by Fascist politics under Mussolini and Nazi Germany. France wanted a festival where artistic merit—not political pressure—would decide the winners. World War II delayed that dream, and the first true Cannes Film Festival was finally held in 1946.

Since then, it has grown into the most prestigious film festival in the world, where winning the Palme d'Or can transform careers overnight.

Today, Cannes is equal parts cinema showcase, business hub, and international fashion spectacle. It is where auteurs premiere their boldest work, where studios quietly begin Oscar campaigns, and where every staircase at the Palais des Festivals becomes a runway.

This year’s festival opens with The Electric Kiss (La Vénus Électrique), directed by Pierre Salvadori, setting the tone for what promises to be one of the strongest auteur-driven lineups in recent memory. Jury president for 2026 is acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook, best known for Oldboy, leading a jury packed with major names including Demi Moore, Chloé Zhao, Stellan Skarsgård, Ruth Negga, and Isaach De Bankolé.

Two Honorary Palme d’Or awards will also be presented this year—to Peter Jackson and Barbra Streisand—a reminder that Cannes celebrates both new voices and living legends.

Films Everyone Will Be Watching

Among the most anticipated competition titles:

• Amarga Navidad by Pedro Almodóvar

• Parallel Tales by Asghar Farhadi

• Paper Tiger by James Gray

• Coward by Lukas Dhont

• All of a Sudden by Ryusuke Hamaguchi

• The Unknown starring Léa Seydoux

• Gentle Monster featuring both Catherine Deneuve and Léa Seydoux

• Another Day by Jeanne Herry

• Karma, out of competition, starring Marion Cotillard

Also drawing major attention is Ira Sachs’s The Man I Love, starring Rami Malek and Rebecca Hall, expected to be one of the major conversation pieces on the Croisette.

Celebrity Watch: Who Will Be on the Red Carpet?

Expect a flood of star power this year, including:

• Penélope Cruz

• Javier Bardem

• Julianne Moore

• Cate Blanchett

• Tilda Swinton

• Demi Moore

• Léa Seydoux

• Marion Cotillard

• Rami Malek

• Catherine Deneuve

And of course, the unofficial stars of Cannes remain the photographers, publicists, and fashion houses battling to create the one image everyone remembers.

More Than Movies

For the South of France—especially Nice, Antibes, and Cannes itself—the festival is an economic engine. Hotels fill months in advance, restaurants are booked solid, yachts crowd the harbor, and luxury brands take over beach clubs and rooftops.

But beyond the spectacle, Cannes still matters because it remains one of the last places where cinema itself is treated like a world event.

Before streaming algorithms decide what audiences should watch, before awards campaigns begin, and before box office numbers dominate the conversation, Cannes asks a simpler question:

What is the best film in the world right now?

For nearly 80 years, filmmakers have come here hoping to answer it. Starting May 12, they will try again.