Seven hundred years
François Grimaldi took the fortress in 1297 by arriving at the gate disguised as a Franciscan and drawing a sword once inside. The family has held it, with interruptions, ever since — the longest-ruling dynasty in Europe.
The building is a Genoese fortress that kept being made comfortable: military walls outside, Renaissance loggias in the courtyard behind them.
What you can actually see
The Place du Palais is free and open, and it gives you the harbour, the cliff and the sea in one turn. The changing of the guard happens outside daily.
The state apartments open seasonally and close when the family is in residence.
The princes are buried in the cathedral three minutes away, Princess Grace among them.
Palais Princier
Monaco-Ville
Cathédrale de Monaco