Monte-Carlo Casino: the exclusive gambling experience

With its Belle Époque architecture by Charles Garnier and its 28-column atrium built in the Second Empire style, Monte-Carlo’s casino is the stuff of legend and has even featured in films such as Goldeneye and Ocean’s Twelve.

Gambling has been part of the Principality’s DNA for over 150 years following the developments led by Prince Charles III. While the first Monegasque gaming room, in a house in La Condamine, dates back to 1856, it was the birth of the Monte-Carlo district and the creation of the Société des Bains de Mer (SBM) in 1863 that sparked the country’s international reputation for casinos.

Prince Charles III entrusted leadership of SBM to François Blanc, a successful casino operator who soon became known as “the Magician of Monte-Carlo”.

SBM offers an extended range of games (American games, European games and slot machines) within the two casinos that it now owns, located in the Grand Casino and the Café de Paris.

New events have been held to refresh the offering and attract new players: roulette tournaments with million-dollar prizes, boxing competitions, very special dinners… “We want ours to be an exclusive gambling experience,” is Chief International Development Officer of Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer and Senior Vice-Chairman of the European Casino Association, Pascal Camia’s frequent refrain. Not to mention ensuring that the legend lives on.