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Month: December 2025

Christmas dining in Monaco: rooftop brunches and Michelin-starred feasts

by: Cassandra Tanti
17/12/2025

Monaco’s hotels and restaurants have unveiled their Christmas menus for 2025, with options ranging from rooftop celebrations to Michelin-starred dinners. 

The Fairmont Monte Carlo’s rooftop restaurant Amù presents its Christmas brunch on December 25th from 12:30pm to 4:00pm, transforming the space into an elegant winter garden overlooking the Mediterranean. The brunch features a buffet including seafood, homemade terrines, roasted meats, Bellevue fish, mature cheeses and chocolate yule logs, with champagne served throughout. Entertainment designed for children accompanies the meal. The brunch is priced at €225 per person, with reservations recommended.

The Fairmont is offering the experience as part of its Magical Christmas Escape package for guests seeking an extended festive stay.

Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer offerings

The resort group’s properties present varied Christmas dining options across December 24th and 25th.

At Hôtel de Paris Monte-Carlo, Le Grill offers a Christmas Eve dinner at €390 per person and Christmas lunch at €410 per person. La Salle Empire hosts a Christmas buffet lunch at €370 per person, including half a bottle of wine.

Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo features multiple venues. L’Abysse presents a Christmas Eve omakase menu at €450 per person, with wine pairing available for €200. Pavyllon Monte-Carlo offers a six-course Christmas Eve dinner with champagne at €350 per person. The Salle Belle Epoque hosts a Christmas Eve four-course dinner at €250 per adult and €130 per child, with half a bottle of champagne and coffee included. On Christmas Day, the same venue serves brunch with unlimited champagne at €260 per adult and €130 per child.

Monte-Carlo Bay Hotel & Resort’s Blue Bay Marcel Ravin serves Christmas Eve dinner at €420 per person with half a bottle of champagne. The Espace Calypso presents Christmas brunch with unlimited champagne at €260 per person.

Café de Paris Monte-Carlo offers Christmas Eve dinner at €180 per adult and €90 per child, with champagne. Christmas lunch features menu options and Christmas specialities.

The Casino de Monte-Carlo’s Salon Rose provides Christmas dining in an intimate setting with sea views on both December 24th and 25th.

GAIA Monte Carlo

GAIA and NYX Monte Carlo

Open on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and throughout the festive period through to New Year’s Eve, GAIA and NYX Monte Carlo invites guests to capture the spirit of an elegant and timeless holiday season. From refined dining upstairs at GAIA to exceptional cocktails and the infectious atmosphere downstairs at the NYX lounge bar, every visit promises a memorable and celebratory evening.

After exploring the Christmas markets or soaking up the seaside charm, step into GAIA’s bright and airy interiors adorned with pine foliage, plush red accents, and glowing festive lights that deliver ambient Mediterranean winter charm.

Celebrating the bounty of the land and sea, the Christmas menu features GAIA signatures as well as seasonal specials. Highlights include whole seabream carpaccio paired with infused oils and lemon, and the roasted whole chicken truffle with wine sauce and shaved black truffle. The restaurant’s popular dessert features a tower of frozen yoghurt with honey and caramelised walnuts.

On Christmas Eve, lunch is available from 12pm to 2pm and dinner from 7pm to 11pm. On Christmas Day, dining is available from 12pm to 4:30pm.

Robuchon Monaco’s festive programme

Robuchon Monaco has created a series of holiday celebrations extending from Christmas Day through the following weekend. The restaurant presents a Christmas lunch on December 25th featuring festive classics including semi-cooked foie gras, lobster with caviar, white truffle, roast poultry, beef fillet, turbot and traditional desserts.

The celebration continues with Christmas brunches on December 26th, 27th and 28th in a convivial atmosphere. The brunch menu includes oysters, lobster, foie gras, mature cheeses, Christmas yule logs and champagne served freely throughout.

Robuchon Monaco also offers Christmas hampers featuring foie gras, champagne, chocolate truffles, panettone and other delicacies for gifting or personal use, along with an exclusive takeaway collection of complete Christmas meals designed to deliver restaurant-quality dining at home.

Family-focused celebrations

Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo hosts Christmas tea parties in the Salle Belle Epoque from December 20th to 23rd, 3pm to 6pm, with Father Christmas in attendance. The events are priced at €100 per adult and €50 per child.

Meanwhile, Marlow presents its Christmas Tea Party for families and friends seeking festive refreshments in a warm atmosphere.

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Main photo source: Fairmont Monte-Carlo

 

Five-year prison sentence for drunk, speeding driver who killed two Monaco students

by: Cassandra Tanti
17/12/2025

A Monaco court sentenced a 24-year-old Finnish man to five years in prison on Tuesday 16th December for causing a fatal crash that killed two International University of Monaco students two years ago to the day. Mirco P. was convicted of involuntary manslaughter (homicide involontaire) and involuntary causing of injuries (blessures involontaires).

The sentence came exactly two years after the accident in the Millennium Tunnel at the exit of the Principality, which claimed the lives of Dilara Akhundova, 19, from Azerbaijan, and Ayana, 19, from Kazakhstan, whilst seriously injuring two other passengers.

The incident

On 17th December 2023 at around 4:30am, Mirco P. was driving his Audi RS4 with four classmates as passengers after leaving the Twiga nightclub. The group was headed to an after-party in Cap-d’Ail.

According to France 3, the driver displayed a blood alcohol level of 1.87 grams per litre. Expert analysis determined the vehicle struck the tunnel wall at 107 kilometres per hour, with some estimates placing the speed at 110 km/h as the driver accelerated approaching the Millennium Tunnel.

France 3 reports that Mirco P. had disabled the front seatbelt, where Dilara was seated. She died at the scene. Ayana succumbed to her injuries several days later.

Sentencing and victim impact

According to Monaco Matin, the sentence fell below Attorney General Mathias Marchand’s request for six years — the maximum penalty.

France 3 reports that Vugar Akhundov, Dilara’s father, was relieved at the verdict after two years of seeking justice. “Today, we are here to ensure that Monaco is not only a beautiful place, but also a place where the law is respected,” he told France 3.

Akhundov said that he had seen Mirco P. multiple times in Monaco over the two years. “It was extremely painful to see that he was living as if nothing had happened,” he said.

According to France 3, the defendant never contacted the victims’ families throughout the proceedings. “He didn’t even try to approach us to offer condolences, apologies… Nothing. We received nothing,” Akhundov said. The defence attorney noted during the hearing that his client had sent a letter to the victims’ families during the investigation, Monaco Matin reports.

Court proceedings

Monaco Matin reports that whilst the defendant expressed remorse at the hearing, he made several clumsy statements. “I know that I have the greatest share of responsibility but everyone, that evening, made the decision on their own to get into the vehicle,” he initially said, to the amazement of those present.

When given the final word, the young man changed his statement, according to Monaco Matin. “I am 100% responsible for everything. I want everyone to know how sorry I am,” he concluded.

Family members delivered poignant testimony during the hearing. France 3 reports that Ayana’s grandmother, a native of Kazakhstan, stated: “For me, he’s a killer. In the hands of this person, his steering wheel was a weapon.”

Vugar Akhundov told the media: “Human life had no value for him. I would like to tell him: you continue your life as if nothing happened, but you stopped those of two other people. What do you think about that? Is that acceptable to you? Can you live with that on your conscience for the rest of your days?”

Additional penalties

Mirco P. is also banned from driving in the Principality for five years. The question of compensation for the civil parties has been postponed to 30th January 2026.

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Photo by Monaco Life

 

The puzzling true story behind ‘Murder in Monaco’, dropping Wednesday on Netflix

by: Cassandra Tanti
16/12/2025

Spoiler alert: This article discusses the outcome of the case featured in the documentary.

Netflix releases Murder in Monaco on Wednesday 17th December, exploring one of the Principality’s most perplexing tragedies. The documentary revisits the night of 3rd December 1999, when a simple plan to stage a heroic rescue went catastrophically wrong, killing billionaire banker Edmond Safra and nurse Vivian Torrente in his fortified penthouse.

What makes the case particularly strange is that Safra died not from the fire itself, but from a series of fatal misunderstandings. The 67-year-old financier had sold his banking empire to HSBC for $10.3 billion just months earlier and lived in one of Monaco’s most secure buildings. Yet he would die trapped in his own safe room, refusing to open the door to the firefighters who had come to rescue him.

A rescue gone wrong

Ted Maher, a former Green Beret turned nurse, had only recently joined Safra’s care team when he devised what he later described as a plan to secure his job. Fearing dismissal due to tensions with other staff, Maher stabbed himself and set fire to a wastepaper basket, intending to trigger a smoke alarm and then “rescue” his employer.

The fire spread faster than anticipated. When Maher told his colleague Vivian Torrente about supposed intruders, she and Safra locked themselves in a reinforced bathroom. Maher’s lie about armed intruders created a cascade of delays—police searched for non-existent attackers whilst firefighters were held back, fearing a hostage situation.

Safra and Torrente, convinced that intruders were still in the apartment, refused to leave their sanctuary even as firefighters pleaded through the door. By the time emergency services reached them—several hours after the first alarm—both had died from smoke inhalation in what was supposed to be their refuge.

Security paradox

Monaco, known for extensive surveillance and low crime, should have been impervious to such an incident. Safra employed guards reportedly trained by Mossad, yet none of his security team was on duty that night. The very security measures meant to protect him—the reinforced bathroom, the elaborate protocols—became the instruments of his death.

Maher confessed three days later. Monaco’s Criminal Court convicted him of arson causing death in November 2002, sentencing him to 10 years. He served eight before his release in October 2007.

Conspiracies and credibility

Despite the conviction, alternative theories persist. Safra had alerted FBI and Swiss authorities in 1998 about suspicious Russian money movements and co-founded Hermitage Capital Management, later central to the Sergei Magnitsky affair.

Maher maintains his innocence, claiming he was coerced into confessing. His credibility suffered significantly when he was convicted in 2025 of plotting to murder his wife through a paid hitman—another scheme that unravelled.

The Netflix documentary, directed by Hodges Usry, features interviews with journalists, legal experts and Lady Colin Campbell, who wrote a controversial novel allegedly based on Safra’s widow. Murder in Monaco begins streaming on 17th December, examining a case where nearly everything that could go wrong, did.

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Image taken from trailer of Murder in Monaco

 

Prince Albert II and Princess Caroline visit Ardennes honouring historical Grimaldi ties

by: Cassandra Tanti
16/12/2025

Prince Albert II completed a visit to the Ardennes department on Saturday, accompanied by Princess Caroline of Hanover, honouring invitations from the communes of Arnicourt and Château-Porcien that had been postponed eight months earlier. The Prince had been forced to curtail his April visit to the region to attend the papal funeral but remained determined to return at the earliest opportunity.

The visit reflects the Principality’s deep historical connections to the region. The duchy of Rethel, which covered a significant portion of the current Ardennes department, passed through several major European dynasties including Burgundy, Albret, Foix, Clèves and Gonzaga of Mantua before being renamed the duchy of Mazarin in 1663 for the cardinal’s nephew.

Grimaldi family connection

The territory was transmitted to the Grimaldi family through the 1777 marriage of Louise d’Aumont-Mazarin to the future Prince Honoré IV. The title Prince of Château-Porcien remains among the historical titles held by Monaco’s princes.

The Prince and Princess were received in Arnicourt by Christian Chassaing, prefect of the department, Noël Bourgeois, president of the Departmental Council, and Thomas Samyn, the commune’s mayor. They unveiled a sign at the town entrance marking its membership in the network of Grimaldi Historic Sites of Monaco, followed by a ceremony at the town hall.

Princess Caroline joined her brother Prince Albert II for the official visit. Photo credit: Frederic Nebinger, Prince’s Palace

Church restoration and community engagement

The morning continued with a visit to the Church of Saint-Thibault in Château-Porcien, where Mayor Didier Simon presented a restored antique painting funded through the Prince’s patronage. An official address and meeting with local residents followed in the Wilbault hall.

The visit forms part of Prince Albert’s regular programme of visits to locations historically linked to his family and the Principality. These trips maintain connections between Monaco and regions that formed part of the Grimaldi family’s broader territorial holdings across centuries.

The Grimaldi family’s territorial reach extended well beyond the Mediterranean coast during various periods, with holdings and titles across France and Italy reflecting the dynasty’s complex historical position within European nobility and politics.

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Main photo credit: Frederic Nebinger, Prince’s Palace

Monaco bounce back with win over Strasbourg

by: Kyriaki Topalidou
16/12/2025

AS Monaco Basketball returned to the top of the Betclic Elite table on Sunday with a commanding 88-74 victory over Strasbourg at the Salle Gaston Médecin.

The win was a timely response from Vassilis Spanoulis’ side after their frustrating EuroLeague collapse against Fenerbahçe two days earlier, when they squandered a 17-point lead. Even without key scorers Mike James and Nemanja Nedovic, Monaco never relinquished control, setting the tone early and imposing themselves at both ends of the floor.

Nikola Mirotic led the way offensively with 21 points, supported by Jaron Blossomgame’s 16 and 11 from Matthew Strazel. Yet it was Monaco’s defensive intensity that defined the contest.

Matthew Strazel and Terry Tarpey during the game, photo credit: AS Monaco Basket 

Suffocating defence led to frustration

Strasbourg’s backcourt was completely stifled. Marcus Keene, the league’s leading assist provider entering the game, finished with just two assists, while Gabe Brown, the Betclic Elite’s fourth-highest scorer, was held scoreless, missing all nine of his attempts. Frustration boiled over in the third quarter when Brown and Monaco’s Alpha Diallo were involved in a physical altercation, resulting in both players being sent off.

Monaco had already built a commanding advantage, leading by 14 points at the break. Strasbourg briefly cut the deficit to 10 in the third quarter through Mike Davis Jr, who top scored for the visitors with 22, but the comeback never gathered momentum.

The visitors’ discipline completely deserted in the closing stages. Jean-Baptiste Maille, William Pfister and Ben Gregg all fouled out, leaving Strasbourg severely short-handed as Monaco closed out the game comfortably.

The victory lifts Monaco to an 8–2 record, placing them back at the top of the standings ahead of Nanterre and Paris (both 8–3), following Lyon-Villeurbanne’s surprise home defeat to Cholet.

Monaco now face a tough week with back-to-back EuroLeague games, away to Baskonia in Spain on Wednesday and home to Bayern Munich on Friday, before returning to league action against Nanterre next Sunday.

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Main photo credit: AS Monaco Basket

Wannenes Monte Carlo auctions achieve €2 million in December sales

by: Cassandra Tanti
16/12/2025

Wannenes Auction House concluded its winter Monaco sales on 3rd and 4th December at the Hôtel Métropole, with jewellery, luxury handbags and collectible watches achieving combined hammer prices exceeding €1.95 million across the three sessions.

The jewellery auction on 3rd December drew competitive bidding for coloured gemstones and signed pieces, whilst the 4th December sessions featured Hermès handbags and high-complication timepieces from major manufactures.

Jewellery results

An important platinum ring set with a 13.10 x 12.95 x 7.95mm octagonal-cut Burmese ruby achieved €101,600, surpassing its estimate. The ruby, accompanied by SSEF certification attesting to Burmese origin with no heat treatment and minor oiling, anchored the coloured gemstone category.

A platinum ring featuring a 13.00 x 9.05 x 6.55mm octagonal-cut Colombian emerald with SSEF certification and old-cut diamonds sold for €88,900. A gold and silver ring set with a 14.25-carat colour-change sapphire from Sri Lanka, certified as untreated and changing from blue to violet, reached €19,685.

Signed pieces performed strongly. A Van Cleef & Arpels platinum, gold and diamond bandeau bracelet bearing the maker’s mark of Louis Maruzzi, the Italo-French jeweller active in Paris from 1911 to 1944, sold for €76,200. The bracelet, set with old-cut diamonds and numbered 29822, carried French platinum, gold and maker’s hallmarks.

A Bvlgari tricolour gold Tubogas bracelet-watch with 750 hallmark achieved €27,940, whilst a gold and diamond necklace signed M. Buccellati with brilliant-cut diamonds reached €13,335.

Additional results included a platinum ring with a 6.58-carat old-cut diamond (GIA certified, colour W/X, clarity SI1) selling for €34,290, and a pair of gold clip earrings with peridots, onyx and diamonds signed Marina B, France, which achieved €11,440. A pair of gold, natural pearl and diamond pendants with SSEF certification attesting the pearls as natural and formed in a saltwater environment sold for €23,495.

Luxury accessories session

The luxury handbags session on 4th December morning saw Hermès and Chanel models attract international bidders.

A 2024 Hermès Kelly Sellier 25 in Rose Extrême calfskin with palladium-plated hardware, new and unworn with original accessories, achieved €26,670. A Chanel Coco Handle handbag in burgundy faux fur and leather with gold-tone hardware sold for €5,588, whilst a Chanel Timeless Jumbo in pink python with silver-tone hardware and CITES certificate reached €6,350.

Watch auction highlights

The 4th December evening watch session produced the sales’ highest hammer price when an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Skeleton Ref. 25829PT in platinum from 2009 sold for €228,600, more than doubling its low estimate. The watch, numbered 214 with approximately 156 pieces believed produced, came complete with original box, guarantee and adjustment keys.

A Rolex Submariner Milsub Ref. 5517 from 1978 achieved €158,750, exceeding its estimate. These military watches, commissioned by the British Ministry of Defence with fixed bars, NATO straps and circled T marking, are rare in unrestored condition as many were destroyed or modified after decommissioning. The example offered included a second bezel for MilSub furniture.

A Rolex Cosmograph Daytona “Big Red” Paul Newman Ref. 6263 in stainless steel from 1979 sold for €78,000. The watch, featuring a black dial and red “Daytona” inscription, bore “Phoenix Soleil” engraving on the case back, having been gifted by this insurance company to top agents.

From the Cartier selection, a Baby Bamboo Coussin Ref. 78110 in 18-karat yellow gold from circa 1975 achieved €36,830. The 21 x 27mm cushion-shaped watch with manual movement came on its original leather strap with gold deployant clasp.

The auctions drew participation through the Wannenes platform as well as LiveAuctioneers and Drouot portals. Founded in 2001, Wannenes Auction House operates offices in Milan, Genoa, Rome, Turin and Monte Carlo.

The overall total of the auction was €1,945,798, including €1,094,454 in jewellery and handbags, and €851,344 in watches.

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Images sourced from Wannenes