Now that August has arrived, many leading figures in Monaco will be taking their holidays outside the Principality. President of the National Council Stephane Valeri will be spending a week in Portugal and then a few days in the Swiss Alps, he told local French newspaper Monaco Matin.

Archbishop Bernard Barsi will be spending time in a small village high in the French Alps, while Mayor Georges Marsan will be “looking after the house” while also catching up on work at the Town Hall.

Meanwhile, Prince Albert, Princess Charlene and their children will be taking a holiday in a far-flung mystery location, with no public duties planned until the annual picnic for Monegasques on August 31.

Meanwhile, according to the president of the Monaco Association of Travel Agencies, Corinne Bertani, the three most popular destinations for Monegasques taking summer holidays are the US – especially California, Greece, and the fjords of Norway.

Since the recent soccer World Cup, there has also been an upsurge of interest in visits to Moscow and Saint Petersbourg.