In search of... The bank at Monte Carlo

What's all this about a bank? Surely a few travellers' cheques and a credit card will get me through the day?

What's all this about a bank? Surely a few travellers' cheques and a credit card will get me through the day?

That's not the point. Along with Grace Kelly and the Monaco Grand Prix, Monte Carlo is famous because of its 19th-century cliff-top casino and the "breaking of the bank" there in 1891.

But who cares what happened at a tiny seaside gambling den?

In the late 18th-century, Monte Carlo had the only legal casino in Europe and because of that - and the enormous sums spent tarting the place up - it became the most exciting resort in the world, like today's Orlando and Sun City rolled into one.

Monte Carlo's site was previously an undeveloped rocky headland and the name, dreamed up in honour of Prince Charles of Monaco, doesn't sound so exotic when you translate it as "Mount Charles". Despite widespread condemnation from anti-gambling protesters, however, it soon became the most glamorous spot on the Riviera.

One hundred years ago, British newspapers carried regular reports from the casino as if it were a sports event. Interest reached a peak when the mysterious Londoner Charles Wells "broke the bank" in 1891. He returned home in triumph and the catchy music-hall song was written about his success (which was worth about £4m in today's money). "The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo" was a worldwide success; Wells became a temporary celebrity and thousands rushed to Monte Carlo to try to replicate his wins.

Can I still go and do it now?

The casino is still open every day to the public from noon. Tourists constantly wander in and try their luck. It costs €10 (£7) to get in and you need to show your passport. The minimum bet at roulette is €5 (£3). You could stake everything you've got on the same number coming up five times in a row as Charles Wells did but, unlike him, you're likely to enjoy a very expensive few seconds and come away feeling a bit of a chump.

Is the casino worth seeing?

Surprisingly, yes. It must be the most attractive, atmospheric and historic casino in the world. It was designed in 1875 by Charles Garnier, the Belle Epoque architect of the Paris Opéra, and is stuffed with statues, frescoes, ornate plasterworks, allegorical paintings, stained glass windows and marble pillars.

The grand building includes the Monte Carlo Opera House, a crude but effective attempt to lend respectability to what was once considered a theme park to vice. The casino's money persuaded Puccini, Rossini and Verdi to conduct there; it was the venue of Berlioz's first performance, and Caruso, Domingo and Pavarotti have all sung from the stage.

Outside there are grand balustrades, fountains and formal gardens, perfectly designed for an idle aristocrat's pre-ruination stroll. Today, you can admire the views along the Riviera coast, then muse on how they used to be known as "Suicide Terrace" - because it was where penniless gentlemen rushed from the tables to terminate their shame on the rocks below.

Even today, as in all casinos, there are some disappointingly seedy folk wandering around who look as if they need some fresh air and a change of clothes. Counteracting that, Monte Carlo boasts an entertainingly high percentage of rhinestone-encrusted Amazons and bouffant-bonced sugar daddies in white suits. There are Vegas-style ranks of slot machines too, but at least in Monte Carlo they are punctuated by life-sized statues of nymphs holding brass lamps.

So what does "breaking the bank" actually mean then?

The song helped the term "breaking the bank" to pass into common usage, but the phrase - or, rather, faire sauter la banque in its original French - was entirely a Victorian invention by François Blanc, the casino's cunning and ruthless owner. He realised the publicity value of tales of big winnings and instituted a special ritual to emphasise these rare events. If a gambler won more than the chips currently held on the table where he was playing, he was said to have "broken the bank". A black crepe shroud was placed over the table and play transferred to another table until replacement chips were brought in from a neighbouring room.

Of course, it was all a charade. Wells may have broken the bank 12 times in one day in 1891, but no gambler has ever come close to denting the entire reserves of the casino.

Today's efficient system means that breaking the bank is impossible - the chips are continually being topped up at each table. The black shroud routine has long since been curtailed: if a table is closed down for any reason the croupier simply locks the wheel and lifts a plastic cover over it.

So after all that, there's not actually a bank to see then?

Coincidentally, Monaco - Europe's smallest state after the Vatican - is now an international centre for banking. There are 45 different banks in the one-mile-wide state. But none of them is a tourist attraction.

There are, however, some great sights to see apart from the casino - the Grimaldi family's royal palace and its daily Trumpton-like changing of the- guard (11.55am), the stylish Edwardian aquarium, the chocolate-box old town and cathedral, the view from the Jardin Exotique, which is open every day, admission €6.60 (£5).

Sitting at a café table and scanning the gleaming gin palaces in the newly enlarged harbour for celebrities can take up another few hours, and if you're a fan, walking the Grand Prix route is a popular stroll.

You can't afford to stay there, but take a peep in the breathtaking foyer of the Hotel de Paris next to the casino. Pretend to look at the menu or pick up a brochure but admire the intimidatingly lavish decor. The bronze horse on a plinth has one very shiny leg. Gamblers have been touching it for luck for more than 100 years. It's worth having a quick grope yourself - you never know.

So how do I get there?

Monte Carlo Casino, Place du Casino, Monaco, is open every day, from 12pm. There is disabled access via the lift next to the front entrance (www.montecarloresort.com).

Nice is the nearest international airport and a spectacular helicopter shuttle to Monaco is popular. It leaves every 20 minutes, takes seven minutes and costs €69 (£48) each way. Contact Heli Air Monaco (00 377 92 050 050; www.heliairmonaco.com; la-cote-dazur.com/heliair).

There are also direct motorway coaches from the airport hourly between 9am and 9pm. The journey takes about 45 minutes and costs €21.50 (£15) return. The normal service bus via Nice is much cheaper but can take more than an hour. For further information, contact the tourist board (020-7352 9962; www.monaco-tourisme.com).

Until 11 July, Cresta City Breaks (0870 161 0915; www.crestaonline.co.uk) offers two-nights at the four-star Hotel Hermitage for £445 per person, based on two sharing, including return flights, helicopter transfer, b&b accommodation and access to the Monte Carlo Beach Club and to the casino.

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