Palais Princier

Don’t leave the principality without taking in this salmon-pink fantasy, the Grimaldis’s seat of government, built over a 13th-century Genoese fortress. When the white-and-red banner is flying, Prince Albert II is in residence and the palace is closed to the public. But you still can admire the cannons (donated by Louis XIV) and check out the daily changing of the guard, at 11:55 A.M, on the huge square. During the summer months, there are thirty-minute tours of the throne room and the sumptuous state apartments, chockablock with Venetian antiques and frescoes. In the evening, the lovely mosaic courtyard is open to the public for starlit classical concerts. Closed November through May.