Monaco is two square kilometres of cliff, casino and very expensive boats, and it has somehow become the best place on the Riviera to park a normal car. Every public car park gives you the first hour for nothing. If you drive electric, the charger next to your space doesn't ask for money either. Meanwhile half the drivers on the coast are circling Beausoleil hunting for a free kerb, when the answer is a clean, well-lit garage with a lift straight up to the Palace.
So here's how to do Monaco on a sandwich budget, what to do if the police tow your car, and which barbajuan stall is worth the queue.
01 · ParkingParking rules: the country is basically one big garage
Street parking barely exists. There are about a thousand metered spaces in the whole principality, they cost €2.40 an hour, and most have a two-hour limit. Forget them.
Instead, Monaco runs around 40 public car parks with roughly 20,000 spaces, operated by the government's Service des Parkings Publics. The 2026 tariff, set by ministerial order, works like this:
- 0–60 minutes: free
- 1h15: €2.90 · 2h: €7.40 · 3h: €11.90 · 4h: €15.50
- 24 hours: capped at €24
- Night, 20:00–08:00: €0.20 per 15 minutes (not at the Casino car park)
One detail catches people out. The free hour is a threshold, not a discount. Stay 61 minutes and you pay for all 61. Set a timer on your phone; the barrier doesn't negotiate.
The old town on the Rock, Monaco-Ville, is closed to most visitors' cars. Only Monaco plates and French cars registered in the Alpes-Maritimes (06) may drive up. Everyone else parks at Parking des Pêcheurs, built into the Rock near the Oceanographic Museum, and rides the lifts. Mind the 1.90 m height limit if you're in a van. Monaco has 79 public lifts and 35 escalators, so you'll barely climb a step all day.
Car parks worth knowing
| Car park | Price | EV |
|---|---|---|
| Parking des PêcheursChemin des Pêcheurs · for the Palace, Cathedral & Oceanographic Museum | 1st hour free · max €24/24h · height 1.90 m | EV |
| Parking du CasinoPlace du Casino · Monte-Carlo | 1st hour free · no cheap night rate here | EV |
| Parking des Salines99 Bd du Jardin Exotique · 1,790 spaces | First 45 min free · up to 4h15 for €11 · max €24 | 100 points |
| Parking du Grimaldi Forum4 Av. Princesse Grace · Larvotto | 1st hour free · max €24/24h | EV |
| Parking de la CondaminePort Hercule · market & harbour | 1st hour free · fills up on event days | — |
02 · TowedCar towed? Don't panic, it's in Fontvieille
The Monaco police don't mess about, especially around events. If your car is gone, assume towed before stolen. This is a country with cameras on nearly every corner and only a handful of roads out; car thieves have better options.
Call the police on +377 93 15 30 15. They handle both towing and theft reports. Then go to the Fontvieille police station on Place du Campanin, which is open day and night, to pay. After that you walk over to Parking des écoles de Fontvieille to get the car.
Bring a card. Removal costs €200 for a car, storage is €30 per day, and you'll pay the original fine on top. The official fee order starts storage after 36 hours but the government's own web page says 24, so plan for 24 and be pleasantly surprised.
If your car has disappeared
- Who took it
- Direction de la Sûreté Publique (Monaco Police)
- Phone
- Police, 24h: +377 93 15 30 15
Emergency: 17 - Collect it at
- Pay first at the Fontvieille police station, Place du Campanin (open day and night), then collect the car at Parking des écoles de Fontvieille.
- Hours
- Police station open 24 hours
- What it costs
- Car €200 removal, then €30 per day of storage (the official order says after 36 hours; the government web page says 24 — assume 24). Plus the parking fine.
- Bring
- Passport or ID, registration papers (carte grise / V5C), insurance, and a card to pay.
03 · EVFree EV charging: Monaco's best-kept open secret
This is the part you came for. Monaco's public charging network, Monaco ON, is free. You don't need a subscription, a badge or an app account. You park, plug in, and the kilowatts are on the Prince. You still pay normal parking, but with the free first hour you can top up a few percent for nothing at all.
The government lists 17 public car parks with charging points and around 300 plugs underground, plus street stations. The biggest bank is at Parking des Salines in the west, with 100 charging points and online booking since July 2026. The YourMonaco app shows which plugs are free right now, with Type 2 and CCS connectors.
A fair warning. Free charging costs the state about €1.7 million a year, and in November 2025 the government said it was studying ways to keep it free for residents and workers while charging visitors. At the time of writing, nothing has changed. Check before you plan a road trip around it.
Where to charge
- Parking des Salines — 99 Bd du Jardin Exotique. 100 charging points, the biggest bank in town
- Parking du Grimaldi Forum — 4 Av. Princesse Grace. Handy for Larvotto beach
- Parking des Pêcheurs — Chemin des Pêcheurs. Charge while you watch the guard change
- Parking du Centre Commercial de Fontvieille — Av. Albert II. Supermarket upstairs for picnic supplies
04 · Free spotsHow to park for free (or nearly) near the sights
Monaco's cheapest parking tricks are all legal and, frankly, a bit smug. Match the car park to the sight, set your timer, and pick the right hour of the day.
For the Palace, Cathedral and Oceanographic Museum, use Pêcheurs. For the Casino and Carré d'Or, use the Casino, Boulingrins or Métropole car parks. For Port Hercule and the market, use Condamine. For Larvotto beach, go to Larvotto or Grimaldi Forum. For a long day, head straight to Salines.
Free or nearly-free spots
The 59-minute visit
Every public car park gives the first hour free. Park at Pêcheurs, ride the lift up to the Palace, see the Cathedral, come back down. Doable, if nobody stops for ice cream.
Sunday street parking
Monaco's roughly 1,000 metered street spaces are free on Sundays at the time of writing. Weekdays they cost €2.40 an hour, 2 hours max.
Night is almost free
Between 20:00 and 08:00 most public car parks charge €0.20 per 15 minutes. Dinner in Monte-Carlo for the price of a coffee's worth of parking. Not at the Casino car park, though.
All day? Go to Salines
Up to 4h15 for €11, 24 hours capped at €24, 100 EV chargers, and you can book online.
Hotels with free parking
- Hotels inside Monaco — Monaco. We haven't found one with genuinely free parking. Valet at the smarter places runs around €50 a night. Budget it or sleep in France.
- Riviera Marriott Hotel La Porte de Monaco — Cap d'Ail, France, right on the Monaco border. Parking is not free here either (about €25/day when we checked, so no cheaper than Monaco's €24 daily cap). You save on the room, not the car.
⚠ The small print on 'free' parking
- Minute 61 costs you the whole stay. The free hour isn't a discount, it's a threshold: stay 75 minutes and you pay for all 75.
- Beausoleil and Cap d'Ail aren't free either. The French towns next door have paid zones, short limits and fines. "Just over the border" is not a parking strategy.
- Grand Prix season is towing season. Circuit build-up starts in late February and roads stay closed into July. Signs go up; cars go away.
- Free charging may end for visitors. In late 2025 the government said it would look at making non-residents pay. Check the Monaco ON app before you rely on it.
- Leave nothing visible in cars parked on the French side. Monaco itself has cameras on every corner; the hill towns above don't.
