The Gambling History of Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo is an administrative area in Monaco, and is separated into two parts known as the quarter and the ward. The quarter has a population of 15,200 while the ward has a population of 3,500.
The city of Monte Carlo is a melting pot of cultures with the languages of English, Italian, Russian, German, and Japanese widely spoken here. It's easy to find someone to communicate with no matter what language you speak.
Monte Carlo also has 300 days a year of sunshine and the highest police per capita rate in the whole world, making it one of the safest places to visit. With their state of the art high tech surveillance, crimes are almost non-existent.
Monte Carlo Casino
Monte Carlo Casino's official name is Casino de Monte-Carlo and was opened 154 years ago in the year of 1863.
Princess Caroline, spouse of Prince Florestan I, was the first to come up with the idea of a casino in Monaco after they were facing bankruptcy in 1848 after the towns of Menton and Roquebrune declared independence from Monaco and refused to pay taxes.
In 1854, the son of Florestan, Charles, got together Albert Aubert and Napoleon Langlois, both Frenchmen, to draw up a proposal for a gambling casino, English-styled villas, and a spa that treated diseases. These plans would require 4 million francs to complete.
They were granted 30 years to operate this business and Aubert and Langlois opened a casino in a mansion in 1856. They opened it in Villa Bellevu, which they intended to be temporary location.
Only a year later in 1857, they sold their rights because of the lack of business. Business was hard to come by because there were few or no roads connecting Monaco to the Nice and the rest of Europe so they got far fewer guest than they had originally anticipated.
The rights to the casino and resort ended up with Pierre Auguste Daval. The establishment moved several times until they settled in an area names Les Spelugues, or The Caves. Construction started there in 1858 and finished in 1863.
The establishment started turning profit in the year of 1859 during construction but it was not to the scale that Princess Caroline wanted. She attempted to recruit Francois Blanc, who was the operator of the Bad Homburg casino in Germany, but he declined.
Through determination and persistence from Princess Caroline, Blanc finally agreed to take over the business in 1963. Blanc quickly grew the business and was the single majority stockholder. He got a 50-year concession which would end in 1913.
Blanc insisted on changing the name of the casino area, Spelugues, to something simpler and more attractive to casino visitors. The name was changed to Monte Carlo to honor Prince Charles.
Blanc's changes to the construction in 1878-79 included adding a concert hall and expanding and redesigning the gaming rooms.
In 1880-1890 another gaming room was added and many parts of the building were remolded but the original Beaux Arts style still remains intact to this day.
Today the casino offers several different games including:
The casino today offers many amenities and activities including:
They also have several fine dining and cozy restaurants:
Gambler's Fallacy
The gambler's fallacy, which is also known as Monte Carlo fallacy and fallacy of the maturity of chances, is a belief that lost gamblers millions in a single night. The gambler's fallacy is the belief that past behavior influences future behavior. It seems like a good belief on the surface, until you take it into a casino.
In 1913 in the Monte Carlo Casino, a player at the roulette table noticed that the ball kept falling into black, so everyone using the gambler's fallacy threw their money on the table believing that it would have to land on red.
But it didn't, for 26 spins in a row.
The more times the roulette wheel spun, the more gamblers bet. Then on the 27th spin it finally landed on red. Those winners rejoiced but made the mistake of following the Gambler's fallacy and believing that because there was a black streak, there would now be a red one.
But there wasn't, and over the course of the whole night gamblers using the gambler's fallacy lost millions.
European Poker Tour
The European Poker Tour, or EPT, is a series of poker tournaments that holds their grand finale in Monte Carlo each year. EPT began in 2004 due to the increased popularity in Texas holdem. PokerStars has owned EPT since 2011 and works with Sunset + Vine television to broadcast the event to all of Europe.
Season 13 is currently on and is planning to use Monte Carlo for the grand finale as usual. Only 1 of 13 seasons has held their grand finale elsewhere and that was in season 7 the finale was held in Madrid.
Other Things to Do in Monte Carlo
Le Metropole Shopping Center
Le Metrople, or Magic, shopping center is a three story mall with sweeping marble staircases, designer clothes, chandeliers and anything else your heart desires. They also have many pastry shops, restaurants and cafes for you to enjoy.
Japanese Gardens
Japanese Gardens is a free admissions park that replicates the outdoors of Japan with mountains, hills, brooks, waterfalls, and beaches. There are many benches and areas to sit and enjoy the flowers or fish in the ponds. It's close to the casino and can be walked from there to enjoy some fresh air.
Oceanographic Museum
The Oceanographic Museum of Monaco is a museum and aquarium combined and it's breathtaking. The aquarium features many different types of sea life both large and small and with more than 6,000 specimens in their reconstructed natural habitat. It's one of the oldest aquariums in the world, with records as early as 1903.
Antique Car Collection
The Private Collection of Antique Cars of H.S.H Prince Rainier III is on display in Monte Carlo and is listed as one of the top attractions. The collection spans from vintage to classic, and racing to Mercedes. They also have cars that are over 100 years old. Each car has a written history with it and there are even cars that have been featured in movies and driven by famous actors.
Boulingrins Gardens
Boulingrins Gardens, or Jardin Du Casino, is in the casino square and is a garden that has a large variety of plants including many exotic species. You can enjoy the fish and ducks at the pond or a few high end shops that are nearby.
Grand Prix
The Monaco Gran Prix is found in Monte Carlo and many events are held there throughout the year. You can practice on it one day and meat famous drivers the next.
Sports
Many different types of sports, events, and venues are available in Monte Carlo such as:
Yearly events
Plenty of yearly events occur in and around Monte Carlo such as:
Monte Carlo is a beautiful and exotic vacation destination for rich and regular people alike. They have everything including the beautiful sea, entertainment, dining, and gambling.
It wouldn't be a surprise to see several famous high rollers visiting Monte Carlo to take in some culture, and to gamble in the famous Monte Carlo Casino.
Monte Carlo is also a wonderful family destination because of the many yearly events, sports, museums, and gardens to take in.
There's a little something for everyone in Monte Carlo.
