Columbus Monte-Carlo, the hotel a Formula 1 driver started

The Columbus is one of those hotels you understand better through its story than its star rating. It’s a 3-star, but it feels nothing like a station hotel. It sits in Fontvieille, the calmest part of Monaco, with the Princess Grace Rose Garden in front and terraces on most of its rooms. Below is what it offers, what’s charged on top and the kind of trip I think it fits.

From Coulthard’s project to Hilton’s Curio Collection

The hotel tells its own story. In April 2001, Formula 1 driver David Coulthard bought an old 3-star in Fontvieille and turned it into something with its own style, betting on something rare in the Monaco of the time, simplicity. London & Regional bought it in 2010, the Bertout group, a French family firm, took over in December 2022, and since December 2023 it has been part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, so your stay earns Hilton Honors points.

The racing link hasn’t gone away. The hotel says it has hosted drivers including Michael Schumacher, Niki Lauda, Jenson Button, Sebastian Vettel and George Russell. For anyone coming to Monaco for the motor racing, I think that’s a nice touch, and if that’s you, the Monaco Grand Prix has the dates and grandstands.

What are the rooms like at the Columbus?

There are 181, 29 of them suites, all refurbished in 2018 in blues and ochres. What I like most is that two thirds have a terrace. Depending on the room, you look out over the rose garden, the sea, the pool or the old town on the Rock. When booking, I’d ask outright for a sea view, because the difference from a street-facing room is huge.

Two larger options are worth knowing. The Columbus Suite covers 71 m², with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and three terraces. The Family Suite, on the top floor, is two suites joined by a private corridor, sleeping up to six, each with its own bathroom. There are also 10 serviced apartments for longer stays. I can’t give you a nightly price, since the hotel publishes no fixed rate, like the rest of Monaco.

A sea-view pool and a daytime restaurant

The pool is outdoors, heated and faces the sea. It opens from mid-April to early November, weather permitting, and closes on Thursday mornings for maintenance. There’s a gym with Technogym equipment, and reception and room service run 24 hours.

Tavolo, the restaurant, is Mediterranean with a terrace. It does breakfast from 06:30 to 10:30 and lunch only Monday to Friday, 12:00 to 14:30, with a dish of the day and a seasonal menu. In the late afternoon The Bar opens from 16:00 to 23:00, moving out to the terrace in summer. My reading is that the hotel is built for breakfast and relaxing, and you’ll go out for dinner. My budget-by-budget picks are in where to eat in Monaco.

Fontvieille, the good and the less good

Fontvieille was reclaimed from the sea below the Rock. It has its own marina, Stade Louis II and a shopping centre with a hypermarket, and it’s quiet and pleasant for a stroll, with the Palace a climb away. I cover it all in my guide to Fontvieille.

The flip side is that it’s a fair way from the station and from Casino Square. The hotel suggests buses 4 or 6 towards Fontvieille, getting off at Roseraie, and runs a free electric shuttle within Monaco, though only outbound from the hotel, on a fixed route and timetable, and it has to be booked. For everything else, the public lifts and buses are explained in getting around Monaco.

What you pay on top

The Columbus publishes its extras, which I appreciate because plenty of hotels don’t. Valet parking in a covered 75-space car park costs €30 per 24 hours from 1 November to 1 April and €40 for the rest of the year, and it’s free if you’re only coming to eat. A private car from Nice Airport costs €180 or €200 for one or two people, plus €20 at night. Dogs are welcome at €20 a night, as long as they’re never left alone in the room.

My verdict on the Columbus

I’d recommend it to anyone staying three or four days who wants a terrace, a sea-view pool and a quiet neighbourhood and doesn’t mind hopping on a bus. I’d also point a family of five or six towards the Family Suite, which is hard to find in Monaco.

I wouldn’t pick it for a one-night stop with luggage or for a trip done mostly by train. For that, the Novotel Monte-Carlo, three minutes from the station, makes more sense. And to see every hotel by area and category before you decide, head to where to stay in Monaco.