Oceanographic Museum of Monaco: description, address, opening hours

Not every Russian tourist gets on his travels to the Principality of Monaco. Our compatriots who are looking for a quiet and quite ordinary beach holiday come here rarely. But those who have the opportunity to travel all over Europe in search of adventure, will definitely look into this miniature state. Despite the fact that the principality, by Russian standards, has a fairly small area, there is something to see. First of all, every tourist considers it his duty to visit the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco - a place where you can learn almost everything about the oceans of our planet. It will be equally interesting for children and adults alike.

History of the Museum

The Monaco Oceanographic Museum has existed for more than one hundred years. It was founded by Prince Albert I, who conceived it as an elegant temple of science and art. The museum is one of the main attractions of Monaco, the interest of tourists is not only its contents, but also the appearance of the building itself. Its architecture resembles something elegant, conjuring up the image of a frigate flying along the waves. Moreover, there is a museum in the Old City of Monaco on top of a steep cliff hanging over the sea.

The prince built the museum building in the eighty-ninth year of the nineteenth century, and seven years later an institute for the study of the World Ocean was opened within its walls. It exists in the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco until now, tourists have the opportunity to get acquainted with some of its scientific projects designed to draw public attention to the pollution of the Earth's hydrosphere and the disappearance of many marine inhabitants. All the exhibits of the museum are so interestingly arranged that it is simply impossible to break away from the exposition. Tourists are ready to spend the whole day here, plunging into the incredible world of the ocean depths.

Oceanographic Museum of Monaco: description

The museum consists of five floors with a total area of six thousand square meters. On them there are huge aquariums, beautiful lagoons, expositions about the history of the world ocean, its development and forecasts for the near future. Also in the museum you will find skeletons of the largest mammals, once inhabiting and still inhabiting the sea depths. On the territory of the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco are several restaurants and souvenir shops, and on the roof of the last floor there is an observation deck, from which opens an incredible view of the sea.

Underwater World of the Museum

The giant underwater gallery occupies two basement floors of the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco. Photos made in this part of the museum are simply incredibly beautiful, because tourists have the opportunity to admire more than six thousand species of marine life. Most of them come from the tropical seas and the Mediterranean.

Exposition is built very competently - every inhabitant of the aquarium has a sign with a detailed description of its kind and its features. Under some aquariums are interactive screens that are very colorful and interesting about everything you need to know about this or that marine inhabitant. The only drawback for Russians is the fact that the choice of foreign languages in the menu is rather limited:

• English;
• Italian;
• French.

In beautiful lagoons and aquariums, there are sea horses, bright tropical fish, jellyfish, octopuses and even bloodthirsty sharks. In one of the lagoons, under the supervision of a museum employee, you can even stroke a shark and make a photo with it. All this variety of marine inhabitants literally fascinates tourists who spend several hours on the ground floors, even without noticing the time flown by.

"Adoption" of marine life

It is interesting that each pet of the aquarium can be "adopted" by a tourist from any corner of the planet. If you like any marine dweller, then via e-mail or by going to the museum's website you can go through the procedure of "adoption". It will cost from hundred to five hundred euros, payment is made by usual bank card. After that, your pet will receive a certificate for your pet and tickets to the museum so that you can visit your new friend for free at any time.

Expositions of the first two floors

Two floors of the Oceanographic Museum are filled with a huge number of exhibits associated with the sea. Here tourists will find the skeletons of ancient inhabitants of the sea depths, which became extinct before the appearance of man on the planet. And some were exterminated by people, and now only the bones left by the creators of the museum were left of them.

A great delight in all visitors is the skeleton of a whale twenty meters in length. About this giant want to capture themselves tourists of all ages.

Museum exhibits

On the third and fourth floors are collected exhibits telling about the development of the ocean depths. One of the rarest specimens is a submarine assembled in the distant eighteenth century. Very interesting for children visiting the museum's exposition is an ancient diving suit that looks a bit ridiculous and incongruous for our contemporaries.

Also here you can get acquainted with the research of oceanologists. They tell us about the place in the ecosystem of every inhabitant of the sea depths. They also give predictions about the consequences that unreasonable use of nature and purposeful destruction of certain species of animals will bring.

Observation platform and other entertaining corners of the museum

On the last floor of the museum there are a lot of interesting things. First of all, all tourists want to climb to the observation deck, from where you can see the entire Cote d'Azur. A special area for children is equipped, where they can be distracted from the study of the museum exposition.

It is on the last floor of a cozy restaurant, where you can taste a delicious dessert or a full dinner with a view of the sea. For the kids, the menu has a lot of interesting and easy dishes, which are also very useful.

No child will pass the tortoise island, where you can feed these unwieldy creatures and watch their measured life. Near the turtle enclosure there are always a lot of visitors who want to take pictures of these lovely inhabitants of our planet.

Library and gift shop

At the exit from the museum there is a library, which contains unique materials on the study of the oceans. Many of the records are made by the hand of Jacques Yves Cousteau, who served as the director of this institution since the mid-twentieth century. He was in close friendship with the founder of the museum and made a huge contribution to its development.

In a small souvenir shop, cute toys, books, various items related to marine themes, and even dishes are sold. From here no one leaves empty-handed.

The Monaco Oceanographic Museum: address

The museum is very easy to reach from the famous Princely Palace. From him to the avenue of Saint-Martin, where the museum is located, there are numerous signs. Usually the Old City tourists go around in a very short time, so you will not be able to get lost in the search for a museum. The exact address is Monaco, Monaco Ville, Avenue St-Martin.

Schedule

If you ever find yourself in the Principality, be sure to visit the Monaco Oceanographic Museum. Its opening hours depend on the time of the year. For example, from October to the very first month of spring you can view the exposition from ten in the morning until six in the evening. In the spring and in September, the working day is extended by one hour, and in the summer season the museum opens at half past nine in the morning and closes at eight o'clock in the evening.

The cost of an adult ticket varies within fourteen euros. If you are planning to visit the Princely Palace, you will get a general ticket allowing you to see both Monaco attractions at a price of nineteen euros.

Most travelers call the most wonderful place on the entire coast is the Oceanographic Museum in Monaco. The reviews are full of admiration and sincere enthusiasm, caused by unique exhibits brought from different parts of the world. Even if you are not too interested in the history of studying the oceans, you still have to spend time with this museum, which will certainly give you a lot of positive emotions.