Anyone ever been to Monaco during the GP? I'll bet it's nutty that whole week. My buddies and I used to go so the USGP at Indy, and now that that's defunct, one fellow suggested that we try Monaco just once. It would be pretty cool -- the holy grail of racing, I suppose. The major proponent of the idea is talking about covering the airfare, so it's not entirely untenable; what a weekend that could be! Wonder how far outside Monaco we'd have to stay to keep accommodations reasonable?

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

I'll never go, I hear it's damn near impossible to find a decent mooring spot for the yacht!

Ha! I have been to Monaco precisely once. During a TDY to France, we had a free weekend and three of us rented a car. We drove from our base at Istres to Geneva, then on to Chamonix, and finally spent the last day coming down through Italy and then through Monaco. We stopped and strolled around Monaco, admired the exotics (cars, women, yachts, etc...), and said to ourselves, "well, I have been to Monaco; don't see why I could ever justify coming back." Now, with the prospect of free passage to the region, it's a vague possibility. I just wonder how do-able an F1 weekend there is.

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

All joking aside, the Monaco GP is probably the only one I would ever want to see. Whether from the Casino or at the hairpin at Tabac . . . it brings back all those great Rob Walker reports from Road & Track.

Happened to be there once while on business during the GP. Forget a hotel in town. If you reserve now you may get a room in 2011. I stayed in Ventimiglia, Italy. Not too far and a nice drive along the coast. I found the usual tourist stuff (resturants, casinos, shopping) not too expensive. They didn't jack up prices for the event. Parking will be a huge problem but it is do-able. You MUST dress (coat and tie) for the James Bond (Casino Royale) casino but the others are more casual. Don't forget tto climb the hill to see tha palace and the old original town.

Go ... you will love it.

I would suggest a company that specializes in GP events. They take care of everything but it is not cheap!

http://www.gptours.com/Monaco-Grand-Prix

In my younger days we saw a couple GPs at Watkins Glen.

Montreal is a good choice as an alternative.

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'86 300E 5 speed
'71 Triumph TR6
'46 Cushman Scooter
'41 Ford 9N tractor

Unfortunately not an option. The reason the trip is even a possibility for me is that a buddy *may* be covering the airfare. If we get to go, it'll have to be on a shoestring budget; that's going to be fun in Monaco, huh?

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

Gawd I miss those Rob Walker reports. They were as much about his interactions with the drivers as it was about the race. His reports had a very human touch to them. I remember one story he wrote about spending the day at the Ferrari test track with Villanueve and Scheckter. At the end of the day Gilles had to borrow Scheckters car to drive home because his own was broken down, and Schekter did not want to give it to him because he knew Gilles would beat the snot out of it. Funny stuff. Wish I had a copy of that article.

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