Cinemas in Monaco: Beaux-Arts, the Open Air Cinema and Art-House Screenings

Cinema in Monaco

For a country of two square kilometres, Monaco has a surprisingly complete film offer: a two-screen commercial cinema open all year, one of Europe's largest open-air screens for the summer, and a public film institute that runs a serious art-house season with a €8 ticket. What it does not have is a multiplex; for a dozen screens under one roof you go to Nice.

This guide covers the three venues that actually exist, with their current prices, hours and quirks, so you know where to go tonight and what to expect at the door.

Cinéma des Beaux-Arts

The Cinéma des Beaux-Arts is the Principality's only year-round cinema. It occupies the Théâtre Princesse Grace building at 12 avenue d'Ostende, on the slope between the Casino and Port Hercule, a few minutes' walk up from the harbour or down from the Place du Casino.

• Screens: two. Salle 1 seats 200 (plus 4 wheelchair spaces), Salle 2 seats 56 (plus 2). Both are equipped for 3D.
• Programme: current releases, French and international, changing on Wednesdays as in France. Each showing is marked VF (dubbed into French) or VO STF (original version, French subtitles). The weekly programme is published as a PDF on cinemas2monaco.com, where you can also pre-order a seat for a specific showing.
• Timing: the times listed are the start of the session; the film itself starts five to ten minutes later.
• Opening: all year. As of September 2026 the cinema's own site notes that it is closed on Thursdays; check the programme before setting out.
• Contact: +377 93 25 36 81, cinemasporting@monaco.mc.

Ticket prices (2026)

Multi-ticket cards bring the price down further: 10 tickets for €90, 20 tickets for €170, or 10 under-12 tickets for €60.

The Monaco Open Air Cinema

From mid-June to early September, the Monaco Open Air Cinema takes over the roof of the Parking des Pêcheurs, avenue de la Quarantaine, directly below the Prince's Palace in Monaco-Ville. Take the car-park lift to the level 2 exit. The setting is the point: a 220 m² screen, described by the operator as the largest open-air cinema screen in Europe, 500 cushioned seats including a standing area and a small private lounge, and the sea behind the screen. In 2026 the projector was replaced with a 4K laser unit and the sound system upgraded to 7.1 surround.

• One film a night, always in original version with French subtitles; the programme mixes the summer's big releases with a few family titles.
• Hours shift with the sunset: in June and July gates open at 9 pm, the session starts at 9:30 pm and the film at 10 pm; in August everything moves half an hour earlier (8:30 / 9 / 9:30 pm); in September another half hour (8 / 8:30 / 9 pm).
• No reservations. Tickets are sold at the door only, from the moment the gates open. Arrive early for the popular titles.
• Prices are not published online. In recent seasons the three seat categories were priced at roughly €12 (chair), €18 (recliner) and €23 (sofa), with a student rate around €9; treat those as an order of magnitude and check at the box office.
• CinéBar: a real bar with wine, champagne, cocktails and soft drinks, plus hot dogs, burgers, paninis, brownies and ice cream.
• Contact: +377 93 25 86 80. Season programme on cinemas2monaco.com.

The 2026 season opened on 19 June and closed in the first week of September. Bring a layer: the sea breeze picks up after 10 pm even in July, as the summer guide warns.

Institut audiovisuel de Monaco: the art-house season

The Institut audiovisuel de Monaco is the Principality's public film archive, based at L'Engelin, 83-85 boulevard du Jardin Exotique. Since 2012 it has run Tout l'art du cinéma, a season of classics, restorations, documentaries and auteur cinema, often introduced by a critic, historian or filmmaker. The season runs from September to June and is published on institut-audiovisuel.mc; the 2026-27 season opens on 22 September 2026 with Jacques Tati's Playtime at the Grimaldi Forum.

Where the screenings happen, and what they cost:

• Théâtre des Variétés, 1 boulevard Albert Ier, the main venue. Two minutes from the station's Port Hercule exit; Parking de la Condamine next door, with the night tariff from 7 pm. €8, €4 for students and under-21s, or a 5-screening pass for €30. Tickets go on sale at 6:30 pm on the night.
• La Petite Salle at L'Engelin, the Institut's own screening room, for archive-based and experimental programmes. €5, tickets 30 minutes before the session; reservations recommended on +377 97 98 43 26 or info@institut-audiovisuel.mc.
• Grimaldi Forum and Salle Garnier for a handful of larger evenings each season, such as the ciné-concerts; those are ticketed through the venue.

Two practical points that catch newcomers: the Institut does not accept bank cards at its own venues (cash or the Carlo payment app), and social-aid DASO tickets are accepted.

Festivals and special screenings

• The Monte-Carlo Film Festival de la Comédie, held at the Grimaldi Forum in early spring, is Monaco's one true film festival, with a competition of international comedies and public screenings; see the festival guide.
• The Grimaldi Forum hosts occasional premieres and screenings tied to its exhibitions; check the Grimaldi Forum events page.
• For Monaco as a film location, from To Catch a Thief to the Grand Prix sequences, see Monaco in film and television.

Beyond the border

The nearest French cinemas are the Eden in Menton (a quarter of an hour by train) and Le Cinéma de Beaulieu in Beaulieu-sur-Mer. For a multiplex, IMAX or a wide choice of VO showings on the same evening, Nice is the answer, 25 minutes away by TER train.

Related guides

• Theatre in Monaco, for the Théâtre Princesse Grace's stage season in the same building
• Rainy-day activities, where the Beaux-Arts is the obvious fallback
• Nightlife in Monaco, for what to do after the credits