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It’s good to see that Monaco has its priorities right. This tiny stretch of coastline on the French Riviera may cover less than 2km but the reigning Grimaldi family has still managed to find the space to produce the principality’s own beer. It’s high-quality stuff, as you would imagine from a country that has long had a reputation for being little more than an exclusive members’ club.

Yet surprisingly, the beer is a very reasonable €4 a bottle and from where I’m sitting at an outdoor table in the heart of the old town (Monaco-Ville) the view is of medieval side streets rather than the cash-churning casinos. There’s no sign of sleazily affluent tax dodgers and the dress sense of my amiable barman is decidedly more provincial than Prada. You could even wonder if you’ve taken a wrong turn and ended up on the outskirts of Nice.
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For the truth is, the immaculately bizarre anomaly of Monaco can easily be enjoyed on a budget. You just have to be careful: rocking into Jimmy’s Bar on Avenue Princess Grace with the expectation that prices will only be a bit dearer than the West End will leave your wallet battered and bruised – a single beer can cost up to €80. Similarly, rather than heading down to the main harbour, where the young, chic and moneyed play, wander down to restaurant-bar Tender-To (1 Quai Albert 1er), where you can admire the collection of boats and yachts bobbing idly in the water from close quarters. Down here, a decent Italian trattoria-style menu with wine will set you back no more than €30.

Fairmont Monte Carlo pool

During the day another cost-saving option is to eschew the tourist-bound cafés and go to the upmarket Casino supermarket on Boulevard Albert 1st for lunch – where an enormous take-away filled baguette is less than €5. Le Loga brasserie on Boulevard des Moulins is another affordable lunchtime stop-off where you can sample Monaco’s sole contribution to gastronomy: barbajuan – fried dumplings stuffed with leek, ricotta cheese and spinach.

Many of Monaco’s beaches are private – reserved for the likes of wealthy hotel guests and sunbathing celebrities – but there is one free beach in the principality. The Larvotto is a man-made plage comprised from land clawed back from the sea after World War II. Despite that, it’s the more appealing for its lack of demanding A-listers. The sea is warm enough to swim in from June to September and in terms of people-watching, this is probably the most egalitarian spot in the whole place.

Opened in 1863, the famous Monte Carlo Casino is the biggest tourist draw and the interior is an appropriately overblown mixture of marble and onyx columns, sculptures and gargantuan watercolours. Monegasques (just 16 per cent of the 32,000-strong population) are actually prohibited from playing the games of roulette and peunto banco, which attract the wealthy and the reckless 365 days a year. If you can control your gambling urges, it’s only €10 to go in and watch, and if you want to witness some serious players then another €10 (and a jacket and tie for gents) will get you access to the inner sanctum of the casino where £200,000 chips are available to play with.

Affordable accommodation is not exactly in abundance, but the best located is the Hotel Le Versailles (www.monte-carlo.mc/versailles), near the consumer excesses of the Rue Grimaldi but with double rooms starting at a reasonable €90 per night. However, for those looking to embrace Monaco’s bottomless enthusiasm for luxury, the former Monte Carlo Grand (now a branch of the Fairmont chain) has a ‘Room and Vroom’ deal for €600, where two people get one night’s stay and an hour driving the F1 street circuit behind the wheel of a Ferrari 355 Modena. Be warned: the temptation to keep driving around until Roger Moore and other famous residents invite you over for a drink on their yacht is slightly overwhelming. The experience sums up Monaco perfectly: a playground of fast cars and ‘Monopoly’ money that lures you in with its promises of eternal glamour and idleness but where giving back the Ferrari keys and heading back to normality – and much cheaper beer in nightclubs – is something of a relief.

Where to stay Fairmont Monte Carlo, 12 Avenue des Spélugues, Monte Carlo, Monaco, 98000 (00800 0441 1414/www.fairmont.com). Double rooms from £235/€349 per night. Check the website for special deals.

Getting there Nearby Nice is served by Easyjet (www.easyjet.com) from £28.

For further details on visiting Monaco go to www.visitmonaco.com