“Ja-ason Deruuuulo!” That was me and my partner’s catch-phrase for the three days and two nights that we spent in Monaco for the RnB-pop star’s appearance at the Monte Carlo Summer Festival. We said it as the plane took off, we screamed it as we cannonballed from a floating platform off the shore of Monte Carlo Beach, and we whispered it as we settled into the sauna two floors underground in Monte Carlo Hôtel de Paris’ Thermes Marins spa complex. We replayed this meme so many times throughout the trip, in fact, that when we were finally confronted with the real thing, we were taken aback: Jason Derulo was actually lit. 

The concert took place at the city-state’s iconic sea-facing Salle des Étoiles ballroom – which is operated, along with Monte Carlo’s three 5-star hotels, by the government-owned Société des Bains de Mer (SBM) luxury hospitality conglomerate. This is important because, at its heart, Monte Carlo Summer Festival is more than just a series of concerts across July, it is the latest addition to what is, by many measures, the oldest upmarket travel destination on earth, stretching right back to the building of the Casino de Monte Carlo in 1863. Everything about the city-state screams old world wealth: its frilly, Belle Époque architecture, its total of 14 Michelin Stars across nine restaurants (in a ‘city’ just 2.4km in length), and its tuxedo-wearing valets and concierges. 

It would have all been slightly overwhelming but, as me and my partner took our seats at the Salle des Étoiles for the four-course dinner that preceded the concert, we overheard something that loosened our shoulders, delivered with that same blend of irony and enthusiasm as we had done countless times throughout the trip: “Ja-ason Deruuuulo!” (0:11 here for anyone that doesn’t get the reference). Some things are universal. 

Read on for highlights from Monte Carlo’s Summer Festival.

JASON DERULO WAS ACTUALLY LIT

No lie, I’m now convinced that Mr Derulo is the closest thing we have to the King of Pop. Not only did he fly out to Monaco with a setlist spanning 16 years worth of tried-and-tested bangers, but he also did so with what appeared to be a whole private jet-full of backup dancers. There were only two names on the lineup that night, but Derulo still delivered a festival headline-worthy performance, filling his 100-minute-long set with multiple dance interludes, a DJ breakdown consisting of unexpected Jason Derulo co-produced hits (including none other than Iyaz’ “Replay”), three outfit changes, and, of course, 2010 pop classics “Whatcha Say” and “Ridin’ Solo”. He left nothing on that stage.

HÔTEL DE PARIS WAS STRAIGHT OUT OF A BOND FILM 

In 1995 Bond film Goldeneye, the titular spy encounters Soviet assassin Xenia Onatopp in the Monte Carlo Casino and chases her to an underground bunker in Siberia. In 2026, I found myself in an underground lair of my own – except this time it was SBM’s Thermes Marins luxury spa complex, and things were altogether more relaxed. 

Built in 1864, one year after the casino, the Hotel de Paris is one of the oldest luxury hotels in the world, from its opulent ballrooms to its roaring twenties era Bar American, but it has also been updated with high-tech gym, pool and wellness facilities. Indeed, modernising SBM’s storied portfolio has been a key focus of the brand in recent years, which has seen the renovation of the Hotel Hermitage’s Bar Gustave, and the Monte Carlo Beach’s La Vigie restaurant.  

... AND MONTE CARLO WAS A MOVIE SET

You’ve likely seen shots Monte Carlo before – be it in the aforementioned Goldeneye, Disney’s Selena Gomez-starring 2011 rom-com Monte Carlo, or in the annual Monte Carlo Grand Prix (which involves the waxing of roads that make tyres screech across the city-state even in the off-season). In person, it still feels like a movie set, with its world-renowned casino, picture-perfect promenades, and row upon row of luxury fashion outlets. I didn’t care much for any of that, though, I just wanted to cannonball into the ocean: “Ja-ason Deruuuulo!”

Monte Carlo Summer Festival takes place across July and August, also featuring performances from Aya Nakamura, The Last Dinner Party and John Legend.