luxury tourism research
An independent research platform dedicated to luxury, space,
visibility, accessibility and soft exclusion in Monaco.
Monaco as a Social and Spatial Laboratory
Nice Monaco examines Monaco not only as a luxury destination,
but as a distinctive urban environment in which to study how
prestige, visibility, accessibility, distinction
and exclusion are produced through space.
Drawing on fieldwork conducted since 2017, the project combines
spatial observation, visual documentation, analytical models
and sociological interpretation.
Research Infrastructure
Explore the Observatory
Monte Carlo Research Lab
The theoretical and methodological core of the project, dedicated to the development of concepts, analytical models, hypotheses and research programmes.
Monaco Data Observatory
Research data, indicators, coded observations and empirical results generated through the project’s analytical models.
Monaco Spatial & Visual Atlas
A spatial and visual exploration of Monaco connecting places, visual evidence and observed patterns of luxury, accessibility, visibility and exclusion.
Monaco Visual Fieldwork Archive
A photographic, audiovisual and observational archive generated through fieldwork conducted in Monaco since 2017.
Research Axes
Luxury, Space and Social Ordering
Visibility
Who can be seen, what can be observed and under what conditions.
Accessibility
How spaces become accessible, restricted or filtered.
Soft Exclusion
Subtle mechanisms regulating presence, access and behaviour.
Luxury Performance
How distinction and status are represented and spatially produced.
Visual Landscapes
How prestige becomes visible through architecture, brands, design and the urban image.
Analytical Framework
Research Models
The Observatory develops analytical tools designed
to transform field observations into structured,
comparable and reproducible empirical evidence.
VAM — Visibility–Accessibility Matrix
|
SECP — Soft Exclusion Coding Protocol
Fieldwork
Monaco 2017–2026
The project is based on repeated observations conducted in Monte Carlo,
Carré d’Or, Port Hercule and other strategically selected areas of Monaco,
combining photography, video, spatial observation, walking routes
and structured coding.
Open Research
Scientific Repository and Research Traceability
Research materials associated with the Monaco Research Observatory are documented through an open research infrastructure that connects the public presentation of this website with the datasets, methodological documentation and visual evidence deposited in the Open Science Framework (OSF).
The repository provides access to materials related to the VAM and SECP instruments, the master research dataset and the Monaco Visual Fieldwork Archive (MVFA), while maintaining a distinction between published research outputs, the evidence supporting them and their methodological documentation.
Monaco Research Observatory · OSF Project
DOI:
10.17605/OSF.IO/FV293
Researcher
Xavier Reinaldo-Virgili
Independent researcher specialising in luxury tourism,
spatial hierarchies, soft exclusion and the sociology of tourism,
with Monaco as one of his principal research fields.
