Miniatur Wunderland Opens Monaco with Formula 1 Track

Die Wunderland-Gründer & Brüder Gerrit und Frederik Braun begrüßten die Fürstenfamilie von Monaco zur Eröffnung des neuen Abschnitts. (eap) After eleven years of work, over 150,000 working hours and more than five million euros in construction costs, the 70-square-meter Monaco section with picturesque Provence landscape at Miniatur Wunderland Hamburg has been completed and visitors can marvel at this new piece of precise handcraft and art “in action”. The highlight of the new presentation is a Formula 1 track in scale 1:87, on which the Monte Carlo Formula 1 race is being held, just like in reality. The underlying principle of the Formula 1 technology in miniature format makes use of so-called Halbach arrays. 24 track boards, 90 control boards and 90 positioning boards are at the heart of the hardware of the 22-meter-long racetrack. Electronically generated, punctual magnetic fields move on them in fractions of milliseconds, allowing the racing cars to be controlled individually. Over 100,000 lines of programming code were written during development – also to guarantee a constantly varying race course.

“I always thought it was impossible to drive Formula 1 cars in Wunderland in a realistic and continuous race, and that’s exactly what made the idea so appealing. We tried it out for several years and didn’t know whether it would ever be successful. It really is a miracle that it actually works today,” reports Gerrit Braun, co-founder and operator of Miniatur Wunderland.

Prince Albert II and Charlène of Monaco with their twins Jacques and Gabriella travelled from Monaco to Hamburg for the opening of the Monaco representation. With the push of a button, they started the first Formula 1 race in Wonderland together. When asked about his favourite motif, Prince Albert II said: “It’s hard to pick anything, everything is so incredibly well done. Some of the details of the yacht club and the harbour, the sailboat Malizia, but also everything around the Formula 1 track. It’s all so detailed and done with such incredible precision.”

Monaco and Provence will be followed by South America with the Amazon rainforest and the Andes mountain range at the turn of the year 2025/2026. Next will be the Caribbean in 2027, parts of Asia are also in planning. Currently, the documentary about Miniatur Wunderland, entitled “WUNDERLAND – From Childhood Dream to Global Success”, can still be seen in German and Swiss cinemas; it will be shown in Austrian movie theatres as of May 9^th.

Watch a video about the new Monaco section on Miniatur Wunderland’s YouTube channel here. ■