The Palace of Versailles Near Paris
Overview of the palace and gardens, plus how to get there independently from Paris
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| Palace of Versailles |
Palace of Versailles - Official Web Site
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| Logistics Of Visiting & Getting There From Paris |
| Tours To Versailles |
| Hotels at Versailles |
The Palace of Versailles is conveniently only 9 miles (15kms) from the centre of Paris. Its is the most popular attraction for those visiting Paris that is outside the city itself.
You can visit Versailles very easily independently using the frequent RER trains or there are a multitude of tours available as well.
The court of Versailles was the centre of political power in France from 1682, when Louis XIV moved from Paris, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in October 1789 after the beginning of the French Revolution.
Many people and tours just do a visit of a couple of hours covering the highlights of the Palace of Versailles. This is a shame as you really need at least a full day to get a true feel of the palace and explore the extensive estate and gardens.
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| Places Of Interest |
| Sightseeing Passes |
| Museums & Art Galeries |
| Cathedrals & Churches |
| Louvre Museum |
| Eiffel Tower |
| Versailles |
| Landmarks & Curiosities |
| Shopping & Markets |
| Moulin Rouge |
| Cemeteries |
| Getting Around Paris |
| Public Transport |
| Hop-on/off Buses & Boats |
| Formal Tours of Paris |
| Day Tours From Paris |
| Versailles |
| Disneyland |
| Champagne / Loire |
| London |
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Versailles - Which Parts To Visit
The Palace of Versailles is worth a full day's visit, to allow you to admire all its wonders at your own pace, from the royal Apartments to the Trianon Palaces and Marie-Antoinette's Estate, and including the gardens and their legendary groves.
In terms of ticketing the palace and estate of Versailles are divided up into sections.
The Palace
The site began as Louis XIII’s hunting lodge before his son Louis XIV transformed and expanded it, moving the court and government of France to Versailles in 1682. Each of the three French kings who lived there until the French Revolution added improvements to make it more beautiful.
The Palace's most famous places: the Hall of Mirrors, Grand Apartments of the King and of the Queen, King's Bedchamber and apartments of the Dauphin (the crown prince) are the highlights of touring the palace.
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| Gardens and Grand Canal From Palace of Versailles |
For the tour of the Palace, an audio-guide in 10 languages is included in the price of the ticket.
Expect to spend around 2 hours or a little more.
The Gardens & Park Of Versailles
A vast area ranging from the formal gardens in the immediate vicinity of the palace to vast parkland and lakes. The laying out of the gardens required enormous work. Vast amounts of earth had to be shifted to lay out the flower beds, the Orangerie, the fountains and the Canal.
Grand Trianon & Marie-Antoinette's Estate
On the far side of the gardens from the palace are a group of fine buildings used to escape the pomp and formality of the palace.
Louis XIV occupied the Grand Trianon, where he also housed his sister-in-law the Princess Palatine, his son-in-law the duc de Chartres and his daughter the duchess de Bourbon. It was beloved by Marie Leszczynska, who lived here in summer. Marie-Antoinette gave several performances here but preferred the Petit Trianon, which Louis XVI had given her as a present.
Most people take around 2 hours to visit Grand Trianon and Petit Trianon
It takes around 20 minutes on foot to walk through the gardens and park between the Palace of Versailles and Grand Trianon. There is also a mini-train providing a shuttle service between the Palace and Trianon.
Tickets, Opening Times
The Palace of Versailles and Grand Trianon are open every day, except for Mondays. The gardens are open every day.
The Palace of Versailles opens at 9 a.m and closes at 5:30 p.m. (1 hour later April to October).
For those with tickets to the top (3rd floor at 276m), you need to change lifts at the 2nd floor.
You can buy separate tickets for the individual parts: Palace, gardens and Trianon or you can purchase a passport ticket that covers all three. The admission to the palace includes an audio guide and covers all the exhibitions open as well.
The Paris Museum Pass includes Versailles as well as other major visitor attractions like the Louvre.
For current prices please refer to the official web-site, (see link at top of page).
You can save time buying tickets on the day by buying on-line from the official web-site, (see link at top of page.)
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Getting To Palace of Versailles From Paris Independently
There are regular RER commuter trains to Versailles Riverside (note there are several Versailles stations) from Paris on the RER C line. The trains are normally double-decker and follow the south bank of the River Seine for a long way exiting Paris, several trains an hour do the trip.
The most convenient places for most visitors to pick up the train is St Michel (Metro lines 4 and 10 and RER line B) or Invalides (Metro line 8 or 13).
From Versailles Riverside its a 5/10 minute walk to the Palace of Versailles and is well signposted.
The Paris RER is run by RATP, (Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens) who also run the buses and Metro system. As a result train, metro and bus are tightly integrated, sharing ticketing systems.
If you are traveling within central Paris you can use a single ticket which is also valid for Metro and buses. Within central Paris you can think of the RER as just another Metro line
Full details of using the RER trains and buying tickets
Save on Sightseeing in Paris with the Paris ComboPass®Benefits of the Paris ComboPass® include:
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