Versailles • Chartres • Giverny • Disneyland Paris
Map: Versailles Château—Ground Floor & Entrances
Map: Domaine de Marie-Antoinette
Map: Versailles Town Hotels & Restaurants
Sleeping and Eating in Giverny
Efficient trains bring dozens of day trips within the grasp of temporary Parisians. Europe’s best palace at Versailles, the awesome cathedral of Chartres, the flowery gardens at Giverny that inspired Monet, and a mouse-run amusement park await the traveler looking for a refreshing change from urban Paris.
Every king’s dream, Versailles (vehr-“sigh”) was the residence of French monarchs and the cultural heartbeat of Europe for about 100 years—until the Revolution of 1789 changed all that. The Sun King (Louis XIV) created Versailles, spending freely from the public treasury to turn his dad’s hunting lodge into a palace fit for the gods (among whom he counted himself). Louis XV and Louis XVI spent much of the 18th century gilding Louis XIV’s lily. In 1837, about 50 years after the royal family was evicted by citizenprotesters, King Louis-Philippe opened the palace as a museum. Today you can visit parts of the huge palace and wander through acres of manicured gardens sprinkled with fountains and studded with statues. Europe’s next-best palaces are just Versailles wannabes.
Worth ▲▲▲, Versailles offers three blockbuster sights. The main attraction is the palace itself, called the Château. Here you walk through dozens of lavish, chandeliered rooms once inhabited by Louis XIV and his successors. Next come the expansive Gardens behind the palace, a landscaped wonderland crossed with footpaths and dotted with statues and fountains. Finally, at the far end of the Gardens, is the pastoral area called the Trianon Palaces and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette (a.k.a. Trianon/Domaine), designed for frolicking blue bloods and featuring several small palaces and Marie’s Hamlet—perfect for getting away from the mobs at the Château.
Visiting Versailles can seem daunting because of its size and hordes of visitors. But if you follow my tips, a trip here during even the busiest times is manageable.
By Train: The town of Versailles is 35 minutes southwest of Paris. Take the RER-C train from any of these Paris RER stops: Gare d’Austerlitz, St. Michel, Musée d’Orsay, Invalides, Pont de l’Alma, or Champ de Mars. Buy your round-trip ticket—ask for “Versailles Château, aller-retour (ah-lay ruh-toor)”—from a ticket window or from an easy-to-figure-out ticket machine (€7.10 round-trip, coins only, 4/hour). You can also buy train tickets at any Métro ticket window in Paris—it will include the connection from that Métro stop to the RER at no extra cost. At the RER station, catch any train listed as “Versailles Château Rive Gauche” (abbreviated to “Versailles Chât” or “Versailles RG”).
Board your train and relax. On all trains, Versailles Château Rive Gauche is the final stop. Once you arrive, exit through the turnstiles (you may need to insert your ticket). To reach the Château, follow the flow: Turn right out of the station, then left at the first boulevard, and walk 10 minutes. When returning to Paris, catch the first train you see: All trains serve all downtown Paris RER stops on the C line.
By Taxi: The 30-minute ride (without traffic) between Versailles and Paris costs about €60.
By Car: Get on the périphérique freeway that circles Paris, and take the toll-free A-13 autoroute toward Rouen. Exit at Versailles, follow signs to Versailles Château, and avoid the hectic Garden lots by parking in the big pay lot at the foot of the Château on Place d’Armes (€4/hour).
Versailles is all about crowd management; a well-planned visit can make or break your experience. Take this advice to heart.
Versailles merits a full sightseeing day and is much more enjoyable with a relaxed, unhurried approach. Here’s what I’d do on a first visit:
• Get a pass in advance (explained later, under “Passes”).
• In high season, avoid Sundays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays (in that order), when crowds smother the palace interior. Thursdays and Fridays are the best days to visit.
• Leave Paris by 7:45 and arrive at the palace as it opens at 8:30 (or leave earlier and have breakfast at the Hôtel Ibis across from Versailles’ RER station—see here).
• In the morning, follow my self-guided tour of the Château’s highlights.
• Have a canalside lunch at one of the sandwich kiosks or cafés in the Gardens. Spend the afternoon touring the Gardens, Trianon Palaces, and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette. On weekends from late March to October (and some Tue and Fri), enjoy music and/or flowing fountains in the Gardens. Stay for dinner in Versailles town, or head back to Paris.
• To shorten your visit, focus on the Château and Gardens and skip the Trianon/Domaine, which takes an additional 1.5 hours to see and a 30-minute walk each way.
• An alternate plan that works well is to arrive later in the morning. From Versailles Château Rive Gauche station, catch the shuttle bus (see the “Getting Around the Gardens” sidebar on here) to the Trianon Palaces and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette, and see them first (they open at noon). Then work your way back through the Gardens to the Château, arriving after the crowds have died down (usually by 14:00, later on Sun).
In general, allow 1.5 hours each for the Château, the Gardens (includes time for lunch), and the Trianon/Domaine. Add another two hours for round-trip transit, and you’re looking at nearly an eight-hour day. If you have more time to spend at Versailles, consider one of the following, lesser sights near the palace: the Equestrian Performance Academy (www.acadequestre.fr) or the King’s Vegetable Garden (www.potager-du-roi.fr).
Cost: Buy either a Paris Museum Pass or a Versailles Le Passeport Pass, both of which give you access to the most important parts of the complex (see “Passes,” next). If you don’t get a pass, buy individual tickets for each of the three different sections.
The Château: €15, includes audioguide, under 18 free. Covers the famous Hall of Mirrors, the king’s living quarters, many lesser rooms, and any temporary exhibitions. Free on the first Sunday Nov-March.
The Trianon Palaces and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette: €10, no audioguide available, under 18 free. Covers the Grand Trianon and its gardens, the Petit Trianon, the queen’s Hamlet, and a smattering of nearby buildings. Free on the first Sunday Nov-March.
The Gardens: Free, except on Spectacle days, when admission is €9 (see “Spectacles in the Gardens,” later).
Passes: The following passes can save money and allow you to skip ticket-buying lines (but not security checks). Both passes include the Château audioguide.
The Paris Museum Pass (see here) covers the Château and the Trianon/Domaine area (a €25 value) and is the best solution for most. It doesn’t include the Gardens on Spectacle days.
The Le Passeport pass (€18 for one day, €25 for two days) covers the Château and the Trianon/Domaine area. On Spectacle days, it’s €25 for one day, €30 for two.
Buying Passes and Tickets: Ideally, buy your ticket or pass before arriving at Versailles. You can purchase Versailles tickets at any Paris TI, FNAC department store (small fee), or at www.chateauversailles.fr (print out your pass/ticket at home or at your hotel). If you arrive in Versailles without a pass or a ticket, you can buy it at the rarely crowded Versailles TI, not far from the train station (10 percent fee—see “Information,” later).
Your last and (usually) worst option is to buy a pass or ticket at the busy Château ticket-sales office (to the left as you face the palace). Ticket windows accept American credit cards. If there’s a line, you can use the ticket machines at the back of the room (you’ll need a chip-and-PIN card or bills).
Hours: The Château is open April-Oct Tue-Sun 8:30-19:00, Nov-March Tue-Sun 9:00-17:30, closed Mon year-round.
The Trianon Palaces and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette are open April-Oct Tue-Sun 12:00-18:30, Nov-March until 17:30, closed Mon year-round (off-season only the two Trianon Palaces and the Hamlet are open, not other outlying buildings), last entry 45 minutes before closing.
The Gardens are open April-Oct daily 8:00-20:30, Nov-March until 18:00, but may close earlier for special events.
Crowd-Beating Strategies: Versailles is packed May-Sept 9:30-13:00, so come early or late. Avoid Sundays, Tuesdays, and Saturdays (in that order), when the place is jammed with a slow shuffle of tourists from open to close. To skip the ticket-buying line, buy tickets or passes in advance, or book a guided tour. Unfortunately, all ticket holders—including those with advance tickets and passes—must go through the often-slow security checkpoint at the Château’s courtyard entry and again at the Château entrance (longest lines 10:00-12:00). Consider seeing the Gardens during midmorning and the Château in the afternoon, when crowds die down.
Skip-the-line tickets from GuidaTours are hawked with vigor on your arrival at the Versailles RER station. Their €25 ticket gets you into the Château (but not the Gardens) without a wait (so you’re paying an extra €10 to save line time, but you still must go through security). I’d consider it on busy days. Skip their €35 guided tour ticket: You can get the same deal for €22 by booking a tour through the Château directly, with better skip-the-line privileges (see “Tours,” below).
Pickpockets: Assume pickpockets are working the tourist crowds.
Information: Check the excellent website for updates and special events—www.chateauversailles.fr. The palace’s general contact number is tel. 01 30 83 78 00. You’ll pass the city Tourist Office on your walk from the RER station to the palace—it’s just past the Pullman Hôtel (daily 9:00-19:00, Sun until 18:00, shorter hours in winter, free Wi-Fi, tel. 01 39 24 88 88). The information office at the Château is to the left as you face the Château (WCs, toll tel. 08 10 81 16 14).
Tours: The 1.5-hour English guided tour gives you access to a few extra rooms (the itinerary varies) and lets you skip the regular security line (€7, plus €15 palace entry if you don’t have it; usually at least five tours in English between 9:00 and 15:00 April-Oct; off-season usually only at 9:30 and 14:00). Book a tour in advance on the palace’s website, or reserve immediately upon arrival at the guided-tours office (to the right of the Château—look for yellow Visites Conferences signs). Tours can sell out by 13:00, though more are usually available than indicated on the website.
A free audioguide to the Château is included in your admission. Other podcasts and digital tours are available in the “multimedia” section at www.chateauversailles.fr.
Download my free Versailles audio tour.
Baggage Check: Free and located just after the Château entry security check. You must retrieve your items one hour before closing (maximum size is same as airlines allow for carry-on bags). Large bags and baby strollers are not allowed in the Château and the two Trianons.
Services: WCs are plentiful and well-signed in the Château. Those in the Gardens are further and fewer between.
Photography: Allowed, but no flash indoors.
Eating: To the left of the Château, the $ Grand Café d’Orléans offers good-value self-service meals (sandwiches and small salads, great for picnicking in the Gardens). In the Gardens, you’ll find several cafés and snack stands with fair prices. One is located near the Latona Fountain (less crowded) and others are in an atmospheric cluster at the Grand Canal (more crowds and more choices, including two restaurants).
Handy McDonald’s and Starbucks (both with WCs) are across from the train station. In Versailles town center, the best choices are on the lively Place du Marché Notre-Dame, with a supermarket nearby (listed on here), or along traffic-free Rue de Satory, on the opposite (south) side as you leave the Château.
Spectacles in the Gardens: The Gardens and fountains at Versailles come alive at selected times, offering visitors a glimpse into Louis XIV’s remarkable world. The Sun King had his engineers literally reroute a river to fuel his fountains and feed his plants. Even by today’s standards, the fountains are impressive. Check the Versailles website for current hours and for what else might be happening during your visit.
On nonwinter weekends the Gardens’ fountains are in full squirt. The whole production, called Les Grandes Eaux Musicales, involves 55 fountains gushing for an hour in the morning, then again for about two hours in the afternoon, all accompanied by loud classical music (€9; late March-Oct Sat-Sun 11:00-12:00 & 15:30-17:00; plus Tue mid-May-June and Fri late March-early May, same hours). Pay at the entrance to the Gardens, unless you’ve bought Le Passeport—in which case you’ve already paid (automatically tacked on to Passeport price on Spectacle days).
On most other in-season Tuesdays you get all-day music, but no water, with the Les Jardins Musicaux program (€8, April-mid-May and July-Oct Tue 10:00-18:30).
On certain summer weekend nights you get the big shebang: Les Grandes Eaux Nocturnes, which presents whimsical lighted displays leading between gushing fountains and a fireworks show over the largest fountain pool (€20-41, mid-June-mid-Sept Sat plus mid-June-mid-July Fri, 20:30-22:40, fireworks at 22:50).
Starring: Luxurious palaces, endless gardens, Louis XIV, Marie-Antoinette, and the ancien régime.
SELF-GUIDED TOUR(See “Versailles” map, here.)
On this self-guided tour, you’ll see the Château (the State Apartments of the king as well as the Hall of Mirrors), the landscaped Gardens in the “backyard,” and the Trianon Palaces and Domaine de Marie-Antoinette, located at the far end of the Gardens. If your time is limited or you don’t enjoy walking, I give you permission to skip the Trianon/Domaine, which is a hefty 30-minute hike (each way) from the Château.
This commentary covers the basics. For background, first read the “Kings and Queens and Guillotines” sidebar. For a detailed room-by-room rundown, consider the guidebook called The Châteaux, the Gardens, and Trianon (sold at Versailles).
• You could read this on the train ride to Versailles. Relax...the palace is the last stop.
Come the Revolution, when they line us up and make us stick out our hands, will you have enough calluses to keep them from shooting you? A grim thought, but Versailles raises these kinds of questions. It’s the architectural embodiment of the ancien régime, a time when society was divided into rulers and the ruled, when you were born to be rich or to be poor. To some it’s the pinnacle of civilization; to others, the sign of a civilization in decay. Either way, it remains one of Europe’s most impressive sights.
Versailles was the residence of the king and the seat of France’s government for a hundred years. Louis XIV (r. 1643-1715) moved out of the Louvre in Paris, the previous royal residence, and built an elaborate palace in the forests and swamps of Versailles, 10 miles west. The reasons for the move were partly personal—Louis XIV loved the outdoors and disliked the sniping environs of stuffy Paris—and partly political.
Louis XIV was creating the first modern, centralized state. At Versailles he consolidated his government’s scattered ministries so that he could personally control policy. More importantly, he invited France’s nobles to Versailles in order to control them. Living a life of almost enforced idleness, the “domesticated” aristocracy couldn’t interfere with the way Louis ran things. With 18 million people united under one king (England had only 5.5 million), a booming economy, and a powerful military, France was Europe’s number-one power.
Around 1700, Versailles was the cultural heartbeat of Europe, and French culture was at its zenith. Throughout Europe, when you said “the king,” you were referring to the French king—Louis XIV. Every king wanted a palace like Versailles. Everyone learned French. French taste in clothes, hairstyles, table manners, theater, music, art, and kissing spread across the Continent. That cultural dominance continued, to some extent, right up to the 20th century.
At the center of all this was Europe’s greatest king. He was a true Renaissance Man, a century after the Renaissance: athletic, good-looking, a musician, dancer, horseman, statesman, patron of the arts, and lover. For all his grandeur, he was one of history’s most polite and approachable kings, a good listener who could put even commoners at ease in his presence.
Louis XIV called himself the Sun King because he gave life and warmth to all he touched. He was also thought of as Apollo, the Greek god of the sun. Versailles became the personal temple of this god on earth, decorated with statues and symbols of Apollo, the sun, and Louis XIV himself. The classical themes throughout underlined the divine right of France’s kings and queens to rule without limit.
Louis XIV was a hands-on king who personally ran affairs of state. All decisions were made by him. Nobles, who in other countries were the center of power, became virtual slaves dependent on Louis XIV’s generosity. For 70 years he was the perfect embodiment of the absolute monarch. He summed it up best himself with his famous rhyme—“L’état, c’est moi!” (lay-tah say-mwah): “The state, that’s me!”
Three kings lived in Versailles during its century of glory. Louis XIV built it and established French dominance. Louis XV, his great-grandson (Louis XIV reigned for 72 years), carried on the tradition and policies, but without the Sun King’s flair. During Louis XV’s reign (1715-1774), France’s power abroad was weakening, and there were rumblings of rebellion from within.
France’s monarchy was crumbling, and the time was ripe for a strong leader to reestablish the old feudal order. They didn’t get one. Instead, they got Louis XVI (r. 1774-1792), a shy, meek bookworm, the kind of guy who lost sleep over revolutionary graffiti...because it was misspelled. Louis XVI married a sweet girl from the Austrian royal family, Marie-Antoinette, and together they retreated into the idyllic gardens of Versailles while revolutionary fires smoldered.
• Stand in the huge courtyard and face the palace. The golden Royal Gate in the center of the courtyard—nearly 260 feet long and decorated with 100,000 gold leaves—is a replica of the original. The ticket-sales office is to the left; guided-tour sales are to the right. The entrance to the Château (once you have your ticket or pass) is marked Entrance A (where the line usually is). Before entering (or while standing in line at the entrance), take in the Château and the open-air courtyard on the other side of the golden Royal Gate.
The section of the palace with the clock is the original château, once a small hunting lodge where little Louis XIV spent his happiest boyhood years. Naturally, the Sun King’s private bedroom (the three arched windows beneath the clock) faced the rising sun. The palace and grounds are laid out on an east-west axis.
Once king, Louis XIV expanded the lodge by attaching wings, creating the present U-shape. Later, the long north and south wings were built. The total cost of the project has been estimated at half of France’s entire GNP for one year.
• Enter the Château where you’ll find an information desk (get a map), bag check, and WCs. Follow the crowds directly across the courtyard, where you’ll go back inside, pick up an audioguide, and make your way to the start of our tour.
On the way to our tour’s first stop, the route passes through a dozen ground-floor rooms. The first offers a glimpse through a doorway at the impressive Royal Chapel, which we’ll see again upstairs. You’ll see rooms with paintings of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI, and models of Versailles at different stages of growth. Climb the stairs, then wander a statue-lined hall to reach a palatial golden-brown room, with a doorway that overlooks the Royal Chapel. Let the tour begin.
Royal Chapel: Dut-dutta-dah! Every morning at 10:00, the organist and musicians struck up the music, these big golden doors opened, and Louis XIV and his family stepped onto the balcony to attend Mass. While Louis looked down on the golden altar, the lowly nobles on the ground floor knelt with their backs to the altar and looked up—worshipping Louis worshipping God. Important religious ceremonies took place here, including the marriage of young Louis XVI to Marie-Antoinette.
• Enter the next room, an even more sumptuous space with a fireplace and a colorful painting on the ceiling.
Hercules Drawing Room: Pleasure ruled. The main suppers, balls, and receptions were held in this room. Picture elegant partygoers in fine silks, wigs, rouge, lipstick, and fake moles (and that’s just the men) as they dance to the strains of a string quartet.
On the wall opposite the fireplace is an appropriate painting showing Christ in the middle of a Venetian party. The work—by Paolo Veronese, a gift from the Republic of Venice—was one of Louis XIV’s favorites, so the king had the room decorated around it.
• From here on it’s a one-way tour—getting lost is not allowed.
The King’s Wing: The names of the rooms generally come from the paintings on the ceilings. For instance, the Venus Room was the royal make-out space, where couples would cavort beneath the goddess of love, floating on the ceiling. In the Diana Room, Louis and his men played pool on a table that stood in the center of the room, while ladies sat surrounding them on Persian-carpet cushions, and music wafted in from next door. Louis was a good pool player, a sore loser, and a king—thus, he rarely lost.
Also known as the Guard Room (as it was the room for Louis’ Swiss bodyguards), the red Mars Room is decorated with a military flair. The Mercury Room may have served as Louis’ official (not actual) bedroom, where the Sun King would ritually rise each morning to warm his subjects. The Apollo Room was the grand throne room. Louis held court from a 10-foot-tall, silver-and-gold, canopied throne on a raised platform placed in the center of the room (the platform is there, though not the throne). Even when the king was away, passing courtiers had to bow to the empty throne.
The final room of the King’s Wing is the War Room, depicting Louis’ victories—in marble, gilding, stucco, and paint.
• Next you’ll visit the magnificent...
Hall of Mirrors: No one had ever seen anything like this hall when it was opened. Mirrors were still a great luxury at the time, and the number and size of these monsters was astounding. The hall is nearly 250 feet long. There are 17 arched mirrors, matched by 17 windows letting in that breathtaking view of the Gardens. Imagine this place lit by the flames of thousands of candles, filled with ambassadors, nobles, and guests dressed in silks and powdered wigs. At the far end of the room sits the king, on the canopied throne moved in temporarily from the Apollo Room. Servants glide by with silver trays of hors d’oeuvres, and an orchestra fuels the festivities. The mirrors reflect an age when beautiful people loved to look at themselves.
In another age altogether, this is where Germany and the Allies signed the Treaty of Versailles, ending World War I (and, some say, starting World War II).
• Midway down the Hall of Mirrors, you’ll be routed to the left through the heart of the palace, to the...
King’s Bedroom and Council Rooms: Louis XIV’s bedroom is elaborately decorated, and the decor changed with the season. Look out the window and notice how this small room is at the exact center of the immense horseshoe-shaped building, overlooking the main courtyard and—naturally—facing the rising sun in the east. It symbolized the exact center of power in France.
• The Queen’s Wing of the Château is closed for extensive renovation, so from here you’ll walk through several unremarkable rooms as you make your way downstairs to the exit. This ends our tour of the Château, but there is more, all described in the free audioguide.
Louis XIV was a divine-right ruler. One way he proved it was by controlling nature like a god. These lavish grounds—elaborately planned, pruned, and decorated—showed everyone that Louis was in total command. Louis loved his gardens and, until his last days, presided over their care. He personally led VIPs through them and threw his biggest parties here. With their Greco-Roman themes and incomparable beauty, the Gardens further illustrated his immense power.
The Gardens are vast. For some, a stroll through the landscaped shrubs around the Château and quick view down the Royal Drive is plenty. But it’s worth the ten-minute walk down the Royal Drive to the Apollo Basin and back (even if you don’t continue further to the Trianon/Domaine).
As you walk, consider that a thousand orange trees were once stored beneath your feet in greenhouses. On sunny days, they were wheeled out in their silver planters and scattered around the grounds. The warmth from the Sun King was so great that he could even grow orange trees in chilly France.
With the palace behind you, it seems as if the grounds stretch out forever. Versailles was laid out along an eight-mile axis that included the grounds, the palace, and the town of Versailles itself, one of the first instances of urban planning since Roman times and a model for future capitals, such as Washington, D.C. and Brasilia. A promenade leads from the palace to the Grand Canal, where France’s royalty floated up and down in imported Venetian gondolas.
Versailles began as an escape from the pressures of kingship. But in a short time, the Château became as busy as Paris ever was. Louis XIV needed an escape from his escape, so he built a smaller palace out in the boonies. Later, his successors retreated still farther from the Château and French political life, ignoring the real world that was crumbling all around them. They expanded the Trianon area, building a fantasy world of palaces, ponds, pavilions, and pleasure gardens—the enclosure called Marie-Antoinette’s Domaine.
Grand Trianon: Delicate, pink, and set amid gardens, the Grand Trianon was the perfect summer getaway. This was the king’s private residence away from the main palace. Louis XIV usually spent a couple of nights a week here (more in the summer) to escape the sniping politics, strict etiquette, and 24/7 scrutiny of official court life.
Louis XIV built the palace (1670-1688) near the tiny peasant village of Trianon (hence the name) and faced it with blue-and-white ceramic tiles. When those began disintegrating almost immediately, the palace was renovated with pink marble. It’s a one-story structure of two wings connected by a colonnade, with gardens in back.
• To enter the Grand Trianon, you must first pass through its security checkpoint. Pick up the free palace brochure and follow the simple one-way route through the rooms.
The rooms are a complex overlay of furnishings from many different kings, dauphins, and nobles who lived here over the centuries. Louis XIV alone had three different bedrooms. Concentrate on the illustrious time of Louis XIV (1688-1715) and Napoleon Bonaparte (1810-1814). Use your map to find the Mirror Room, Louis XIV’s Bedchamber, the Emperor’s Family Drawing Room, the Malachite Room (Napoleon’s living room), and the Cotelle Gallery (Louis’ reception hall).
Domaine de Marie-Antoinette: Near the Grand Trianon are the French Pavilion (small white building where Marie-Antoinette spent summer evenings with family and a few friends), Marie-Antoinette’s Theater, and the octagonal Belvedere palace.
You’ll find the Hamlet 10 minutes past the Belvedere palace. Marie-Antoinette longed for the simple life of a peasant—not the hard labor of real peasants, who sweated and starved around her, but the fairytale world of simple country pleasures. She built this complex of 12 thatched-roof buildings fronting a lake as her own private “Normand” village. The main building is the Queen’s House—actually two buildings connected by a wooden skywalk. It’s the only one without a thatched roof. Like any typical peasant farmhouse, it had a billiard room, library, elegant dining hall, and two living rooms.
After touring the Hamlet, head back toward the Petit Trianon. Along the way, you’ll see the white dome of the Temple of Love. The gray, cubical Petit Trianon is a masterpiece of Neoclassical architecture. It has four distinct facades, each a perfect and harmonious combination of Greek-style columns, windows, and railings. When Louis XVI became king, he gave the building to his bride Marie-Antoinette, who made this her home base. On the lawn outside, she installed a carousel. Despite her bad reputation with the public, Marie-Antoinette was a sweet girl from Vienna who never quite fit in with the fast, sophisticated crowd at Versailles. At the Petit Trianon, she could get away and re-create the charming home life that she remembered from her childhood. Here she played, while in the cafés of faraway Paris, revolutionaries plotted the end of the ancien régime.
• The TRI shuttle bus stop with service to the RER stations is a few blocks away (see map on here).
($$$$ = Splurge, $$$ = Pricier, $$ = Moderate, $ = Budget)
For a less expensive and more laid-back alternative to Paris, the town of Versailles can be a good overnight stop, especially for drivers. Park in the palace’s main lot while looking for a hotel, or leave your car there overnight (see here). Get a map of Versailles at your hotel or at the TI.
Sleeping in Versailles: $$ Hôtel de France*** is in a 17th-century townhouse a peasant’s toss from the palace. It offers Old World class, mostly air-conditioned, traditional rooms with thick tapestries and rugs, a pleasant courtyard, a bar, and a restaurant (just off parking lot across from Château at 5 Rue Colbert, tel. 01 30 83 92 23, www.hotelfrance-versailles.com, hotel-de-france-versailles@wanadoo.fr).
$$ Hôtel le Cheval Rouge,*** built in 1676 as Louis XIV’s stables, now boards tourists. Tucked into a corner of Place du Marché, this modest hotel has a big courtyard with free parking and sufficiently comfortable rooms connected by long halls (no air-con, all rooms one floor up, no elevator, 18 Rue André Chénier, tel. 01 39 50 03 03, www.chevalrouge-versailles.fr, chevalrouge@sfr.fr).
$$ Hôtel Ibis Versailles*** offers a good weekend value and modern comfort, with 85 air-conditioned rooms (good buffet breakfast open to public and served until 10:00 Mon-Thu, until noon Fri-Sun; pay parking, across from RER station at 4 Avenue du Général de Gaulle, tel. 01 39 53 03 30, www.ibishotel.com, h1409@accor.com).
Eating in Versailles: In the pleasant town center, around Place du Marché Notre-Dame, you’ll find a thriving open market (food market Sun, Tue, and Fri mornings until 13:00; clothing market all day Wed-Thu and Sat), four covered market halls with food stalls (Tue-Sat 7:30-13:00 & 15:30-19:00, Sun 7:30-13:00, closed Mon), a variety of reasonably priced restaurants, cafés, and a few cobbled lanes. The square—a 15-minute walk from the Château (veer left as you leave the Château)—is lined with colorful and inexpensive eateries with good seating inside and out. Troll the various options or try one of these:
$$$ Bistrot du Boucher reeks with fun character inside and has good seating outside. They like their meat dishes best here, though you’ll find a full menu of choices (bargain lunch menu, daily, 12 Rue André Chénier, tel. 01 39 02 12 15).
$$ Au Chien qui Fume is a good choice, with cozy seating inside and out, a playful staff, and reliable, traditional cuisine (lunch deals, closed Sun, 72 Rue de la Paroisse, tel. 01 39 53 14 56).
$ La Boulangerie has mouthwatering sandwiches, salads, quiches, and more (Tue-Sat until 20:00, Sun until 13:30, closed Mon, 60 Rue de la Paroisse).
Breakfast: The Hôtel Ibis Versailles offers a good buffet breakfast (see listing, earlier).
Supermarket: A big Monoprix is centrally located between the Versailles Château Rive Gauche train station and Place du Marché Notre-Dame (entrances from Avenue de l’Europe and at 5 Rue Georges Clemenceau, Mon-Sat 8:30-21:00, closed Sun).
Chartres, about 50 miles southwest of Paris, gives travelers a pleasant break in a lively, midsize town with a thriving, pedestrian-friendly old center. But the big reason to come to Chartres (shar-truh) is to see its famous cathedral—arguably Europe’s best example of pure Gothic.
Chartres’ old church burned to the ground on June 10, 1194. Some of the children who watched its destruction were actually around to help rebuild the cathedral and attend its dedication Mass in 1260. That’s astonishing, considering that other Gothic cathedrals, such as Paris’ Notre-Dame, took literally centuries to build. Having been built so quickly, the cathedral has a unity of architecture, statuary, and stained glass that captures the spirit of the Age of Faith like no other church.
Chartres is an easy day trip from Paris (even if you leave Paris in the afternoon and return later in the evening). But with its statues glowing in the setting sun—and with hotels and restaurants much less expensive than those in the capital—Chartres also makes a worthwhile overnight stop. If you’ll be here at night, don’t miss the light show—Chartres en Lumières—when dozens of Chartres’ most historic buildings are colorfully illuminated, adding to the town’s after-hours appeal (mid-April-mid-Oct; details at TI). Chartres’ historic center is quiet Sunday and Monday, when most shops are closed.
Chartres is a one-hour ride from Paris’ Gare Montparnasse (14/day, about €16 one-way; see here for Gare Montparnasse details). Jot down return times to Paris before you exit the Chartres train station (last train generally departs Chartres around 21:30).
Upon arrival in Chartres, head for the cathedral. Allow an hour to savor the church on your own as you follow my self-guided tour. But don’t miss the mesmerizing cathedral tour at noon led by Malcolm Miller; also consider the informative tour at 14:45 by Anne-Marie Woods (details on both tours provided later). Take another hour or two to wander the appealing old city. On Saturday and Wednesday mornings, a small outdoor market sets up a few short blocks from the cathedral on Place Billard.
Tourist Information: The TI is in the historic Maison du Saumon building (Mon-Sat 9:30-18:30, Sun 10:00-17:30, closes earlier Nov-April, 10 Rue de la Poissonnerie, tel. 02 37 18 26 26, www.chartres-tourisme.com). It offers specifics on cathedral tours and also rents audioguides for the old town (€5.50, €8.50/double set, about 2 hours). Skip the Chartres Pass, which is sold here.
The TI has a small map that shows the floodlit Chartres en Lumières sites, and information on the Petit Train you can take to see them all (check the website or ask at the TI for details).
Arrival in Chartres: Exiting Chartres’ train station, you’ll see the spires of the cathedral dominating the town. It’s a 10-minute walk up Avenue Jehan de Beauce to the cathedral. The free minibus, called the Filibus, runs near the cathedral (departs 3/hour Mon-Sat 8:30-19:00), or you can take a taxi for about €7.
The last train to Paris usually leaves around 21:30 (verify for your day of travel).
If arriving by car, you’ll have fine views of the cathedral and city as you approach from A-11 autoroute.
Exchange Rate: €1 = about $1.10
Country Calling Code: 33 (see here for dialing instructions)
Wi-Fi: To get online, head to the TI (free Wi-Fi and guest computer) or try the McDonald’s (free Wi-Fi, Place des Epars).
Laundry: A launderette is a few blocks from the cathedral (by the TI) at 16a Place de la Poissonnerie (daily 7:00-21:00).
Taxi: If you need to call a taxi, try tel. 02 37 36 00 00.
(See “Chartres Cathedral” map, here.)
The church is (at least) the fourth one on this spot dedicated to Mary, the mother of Jesus, who has been venerated here for some 1,700 years. There’s even speculation that the pagan Romans dedicated a temple here to a mother-goddess. In earliest times, Mary was honored next to a natural spring of healing waters (not visible today).
In 876, the church acquired the torn veil (or birthing gown) supposedly worn by Mary when she gave birth to Jesus. The 2,000-year-old veil (now on display) became the focus of worship at the church. By the 11th century, the cult of saints was strong. And Mary, considered the “Queen of All Saints,” was hugely popular. God was enigmatic and scary, but Mary was maternal and accessible, providing a handy go-between for Christians and their Creator. Chartres, a small town of 10,000 with a prized relic, found itself in the big time on the pilgrim circuit.
When the fire of 1194 incinerated the old church, the veil was feared lost. Lo and behold, several days later, townspeople found it miraculously unharmed in the crypt (beneath today’s choir). Whether the veil’s survival was a miracle or a marketing ploy, the people of Chartres were so stoked, they worked like madmen to erect this grand cathedral in which to display it. Thinkers and scholars gathered here, making the small town with its big-city church a leading center of learning in the Middle Ages (until the focus shifted to Paris’ university).
By the way, the church is officially called the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres. Many travelers think that “Notre-Dame” is in Paris. That’s true. But more than a hundred churches dedicated to Mary—“Notre-Dames”—are scattered around France, and Chartres Cathedral is one of them.
Cost: Free, €5.50 to climb the 300-step north tower (free on first Sun of the month, in the off-season, and for kids under 18).
Hours: Church—daily 8:30-19:30; tower—May-Aug Mon-Sat 9:30-12:30 & 14:00-17:30, Sun 14:00-17:30, Sept-April closes at 16:30 (entrance inside church, after gift shop on left). Mass times vary by season: usually Mon-Fri at 9:00 and/or 11:45; Sat at 11:45 and 18:00; Sun at 9:15 (Gregorian), 11:00, and 18:00 (some services held in the crypt). Confirm times by phone or online—tel. 02 37 21 59 08, www.cathedrale-chartres.org (click “Infos Pratiques,” then “Horaires des Messes”).
Restoration: A multiyear restoration is underway, though you should see few signs of it in 2017.
Tours: Malcolm Miller, a fascinating English scholar who moved here almost 60 years ago when he was 24, has dedicated his life to studying this cathedral and sharing its wonder through his guided lecture tours. He’s slowing down a bit, but his 1.25-hour tours are still riveting even if you’ve taken my self-guided tour. No reservation is needed; just show up with cash (€10, €5 for students, includes headphones that allow him to speak softly, Easter-mid-Oct Mon-Sat at 12:00; no tours last half of Aug, on religious holidays, or if fewer than 12 people show up). Tours begin just inside the church at the Visites de la Cathédrale sign. Consult this sign for changes or cancellations. He also offers private tours (tel. 02 37 28 15 58, millerchartres@aol.com). Miller’s guidebook provides a detailed look at Chartres’ windows, sculpture, and history (sold at cathedral).
Charming American expat Anne-Marie Woods is Malcom Miller’s understudy and is equally passionate about the cathedral. She leads worthwhile 1.5-hour tours of the cathedral that include the vast crypt (daily at 14:45, tel. 02 37 21 75 02, www.cathedrale-chartres.org).
You can rent audioguides inside the cathedral, to the right as you enter. Routes include the cathedral (€4.20, 45 minutes), the choir only (€3.20, 25 minutes), or both (€6.20, 70 minutes). Binoculars are a big help for studying the cathedral art (rent at souvenir shops around the cathedral).
Crypt: Beneath the cathedral are extensive remnants of earlier churches, a modern copy of the old wooden Mary-and-baby statue, an amazing 2,000-year-old well, and frescoes from the 12th and 13th centuries. The only way to see the crypt is on a tour. Anne-Marie Woods’ tour (see above for details) includes the crypt and helps bring it to life, but I’d avoid the more frequent 30-minute tours in French with English handout (€3, 5/day late-June-mid-Sept, fewer on Sun and off-season, start at the gift shop inside the cathedral’s north tower, tel. 02 37 21 75 02).
Self-Guided Tour: Historian Malcolm Miller calls Chartres a picture book of the entire Christian story, told through its statues, stained glass, and architecture. In this “Book of Chartres,” the text is the sculpture and windows, and its binding is the architecture. The complete narrative can be read—from Creation to Christ’s birth (north side of church), from Christ and his followers up to the present (south entrance), and then to the end of time, when Christ returns as judge (west entrance). The remarkable cohesiveness of the text and the unity of the architecture are due to the fact that nearly the entire church was rebuilt in just 30 years (a blink of an eye for cathedral building).
• Start outside, taking in the...
Main Entrance (West Facade): Chartres’ soaring (if mismatched) steeples announce to pilgrims that they’ve arrived. Compare the towers. The right (south) tower, with a Romanesque stone steeple, survived the fire. The left (north) tower lost its wooden steeple in the fire. In the 1500s, it was topped with the flamboyant Gothic steeple we see today.
• Enter the church (from a side entrance if the main one is closed) and wait for your pupils to enlarge.
Nave: The place is huge—the nave is 427 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 120 feet high. Try to picture the church in the Middle Ages—painted in greens, browns, and golds (like colorful St. Aignan Church in the old town). It was packed with pilgrims, and was a rough cross between a hostel, a soup kitchen, and a flea market. Taking it all in from the nave, notice that, as was typical in medieval churches, the windows on the darker north side feature Old Testament themes—awaiting the light of Christ’s arrival. And the windows on the brighter south side are New Testament.
• On the floor, midway up the nave, find the...
Labyrinth: The broad, round labyrinth inlaid in black marble on the floor is a spiritual journey. Labyrinths like this were common in medieval churches. Pilgrims enter from the west rim, by foot or on their knees, and wind around, meditating, on a metaphorical journey to Jerusalem. About 900 feet later, they hope to meet God in the middle.
• Walk up the nave to where the transept crosses. As you face the altar and gleaming choir, north is to the left.
The Rose Windows: The three big, round “rose” (flower-shaped) windows over the entrances receive sunlight at different times of day. All three are predominantly blue and red, but each has different “petals,” and each tells a different part of the Christian story in a kaleidoscope of fragmented images.
The brilliantly restored north rose window charts history from the distant past up to the birth of Jesus. The south rose window, with a similar overall design, tells how the Old Testament prophecies were fulfilled. Christ sits in the center (dressed in blue, with a red background), setting in motion radiating rings of angels, beasts, and instrument-playing apocalyptic elders who labor to bring history to its close. In the center of the west rose window, a dark Christ rings in history’s final Day of Judgment. Around him, winged angels blow their trumpets and the dead rise, face judgment, and are sent to hell or raised to eternal bliss.
• Now walk around the altar to the right (south) side and find the window with a big, blue Mary (second one from the right).
The Blue Virgin Window: Mary, dressed in blue on a rich red background, cradles Jesus, while the dove of the Holy Spirit descends on her. This very old window (mid-12th century) was the central window behind the altar of the church that burned in 1194. It survived and was reinserted into this frame in the new church around 1230. Mary’s glowing dress is an example of the famed “Chartres blue,” a sumptuous color made by mixing cobalt oxide into the glass (before cheaper materials were introduced).
• Now turn around and look behind you.
The Choir Screen—Life of Mary: The choir (enclosed area around the altar where church officials sat) is the heart (coeur) of the church. A stone screen rings it with 41 statue groups illustrating Mary’s life. The plain windows surrounding the choir date from the 1770s, when the dark mystery of medieval stained glass was replaced by the open light of the French Enlightenment.
• Do an about-face and find the chapel with Mary on a pillar.
Chapel of Our Lady on the Pillar: A 16th-century statue of Mary and baby—draped in cloth, crowned and sceptered—sits on a 13th-century column in a wonderful carved-wood alcove. This is today’s pilgrimage center, built to keep visitors from clogging up the altar area.
• Double back a bit around the ambulatory, heading toward the back of the church. In the next chapel you encounter (Chapel of the Sacred Heart of Mary), you’ll find a gold frame holding a fragment of Mary’s venerated veil. These days it’s kept—for its safety and preservation—out of the light and behind bulletproof glass.
Mary’s Veil: This veil (or tunic) was supposedly worn by Mary when she gave birth to Jesus. In the frenzy surrounding the fire of 1194, the veil mysteriously disappeared, only to reappear three days later (recalling the Resurrection). This was interpreted by church officials and the townsfolk as a sign from Mary that she wanted a new church, and thus the building began.
• Return to the west end and find the last window on the right (near the tower entrance).
The Noah Window and Tower Climb: Read Chartres’ windows in the medieval style: from bottom to top. In the bottom diamond, God tells Noah he’ll destroy the earth. Next, Noah hefts an axe to build an ark, while his son hauls wood (diamond #2). Two by two, he loads horses (cloverleaf, above left), purple elephants (cloverleaf, right), and other animals. The psychedelic ark sets sail (diamond #3). Waves cover the earth and drown the wicked (two cloverleafs). The ark survives (diamond #4), and Noah releases a dove. Finally, up near the top (diamond #7), a rainbow (symbolizing God’s promise never to bring another flood) arches overhead, God drapes himself over it, and Noah and his family give thanks.
• To climb the north tower, find the entrance nearby. Then exit the church (through the main entrance or the door in the south transept) to view its south side.
South Exterior—Flying Buttresses: Six flying buttresses (the arches that stick out from the upper walls) push against six pillars lining the nave inside, helping to hold up the heavy stone ceiling and sloped, lead-over-wood roof. The result is a tall cathedral held up by slender pillars buttressed from the outside, allowing the walls to be opened up for stained glass.
South Porch: The three doorways of the south entrance show the world from Christ’s time to the present, as Christianity triumphs over persecution. On the center door, Jesus holds a book and raises his arm in blessing. He’s a simple, itinerant, bareheaded, barefoot rabbi, but underneath his feet, he tramples symbols of evil: the dragon and lion. Christ is surrounded by his apostles, who spread the good news to a hostile world.
The final triumph comes above the door in the Last Judgment. Christ sits in judgment, raising his hands, while Mary and John beg him to take it easy on poor humankind. Beneath Christ the souls are judged—the righteous on our left, and the wicked on our right, who are thrown into the fiery jaws of hell.
• Reach the north side by circling around the back end of the church.
North Porch: In the “Book of Chartres,” the north porch is chapter one, from the Creation up to the coming of Christ. Imagine all this painted and covered with gold leaf in preparation for the dedication ceremonies in 1260, when the Chartres generation could finally stand back and watch as their great-grandchildren, carrying candles, entered the cathedral.
Chartres’ old town bustles with activity (except Sun and Mon) and merits exploration. You can rent an audioguide from the TI, or better, just wander (follow the route shown on the map on here).
In medieval times, Chartres was actually two towns—the pilgrims’ town around the cathedral, and the industrial town along the river, which was powered by watermills. An easy 45-minute loop takes you around the cathedral, through the old pilgrims’ town, down along the once-industrial riverbank, and back to the cathedral. Along the way you’ll discover a picnic-perfect park behind the cathedral, see the colorful pedestrian zone, and wander quiet alleys and peaceful lanes.
This low-key center on the north side of the cathedral is worth a visit to learn about the techniques behind the mystery of this fragile but enduring art (many are original windows from area churches). Panels describe many displays. Ask at the entrance about the 25-minute video in English describing the process of blown glass and the 10-minute French-only video explaining how it is turned into stained glass (easy to follow for non-French speakers). The center also offers five-day classes; call ahead or email for topics and dates.
Cost and Hours: €6.50, Mon-Fri 9:30-12:30 & 13:30-18:00, Sat 10:00-12:30 & 14:30-18:00, Sun 14:30-18:00, 5 Rue du Cardinal Pie, 50 yards from cathedral, tel. 02 37 21 65 72, www.centre-vitrail.org.
($$$$ = Splurge, $$$ = Pricier, $$ = Moderate, $ = Budget)
$$ Timhotel Chartres Cathédrale,*** a block up from the train station, is comfortable and well run. Don’t let the facade fool you—inside is a comfy place with a huge fireplace in the lobby and 48 well-kept rooms. Several rooms connect—good for families—and many have partial cathedral views (pricier rooms come with more space and cathedral views, family rooms, good buffet breakfast—extra, but one breakfast per couple free for Rick Steves readers, minibars, air-con, handy and safe pay parking, 6 Avenue Jehan de Beauce, tel. 02 37 21 78 00, www.timhotel.com, chartres@timhotel.fr).
$ Hôtel le Bœuf Couronné*** is more like a vintage two-star hotel, with 17 colorful, good-value rooms and a handy location halfway between the station and cathedral (family rooms, elevator, no air-con, good restaurant with views of the cathedral, reserve ahead for pay parking, 15 Place Châtelet, tel. 02 37 18 06 06, www.leboeufcouronne.com, resa@leboeufcouronne.fr).
$ Hôtellerie Saint Yves, which hangs on the hillside just behind the cathedral, delivers well-priced simplicity with 50 spic-and-span rooms in a renovated monastery with meditative garden areas. Single rooms have no view; ask for a double room with views of the lower town (small bathrooms, good breakfast—extra, 1 Rue Saint Eman, enter via Rue des Acacias, tel. 02 37 88 37 40, www.hotellerie-st-yves.com, contact@hotellerie-st-yves.com).
Hostel: ¢ Auberge de Jeunesse, a 20-minute walk from the historic center, is located in a modern building with good views of the cathedral from its terrace (includes breakfast, dirt cheap meals, 23 Avenue Neigre, tel. 02 37 34 27 64, www.auberge-de-jeunesse-chartres.fr, auberge-jeunesse-chartres@wanadoo.fr).
(See “Chartres” map, here.)
Dining out in Chartres is a good deal—particularly if you’ve come from Paris. Troll the places basking in cathedral views, and if it’s warm, find a terrace table (several possibilities). Then finish your evening cathedral-side, sipping a hot or cold drink at Le Serpente.
$$ Café Bleu offers a great view terrace and an appealing interior. It serves classic French fare at acceptable prices (closed Tue, 1 Cloître Notre-Dame, tel. 02 37 36 59 60).
$$ Le Serpente saddles up next door to the cathedral, with terrific view tables and an adorable collector’s interior. The cuisine is good, basic bistro fare and fairly priced. Simple dishes and to-go food are available from the room at the back (daily, 2 Cloître Notre-Dame, tel. 02 37 21 68 81).
$ La Picoterie serves up a cozy interior and inexpensive fare (omelets, crêpes, salads, and such) with efficient service (daily, 36 Rue des Changes, tel. 02 37 36 14 54).
$$ Le Pichet 3 is run by endearing Marie-Sylvie and Xavier. This local-products shop and cozy bistro make a fun lunch stop. Sit on the quiet street terrace or peruse the artsy inside. Laura serves lots of fresh vegetables and a good selection of plats—try the rabbit with plums (Thu-Tue 11:00-dusk, closed Wed and for dinner off-season, 19 Rue du Cheval Blanc, tel. 02 37 21 08 35).
Claude Monet’s gardens at Giverny are like his paintings—brightly colored patches that are messy but balanced. Flowers were his brushstrokes, a bit untamed and slapdash, but part of a carefully composed design. Monet spent his last (and most creative) years cultivating his garden and his art at Giverny (zhee-vayr-nee), the spiritual home of Impressionism. Visiting the Marmottan and/or the Orangerie museums in Paris before your visit here heightens your appreciation of these gardens.
In 1883, middle-aged Claude Monet, his wife Alice, and their eight children from two families settled into this farmhouse, 50 miles west of Paris. Monet, already a famous artist and happiest at home, would spend 40 years in Giverny, traveling less with each passing year. He built a pastoral paradise complete with a Japanese garden and a pond full of floating lilies.
Drivers can get in and out of Giverny in a half-day with ease. The trip is also doable in a half-day by public transportation with a train/bus connection, but because trains are not frequent, be prepared for a six-hour excursion.
By Tour: Big tour companies do a Giverny day trip from Paris for around €70. If you’re interested, ask at your hotel, but you can easily do the trip yourself by train and bus for about €40.
By Car: From Paris’ périphérique ring road, follow A-13 toward Rouen, exit at Sortie 14 to Vernon, and follow Centre Ville signs, then signs to Giverny. You can park right at Monet’s house or at one of several nearby lots.
By Train: Take the Rouen-bound train from Paris Gare St. Lazare Station to Vernon, about four miles from Giverny (normally leaves from tracks 20-25, 45 minutes one-way, about €30 round-trip). The train that leaves Paris at around 8:15 is ideal for this trip, with departures about every two hours after that (8/day Mon-Sat, 6/day Sun). Before boarding, use an information desk in Gare St. Lazare to get return times from Vernon to Paris.
Getting from Vernon’s Train Station to Giverny: From the Vernon station to Monet’s garden, you have four options: bus, taxi, bike, or hike. If you need to check bags, drop them at L’Arrivée de Giverny café, opposite the train station (€5/bag).
The Vernon-Giverny bus meets every train from Paris for the 15-minute run to Giverny (€8 round-trip, pay driver). A bus-and-train timetable is available at the bus stops, on the bus, and online (www.giverny.org/transpor)—note return times. To reach the bus stop, walk through the station, then follow the tracks—the stop is across from the L’Arrivée de Giverny café. Don’t dally in the station—the bus leaves soon after your train arrives. During busy times, a line can form while the driver sells tickets and loads the bus.
The bus leaves Giverny from the same stop where it drops you off (near the pedestrian underpass—see map; good WCs on the north side of the underpass). Buses generally run every hour, with the last one departing at about 19:15 (confirm times by checking schedule upon arrival). Get to the stop at least 15 minutes early to ensure a space. If you miss the return bus and can’t wait for the next one, ask any approachable service personnel to call a taxi.
Taxis wait in front of the station in Vernon (allow €15 one-way for up to 3 people, mobile 06 77 49 32 90 or 06 50 12 21 22).
You can also rent a bike at L’Arrivée de Giverny café (€14, tel. 02 32 21 16 01) and follow a paved bike path (piste cyclable) that runs from near Vernon along an abandoned railroad right-of-way (figure about 30 minutes to Giverny). Get the easy-to-follow map to Giverny when you rent your bike, and you’re in business.
Hikers can go on foot to Giverny (about 1.5 hours one way) following the bike path (see above) and take a bus or taxi back.
Extension to Rouen: Consider combining your morning Giverny visit with an afternoon excursion to nearby Rouen—together they make an efficient and memorable day trip from Paris (see next chapter). Note that Rouen’s museums are closed on Tuesdays. From Vernon (the halfway point between Rouen and Paris), it’s about 40 minutes by train to Rouen; the return trip from Rouen back to Paris takes 70-90 minutes. Plan to arrive at Monet’s garden when it opens (at 9:30), so you can be back to the Vernon train station by about 13:00. You’ll land in Rouen by 14:00 and have just enough time to see Rouen’s cathedral and surrounding medieval quarter. If you leave Rouen around 18:00, you’ll pull into Paris about 19:15, having spent a wonderful day sampling rural and urban Normandy.
All of Giverny’s sights and shops string along Rue Claude Monet, which runs in front of Monet’s house. The TI is located at the intersection of Rue Claude Monet and Rue du Pressoir (daily late-March-late-Sept 10:00-17:45, closed off-season, 80 Rue Claude Monet, tel. 02 32 64 45 01). For a Giverny-based taxi, try mobile 06 03 30 85 47.
There are two gardens, split by a busy road, plus the house, which displays Monet’s prized collection of Japanese prints. The gardens are always flowering with something; they’re at their most colorful April through July.
Cost: €9.50, not covered by Paris Museum Pass, €16.50 combo-ticket includes nearby Museum of Impressionisms, €18.50 combo-ticket with Paris’ Marmottan Museum; daily April-Oct 9:30-18:00, closed Nov-March; tel. 02 32 51 90 31, http://fondation-monet.com.
Crowd-Beating Tips: Though lines may be long and tour groups may trample the flowers, true fans still find magic in the gardens. Minimize crowds by arriving a little before 9:30, when it opens, or come after 16:00 and stay until it closes. Crowds recede briefly during lunch (12:00-13:30) but descend en masse after lunch. The busiest months here are May and June.
If you’re coming at a busy time, your best bet is to buy advance tickets online or at any FNAC store in Paris, which allows you to skip the ticket line and use the group entrance. Another option, if you also plan to visit the Museum of Impressionisms (described later), is to go there first and buy a combo-ticket (billet couplé).
Visiting the House and Gardens: After you get in, go directly into the Walled Garden (Clos Normand) and work your way around clockwise. Smell the pretty scene. Monet cleared this land of pine trees and laid out symmetrical beds, split down the middle by a “grand alley” covered with iron trellises of climbing roses. He did his own landscaping, installing flowerbeds of lilies, irises, and clematis. In his carefree manner, Monet throws together hollyhocks, daisies, and poppies. The color scheme of each flowerbed contributes to the look of the whole garden.
In the southwest corner of the Walled Garden (near the group entrance), you’ll find a pedestrian tunnel that leads under the road to the Water Garden. Follow the meandering path to the Japanese bridge, under weeping willows, over the pond filled with water lilies, and past countless scenes that leave artists aching for an easel. Find a bench. Monet landscaped like he painted—he built an Impressionist pattern of blocks of color. After he planted the gardens, he painted them, from every angle, at every time of day, in all kinds of weather.
Back on the main side, continue your visit with a wander through Monet’s mildly interesting home (pretty furnishings, Japanese prints, old photos, and a room filled with copies of his paintings). The gift shop at the exit is the actual sky-lighted studio where Monet painted his water-lily masterpieces (displayed at the Orangerie Museum in Paris). Many visitors spend more time in this tempting gift shop than in the gardens themselves.
This bright, modern museum, dedicated to the history of Impressionism and its legacy, houses temporary exhibits of Impressionist art. Check its website for current shows or just drop in. It also has picnic-pleasant gardens in front.
Cost and Hours: €7, daily April-Oct 10:00-18:00, closed Nov-March; to reach it, turn left after leaving Monet’s place and walk 200 yards; tel. 02 32 51 94 00, www.mdig.fr.
Monet’s grave is a 15-minute walk from his door. Turn left out of his house and walk down Rue Claude Monet, pass the Museum of Impressionisms and the Hôtel Baudy, and find it in the backyard of the white church Monet attended (Eglise Sainte-Radegonde). Look for flowers, with a cross above. The inscription says: Here lies our beloved Claude Monet, born 14 November 1840, died 5 December 1926; missed by all.
If you have time to kill at Vernon’s train station, take a five-minute walk into town and sample the peaceful village. Walk between the tracks and the café across the street from the station, and follow the street as it curves left and becomes Rue d’Albuféra. You’ll find a smattering of half-timbered Norman homes near Hôtel de Ville (remember, you’re in Normandy) and several good cafés and shops—including the killer $ Boulangerie/Pâtisserie Rose, which has intense quiche and a good selection of sandwiches (74 Rue d’Albuféra, tel. 02 32 51 03 98).
(See “Giverny” map, here.)
Sleeping: $ Hôtel la Musardière** is nestled in the village of Giverny two blocks from Monet’s home (exit right when you leave Monet’s). Carole welcomes you with 10 sweet rooms that Claude himself would have felt at home in (family rooms) and a reasonable and homey $$ crêperie-restaurant with a lovely yard and outdoor tables (daily with nonstop service, 123 Rue Claude Monet, tel. 02 32 21 03 18, www.lamusardiere.fr, hotelmusardieregiverny@wanadoo.fr).
$ Les Jardins d’Hèléne chambres d’hôte is as lovely as a Monet painting, with floral rooms and a terrific garden. Owner Sandrine Chifman goes out of her way to help her guests have a local experience, including free use of her bikes, and cooks dinner on Sunday and Monday evenings when most restaurants are closed—€20, reserve 2 days ahead (includes breakfast, 15-minute walk from Monet’s home at 12 Rue Claude Monet, tel. 02 32 21 30 68 or 06 47 98 14 87, www.giverny-lesjardinsdhelene.com, lesjardinsdhelene@free.fr).
$ Le Clos Fleuri is a family-friendly B&B in a traditional house with three fine rooms, handy cooking facilities, and a lovely garden. It’s a 15-minute walk from Monet’s place and is run by charming, English-speaking Danielle, who serves up a generous included breakfast (cash only, 5 Rue de la Dîme, tel. 02 32 21 36 51, www.giverny-leclosfleuri.fr, leclosfleuri27@yahoo.fr).
Eating: A flowery café/restaurant and a sandwich/drink stand sit right next to the parking lot across from Monet’s home. Enjoy your lunch in the nearby gardens of the Museum of the Impressionisms.
The botanic café by the TI, $ La Capucine, is like a self-serve cafeteria, with a pleasant garden and tasty cold or warm soups and quiches (daily 10:00-18:00).
Rose-colored $$ Hôtel Baudy, once a hangout for American Impressionists, offers an appropriately pretty setting for lunch or dinner (outdoor tables in front, popular with tour groups, daily, 5-minute walk past Museum of Impressionisms at 81 Rue Claude Monet, tel. 02 32 21 10 03). Don’t miss a stroll through the artsy gardens behind the restaurant.
Europe’s Disneyland is a remake of California’s, with most of the same rides and smiles. The main difference is that Mickey Mouse speaks French, and you can buy wine with your lunch. My kids went ducky for it.
The Disneyland Paris Resort is a sprawling complex housing two theme parks (Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studios), a few entertainment venues, and several hotels. Opened in 1992, it was the second Disney resort built outside the US (Tokyo was first). With upwards of 15 million visitors a year, it has quickly become Europe’s single leading tourist destination.
Disneyland Paris: This park has cornered the fun market, with classic rides and Disney characters. You’ll find familiar favorites wrapped in French packaging, like Space Mountain (a.k.a. De la Terre à la Lune) and Pirates of the Caribbean (Pirates des Caraïbes).
Walt Disney Studios: This zone has a Hollywood focus geared for an older crowd, with animation, special effects, and movie magic “rides.” The cinema-themed rides include CinéMagique (a slow-motion cruise through film history on a people mover, mixing film clips, audio-animatronic figures, and live actors); Studio Tram Tour: Behind the Magic (another slow-mo ride, this time mostly outdoors, through a “movie backlot”); and Moteurs... Action! Stunt Show Spectacular (an actual movie sequence is filmed with stunt drivers, audience bit players, and brash MTV-style hosts). The top thrill rides include the Rock ’n’ Roller Coaster (which starts out by accelerating from a standstill to nearly 60 miles per hour in less than three seconds, all while Aerosmith tunes blast in your ears) and the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror (which drops passengers from a precarious 200-foot-high perch). Gentler attractions include a re-creation of the parachute jump in Toy Story and a Finding Nemo-themed ride that whisks you through the ocean current.
Disneyland is easy to get to, and may be worth a day—if Paris is handier than Florida or California.
By Bus or Train from Downtown Paris: The slick 45-minute RER trip is the best way to get to Disneyland from Paris. Take RER line A to Marne-la-Vallée-Chessy (check the signs over the platform to be sure Marne-la-Vallée-Chessy is served, because the line splits near the end). Catch it from one of these stations: Charles de Gaulle-Etoile, Auber, Châtelet-Les Halles, or Gare de Lyon (at least 3/hour, drops you 45 minutes later right in the park, about €8 each way). The last train back to Paris leaves shortly after midnight. When returning, remember to use the same RER ticket for your Métro connection in Paris.
The all-day Mobilis ticket is a smart purchase for some Disney day-trippers, as it covers your Paris Métro rides for the day and the round-trip train to Disneyland (€16.60 for zones 1-5 ticket). Buy it at any Métro station, fill in your name and date of travel on the ticket, and validate it the day you use it.
Disneyland Express runs buses to Disneyland from several stops in central Paris (including Opéra, Madeleine, Châtelet, and Gare du Nord). A single ticket combines transportation and entrance to Disneyland (€80 for kids 3-11, free for kids 2 and under, €90 for adults; several morning departures to choose from and one return time of 20:00, book tickets online, www.disneylandparis-express.com).
By Bus or Train from the Airport: Both of Paris’ major airports (Charles de Gaulle and Orly) have direct shuttle buses to Disneyland Paris (€20; about hourly and takes 45 minutes, www.magicalshuttle.co.uk). Fast TGV trains run from Charles de Gaulle to Disneyland in 10 minutes, leaving hourly (shuttle bus ride required to get from train station to Disneyland).
By Car: Disneyland is about 40 minutes (20 miles) east of Paris on the A-4 autoroute (direction Nancy/Metz, exit #14). Parking is about €15/day at the park.
Cost: A one-day pass to either park—Disneyland Paris or Walt Disney Studios—is about €62 for kids ages 3-11, free for kids 2 and under, €69 for adults. Multiday passes are available. Regular prices are discounted about 25 percent Nov-March, and promotions are offered occasionally (check www.disneylandparis.com).
Hours: Disneyland—daily 10:00-22:00, mid-May-Aug until 23:00, until 20:00 in winter, open later on weekends, hours fluctuate with the seasons—check website for precise times. Walt Disney Studios—daily 10:00-19:00.
Skipping Lines: The free Fastpass system is a worthwhile timesaver for the most popular rides (check map and legend for details; you may have only one Fastpass at a time, so choose wisely). At the ride, check the Fastpass sign to see when you can return and skip the line. Insert your park admission ticket into the Fastpass machine, which spits out a ticket printed with your return time. You’ll also save time by buying park tickets in advance (at airport TIs, some Métro stations, or along the Champs-Elysées at the Disney Store).
Avoiding Crowds: Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday, public holidays, and any day in July and August are the most crowded. After dinner, crowds are gone.
Information: Disney brochures are in every Paris hotel. For more info and to make reservations, call 01 60 30 60 53, or try www.disneylandparis.com.
Eating with Mickey: Food is fun and not outrageously priced. (Still, many smuggle in a picnic.) The Disneyland Hotel restaurant Inventions offers an expensive gourmet brunch on Sundays (roughly €60/person) and daily dinners where the most famous Disney characters visit with starstruck eaters.
Most are better off sleeping in the real world (i.e., Paris), though with direct buses and freeways to both airports, Disneyland makes a convenient first- or last-night stop. Seven different Disney-owned hotels offer accommodations at or near the park in all price ranges. Prices are impossible to pin down, as they vary by season and by the package deal you choose (deals that include park entry are usually a better value), with most in the $$$$ range. To reserve any Disneyland hotel, call 01 60 30 60 53, or check www.disneylandparis.com. The prices you’ll be quoted include entry to the park. Hotel Santa Fe** offers a fair midrange value, with frequent shuttle service to the park. Another cheap option is Davy Crockett’s Ranch, but you’ll need a car to stay there. The most expensive is the Disneyland Hotel,**** right at the park entry, about three times the price of the Santa Fe. The Vienna House Dream Castle Hotel**** is another higher-end choice, with nearly 400 rooms done up to look like a lavish 17th-century palace (40 Avenue de la Fosse des Pressoirs, tel. 01 64 17 90 00, www.dreamcastle-hotel.com, info@dreamcastle-hotel.com).