Visiting Versailles from Paris: The Complete Guide

Twenty kilometres south-west of Paris, the Palace of Versailles is the place where Louis XIV turned a royal hunting lodge into the most dazzling court in Europe. It is one of the most visited monuments in France, and one of the easiest day trips from Paris. This guide covers how to get there, what to see inside the palace and across the estate, when to go, and how to avoid the queues.

Why Versailles is worth the trip

Louis XIII built a modest hunting lodge here; his son, Louis XIV, transformed it into a palace big enough to hold the whole French court, and moved the government to Versailles in 1682. For more than a century it was the stage of absolute monarchy, with its daily rituals, its intrigues and its extravagant festivities, until the Revolution forced Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette to leave for Paris in October 1789.

The palace, its gardens and the Trianon estate have been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979. Visiting them is the best way to understand how the kings of France lived, ruled and entertained.

How to get to Versailles from Paris

Allow 45 minutes to an hour from central Paris. There are three train stations in Versailles, all within walking distance of the palace:

• RER C to Versailles Château – Rive Gauche: the simplest option from the Left Bank (Saint-Michel, Musée d'Orsay, Invalides, Champ de Mars). The palace is about ten minutes' walk from the station.
• SNCF train from Gare Montparnasse to Versailles Chantiers: fast and frequent, then about twenty minutes on foot.
• SNCF train from Gare Saint-Lazare to Versailles Rive Droite: convenient from the Opéra area, then about twenty minutes on foot.

Whichever train you take, make sure your ticket covers Versailles: it lies outside central Paris.

What to see inside the palace

The Hall of Mirrors

The most famous room in France is 73 metres long and lined with 357 mirrors facing seventeen tall windows onto the gardens. It was built to dazzle foreign ambassadors, and it was here that the Treaty of Versailles was signed on 28 June 1919, ending the First World War.

The King's State Apartments

A suite of reception rooms dedicated to the gods of antiquity, from the Salon of Hercules to the Salon of Apollo, the throne room. Look up: the painted ceilings tell the story of the Sun King's reign in allegories.

The Queen's Apartments

The Queen's Bedchamber, where royal births took place in public, still looks as it did in Marie-Antoinette's day, down to the silk on the walls.

The Royal Chapel

Consecrated in 1710, the white and gold chapel is where the court heard mass every morning and where the future Louis XVI married Marie-Antoinette in 1770.

The gardens and the Trianon estate

The formal gardens were designed by André Le Nôtre: terraces, fountains, sculpted groves and the Grand Canal, more than a kilometre and a half long. On selected days from spring to autumn, the fountains play to music during the musical fountain and garden shows.

Beyond the gardens lies the Trianon estate: the pink-marble Grand Trianon, the Petit Trianon given to Marie-Antoinette, and the Queen's Hamlet, the rustic village she built to escape the etiquette of court. The estate is vast; a small train runs between the palace and the Trianon, and you can rent bikes or boats near the Grand Canal.

When to visit Versailles

• The palace is closed on Mondays, which makes Tuesdays among the busiest days. Weekends are busy too.
• Arrive at opening time or in the afternoon: the crowds peak in the late morning.
• Spring to autumn is the season of the fountain shows and the gardens in bloom; winter is quieter inside the palace.

Opening hours and ticket prices change with the seasons: check the official Palace of Versailles website before you go.

How to skip the queues

Book a timed entry in advance: tickets bought on the day mean a long wait, and every visitor still goes through a security check. The easiest option is a guided tour with reserved entry. Our Palace of Versailles skip-the-line guided tour takes you through the Hall of Mirrors and the Royal Apartments with a certified guide in about three hours, without queuing for tickets.

How much time do you need?

Allow two to three hours for the palace itself. If you want to see the gardens and the Trianon estate as well, plan a full day and wear comfortable shoes: you will walk several kilometres.

Royal and imperial Paris

Versailles tells the story of the kings; Les Invalides tells the story of the emperor. Back in Paris, complete the picture with a private tour of Les Invalides and Napoleon's tomb, or browse all our Versailles and royal Paris tours.