A full day at Versailles is a different experience from a half day. The palace earns its scale, the gardens reveal their geometry at walking pace, and the Trianon Estate, a fifteen-minute walk from the palace, opens onto a completely different world, the private retreats where the royal family escaped the ceremonial life they were required to perform inside.
Your programme
What your day includes
Palace, gardens, and the Trianon Estate. A complete day, built to let each place breathe.
Go further
Two specialist visits are available for those who want to explore beyond the standard programme. Both require a guide who has completed the Versailles specialist training, and carry an additional supplement confirmed at booking.
What you will see
The palace. The Hall of Mirrors, the State Apartments, and the private rooms that tell a more intimate story than the ceremonial spaces.
The gardens and the Trianon. Le Nôtre's gardens, avenues, parterres, fountains and the Grand Canal, and then, a quarter of an hour's walk away, the Trianon Estate, the Grand Trianon, the Petit Trianon and the Hameau de la Reine, the private world the royal family built to escape the ceremonial life of the palace.
The palace · the gardens · the Trianon Estate
Pépin's advice
Your ticket includes the gardens and the Trianon Estate. After the tour, you are welcome to stay and explore at your own pace.
Wear comfortable shoes. A full day at Versailles involves considerable walking, palace floors, garden gravel, cobblestones. Shoes matter more than you think.
Bring sunglasses. The sunlight reflects intensely off the garden paths. Easily forgotten, always regretted.
For visitors with reduced mobility: the palace is well equipped, with lifts serving all levels open to visitors. The gardens are a different matter, with gravel paths, cobblestones and significant distances. The programme can always be adapted, so get in touch before booking and the day will be planned around your situation. Full information is available on the Château de Versailles website.
Good to know
By train, the RER C, line L or line N reach Versailles-Château-Rive Gauche from central Paris in about an hour, and we meet at the equestrian statue of Louis XIV in front of the palace. By private driver or taxi the journey is around forty-five minutes, the meeting point confirmed at booking depending on your arrangements, and a private driver can be arranged on request.
