Versailles: a weekend trip from Paris by train

Train: 13 min by train
Return trip: from €5
Arrival station: Versailles Château Rive Gauche

Price found for the coming weekend, rounded down to the nearest €5.

See it on the map, with this weekend’s prices and weather

The palace, Le Nôtre's gardens and the park by bike — 40 min from Paris.

The Hall of Mirrors, the Grandes Eaux fountains, Trianon and the Queen's Hamlet: the ultimate car-free culture weekend. RER C to Versailles Château Rive Gauche (10-min walk), or line N from Montparnasse to Chantiers. By bike: the park and the Grand Canal (the formal gardens are on foot only).

Who is it for

Couples : Romantique : jardins, Grand Canal et Hameau de la Reine à deux.
Families : Excellent famille dès 7 ans : domaine immense, vélo/barque sur le Grand Canal et Hameau.
Solo : Solo royal : château tôt le matin puis vélo dans le parc.

Things to do

Grand Canal & park by bike
Bike and rowboat hire in the park, picnics by the Grand Canal (no bikes in the formal gardens).
Palace & Hall of Mirrors
Royal apartments, chapel, Royal Opera — book an early slot to beat the crowds.
Gardens, groves & Grandes Eaux
Le Nôtre's gardens; musical fountain shows in spring and summer.
King's Kitchen Garden & Saint-Louis quarter
Louis XIV's kitchen garden still in production, and Versailles' least touristy quarter.
Trianon & the Queen's Hamlet
The Trianons and Marie-Antoinette's rustic hamlet — far quieter than the palace.

Coming up

22 September → 24 January · Marie-Antoinette de Sofia Coppola · Petit Trianon
17 November → 2 May · Adriaen de Vries · Aile du Midi, château
12 December → 2 January · Le Parcours du Roi, Marie-Antoinette reine de la mode · Grands Appartements, galerie des Glaces
20 March · Salomon EcoTrail Paris, 45 km · Départ jardins du château, arrivée pont d'Iéna