Versailles Palace & Marie-Antoinette's Estate Guided Tour
Description
See the highlights of Versailles in one day on this comprehensive trip from Paris. After traveling to the town by luxury minibus, skip past the entrance lines with your priority-access ticket and then head inside the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Palace of Versailles. Tour the State Apartments, seeing the incredible Hall of Mirrors, and then explore Versailles Gardens at leisure. Enjoy lunch (not included) by the Grand Canal and visit the estate of Trianon with Petit Trianon and the Queen’s Hamlet.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Leave central Paris and head southwest by luxury minibus to the historic town of Versailles, roughly 25 miles (40km) away. Famous as the home of King Louis XIV, the town’s palace, gardens and memorials all attest to the sheer grandeur of his ruling era. First stop is the Palace of Versailles, the town’s sprawling palatial compound where Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette, once lived. At the center of French royal power throughout 17th and 18th centuries, the building oozes royal elegance and, as such, draws visitors from all around the world.
Head straight past the long lines of visitors outside the palace with your skip-the-line ticket, and head inside to experience the history and opulence of it. On a tour led by your expert guide, discover the stunning State Apartments that comprise the Hall of Mirrors and Queen’s Apartments. While walking, your guide will enthrall you with tales of the kings who lived there.
After approximately one hour exploring the Palace of Versailles, step outside to discover the magnificent gardens at your own pace. Just as impressive as the palace itself, these French Baroque gardens took nearly 40 years to complete and feature highlights such as the famous Versailles fountains and the Orangery. Following your visit to the gardens, enjoy some free time for lunch (not included) near the Grand Canal. Your guide will be happy to recommend nearby options. If the weather permits, you may also choose to enjoy a light outdoor picnic on the grass by the Grand Canal.
Your afternoon is spent at the estate of Trianon, which "is perhaps most closely associated with Queen Marie-Antoinette", where you will visit the Petit Trianon, the place where "The wife of Louis XVI regularly sought refuge." Marie Antionette’s Queen’s Hamlet is nearby, and this is the last Versailles sight to be seen before your journey back to Paris. Designed by the popular French architect Richard Mique, the retreat features a charming thatched-roof cottage, lakes, streams and even a little farmhouse. After exploring the Queen’s Hamlet, head back to your luxury minibus for the return journey to Paris.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Reviews(574)
Nikolai was amazing! He made it fun and VERY interesting with all his great stories!! He answered every question…he showed us EVERYTHING there was to see…I never felt rushed…all along he made it so much fun!!
Had a fantastic visit to Versailles with Oliver as our guide. We were very lucky to be the only two people on the tour that day and the weather was perfect. Oliver was able to provide great historical background and answered many questions that we had. The lunch location was busy but the food was very good. Highly recommend this tour for the day and hopefully you will be lucky enough to get Oliver as your guide also.
Dear Lisa, Thank you so much for your wonderful 5-star review of our Versailles Best of Domain Skip-the-Line Access Day Tour with Lunch from Paris! We're thrilled to hear you had such a fantastic day exploring Versailles with Oliver. It sounds like everything aligned perfectly—from the beautiful weather to the personalized experience and, of course, Oliver’s insightful guidance. We're especially glad to hear that he was able to bring the history of Versailles to life and answer all your questions so thoroughly. We’ll be sure to pass along your kind words to Oliver—he’ll be delighted to know he helped make your visit so memorable. Thanks again for taking the time to share your experience. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to welcome you back on another Paris TRIP adventure in the future! Warm regards, The Paris TRIP Team
Olivia was fantastic! So knowledgeable and kind. She took the time to explain the history without boring any of the attendees.
Dear kiersten, Thank you so much for sharing your kind words and leaving us a glowing 5-star review of your Versailles Guided Visit! We are thrilled to hear that Olivia made your experience so enjoyable. Her knowledge and warm approach truly embody the spirit of what we strive for at Paris TRIP, and it’s wonderful to know that her explanations were engaging and memorable for everyone. Your feedback inspires us to continue delivering exceptional tours, and we’ll be sure to share your praise with Olivia – it will mean the world to her! If you’re ever back in Paris, we’d be delighted to welcome you on another adventure. Merci beaucoup! Warm regards, The Paris TRIP Team
Very interesting tour: small group, good timing and logistics, very interesting tour with a lot of history in both castles. Lunch place can be better in food quality, but it was Ok for so small price. Thank you for the great rip!
Dear Anna, Thank you for taking the time to share your experience with our Full Day at Versailles Guided Tour with Transfers from Paris. We are delighted to hear that you found the tour interesting, appreciated the small group setup, and enjoyed learning about the rich history of the castles. We appreciate your constructive feedback about the lunch venue. While we strive to provide a balanced experience at an affordable price, your comment inspires us to explore ways to enhance the dining portion of our tour for future guests. Your kind words motivate our team to continue delivering memorable experiences, and we’re thrilled to have been a part of your visit to Versailles. If your travels bring you back to Paris, we’d love to welcome you on another adventure! Warm regards, The Paris TRIP Team
Lovely building, amazing gardens, lunch spot was ok, guide was very friendly. There wasn't enough time to explore even half of the gardens, and it was much more walking than we expected. The Queen's Village part was a lovely surprise in spite of the trek - looked like Hobbiton.
Bonjour Jamison_T, Thank you for your feedback! We're glad you enjoyed the building, gardens, and found the guide friendly. We appreciate your comments about the time needed to explore the gardens and the amount of walking. We're pleased that you found the Queen's Village amusing and lovely. We hope to improve the experience for our future guests. The Paris TRIP Team
Michelle was so knowledgeable. I loved hearing her stories and anecdotes. The provided lunch was a favorite with all of us on the tour.
Bonjour Derrilyn_B, Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We are thrilled to hear that you had a great experience on our Versailles Best of Domain Skip-the-Line Access Day Tour with Lunch from Paris. Michelle is indeed a fantastic guide with a wealth of knowledge to share. We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed her stories and the provided lunch. We strive to offer a memorable and enjoyable experience for all our guests, and we're glad that you had a fantastic time exploring Versailles with us. Your kind words mean a lot to us! The Paris TRIP Team
We enjoyed this tour very much. The tour guide was excellent who did a great job educating us on what we saw and spent just the right time at each place. I never would have gone to see Marie Anntoinettes house on our own and so happy it was on this tour as it was absolutely beautiful. We also had a wonderful lunch that was so convenient to where the Palace was. We really appreciated that we could choose what we wanted and the food was excellent! We would definitely look into taking other tours with that organization next time we are in Paris. Thank you so much.
Totally worth the money! Nick was a nice & knowledgeable guide. Lots of good information about Versailles & France. The lunch was great! I would highly recommend visiting Versailles this way.
Tour was great and the staff welcomed me when I arrived. Once we got to Versailles the queue for groups was about an hour. Once we began our guide was excellent and provided in depth details about the palace. Michael was great and he has extensive knowledge. Every part of the trip he let us know what, where and when we needed to meet. Thank you for wonderful day.
A fantastic tour visiting Versailles Palace, Trianons and the Queen’s Hamlet - so much history! Isabelle, our guide, was great - very knowledgeable, explained things really well and more than happy to answer our many questions.
