Castles · Tour

Versailles Half-Day by RER, Timed to the Fountain Shows

Half a day rather than a full one, which means the palace and the gardens without the Trianon estate, and a guide who knows the fountain timetable. That last point is the practical value here. On fountain show days the waterworks run to a precise schedule, the same one they ran to under the kings, and the guide makes sure you are standing in the right place when each one starts. The group meets in central Paris and takes the RER out together, escorted. Skip-the-line access gets you past the queues that build at the gates every morning. Inside, the route covers the royal apartments and the Hall of Mirrors, with the account of how the court actually worked: how the kings and queens lived their lives in public, how they kept the courtiers in line, and how Versailles became the artistic centre of Europe. A day in the life of Marie Antoinette explains why she disliked the place, and where that life ended. Then the gardens, once used for balls, parties and firework displays. At the end you can return to Paris with the guide or stay on in Versailles. Return tickets are provided either way, and trains leave every 15 minutes; all of them go to Paris.