We are very excited to visit Giverny this spring. We are very familiar with Monet, his life, and his work, and hope to take lots of photos in the gardens. I understand it gets very busy. Is a tour (GetYourGuide is $117 for 2 people) really worth the money? I believe docents in the house provide information there...not the tour guides. The tours are about 2 hours, but one can linger in the gardens afterwards. We are staying in Vernon so could be at the Garden when it opens, vs waiting a little while for a tour. The Rick Steves France guidebook does not comment on the importance of a tour here. We will see the Musee D'Orsay, Orangerie, and Marmattan a few days later. I have not been able to ascertain if there are any joint tickets at present---especially ones that provide for visiting Giverny before the Paris sites.
Posted by
San Francisco/Marin County
9436 posts
Not worth it at all imo. Very easy to do on your own. Rick Steves explains how to get there in his Paris guidebook.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
1331 posts
Don't waste your money on a tour. It is very easy to wander around and enjoy the house and gardens on your own. The size is comfortable for exploration, and there is a cafe to have lunch if you wish. We were there in May 2017 and the gardens were an explosion of tulips! It was absolutely beautiful, and a morning we won't forget. I took dozens of pictures and still enjoy looking at them. You will have a colorful day there!
Posted by
OP
Salida CO
42 posts
Thank you. I was coming to that conclusion too. Did not realize there was a cafe there. Good to know. Will get early entry tickets. Consider Museum of Impressions later. Doubt we need advance tickets for that Vernon sight. Thanks all.
Posted by
PNW
141 posts
When we were there we arrived on a day that basically the whole town (by the train station) was closed - I think it might’ve been a Tuesday so that cut down on things to see in the town. We took a cute little open train to the garden from the train station which we thought was fun, it was parked out front and we just got a ticket from the driver. We found places to eat and wander around outside of the gardens (they were all open that day) so be sure to wander around the area once you exit. (We did not do a tour - not needed)
Posted by
San Francisco/Marin County
9436 posts
Another good reason to read RS guidebooks so you’ll know when the best days to go are, to know when things are closed, directions, and so much more.
Posted by
1053 posts
My husband and I toured Monet's house and garden on our own quite easily in 2019. I don't know how many square feet the house it, but it can't be over 5,000, so it's easy to view by yourselves. There are nice websites about the house and garden. Here is one that I find informative: https://giverny.org/gardens/fcm/visitgb.htm.
Make sure that you also walk the village. It is quite sweet. With the Paris museums that you will be visiting, you'll see quite a bit of Monet's art. I hope that the day you are in Giverny is a lovely one especially for the garden.
Posted by
Paris, France
112 posts
The link to the website above is for the Giverny tourist office website and it is indeed full of useful info. It can be used in conjunction with the official website for Monet's House and Gardens (link below):
https://fondation-monet.com/en/
I use sncf-connect.com for train schedules and prices but you can also use trainline. Sometimes you can save about 8 euros (about 16 euros round trip) off of the normal €16.80 one way fare (€33.60 round trip) if you buy a train ticket in advance. However, in my opinion it is not worth it because it locks you into a date and time and if it happens to be raining on the date you want to visit then you're stuck. I would instead buy tickets at Gare Saint-Lazare on the day of your travel so you can plan on picking a date with good weather. That being said if you know you'll have good weather for at least 2-3 days before your visit (that's about as far as rain forecasts are "reasonably" reliable) then you might check the SNCF site and see if discounted tickets are still available for advance purchase.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
33821 posts
there is just really one way around the house and the things in there are described on signs. The house isn't very large.
The gardens aren't huge either. If you walk around the outer walks and then to the bridge from different angles you will recognise the views with your prior familiarity with the great man.
No need whatsoever to pay somebody to say, over there is the famous bridge.