Hello Fellow Travelers!
My husband and I will be in Paris September 20th - 22nd. As a professor and history buff, he feels very strongly about visiting Versailles. That's fine with me but, unfortunately, Tuesday the 22nd is the only opportunity we'll have, and I understand Tuesdays are the busiest. I have looked at several "Skip The Line" tours - all have received mixed reviews. What would you do, friends? Get up super early, jump on a train and take our chances? Or book a half day guided tour? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks.
Posted by
Kansas
1175 posts
The crowds are horrendous by mid morning and you'll be forced to move along at the crowd's pace. Getting to the edges of the throng to actually see anything is impossible. We arrived at 0745 on RER C and walked to the main gate just as it was opened at 0800. We were first in and got many photos of the buildings gleaming in the morning sun. As crowds began to arrive, we were first in line with our museum passes for the opening at 0900. By 0900 the line was 200 meters long and out the main gate. Upon admittance we hustled to the Hall of Mirrors and had it to ourselves for great photos we traded with a Russian couple taking us and us taking them. Amazing. We then backtracked as far as we could and enjoyed the rest of the palace. The rest of the buildings didn't open until noon so we left around 1100. The admission line was by then 400 meters in a hot sun, so be prepared if you arrive late. You don't have to get up super early but you will have to be there prior to 0800 to do what we did and have most of the place to yourselves.
Posted by
OP
Minneapolis
155 posts
Thank you so much, George. This helps!
Posted by
Northeast Ohio, USA
707 posts
My 2 cents' worth is that buying a tour is worth it just to skip the line. I went on a Fat Tire tour (late May), on which we rode onto the property with no delay at all. This tour spent most of the time on the grounds rather than in the chateau, though it was very good for seeing Marie Antoinette's peasant village. We were allotted about one hour in the afternoon to see the chateau itself. I was initially disappointed at the brief time, but the crowds were so bad that I could not wait to get out, and "saw" the chateau in about half an hour.
I think your best bet to see the chateau would be to get there when it opens, with a tour to skip the line (and so you don't have to get there an hour early for a good spot in line), and maybe have half an hour or more before it chokes up. Of course September could be less crowded than May.