Curious if anyone has been to the Weekend Fountain Shows at Versailles? We are planning on going in September and plan to start the day visiting the town of Versailles (wondering if there is a Saturday market?) and then head to the Gardens. We've previously toured the Chateau so will just be doing the Gardens specifically for the fountain shows this time.
Is there any need to buy these tickets ahead of time? Thanks in advance :)
We went a few years ago just to see the fountains (we had been years ago to the Chateau and actually went again with friends a couple of years ago). There was zero line for the gardens; you just buy tickets on arrival at the garden entrance. When we went to the chateau on our last trip we added the gardens last minute; the line that time was maybe 15 people ahead of us -- so no big deal. I suspect if we had gone around to the side entrance we had used before, there would have again been no line.
The tickets are good all day. so you can do the morning fountains leave the gardens for lunch and to visit the Trianon and Hameau etc and then return for the afternoon fountains (they run fr 90 minute or so in the morning. and then they run again for a couple of hours in late afternoon). Because they run so briefly I would try to get there for the early fountains so you can do both sessions. Not all fountains run at all times.
Here was our experience.:
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2016/02/15/fountains-of-versailles-a-little-chaos/
Versaille Markets: https://en.versailles-tourisme.com/the-markets-of-versailles.html
There appears to be 3 markets open on Saturdays, one being a flower market.
Ashley was she buying a chateau as well as a garden ticket? THAT line is crazy long and I would never go to the chateau without ticket in hand for a reserved time -- even with a ticket in the past, the lines for entry were an hour or two. But the garden only ticket line has been very short both times we have bought garden tickets -- none the first time and maybe a dozen the second. The garden tickets are not purchased from the same line as the chateau tickets (although you can buy chateau tickets which include the garden of course.
We went a few summers ago on a Saturday entering the grounds thru the Queens Gate and walking over to Apollos Basin (a bit of a long walk). Tickets for the garden were sold there and I don't remember there being much of a line.
There are separate entrances for fountain/garden only tickets. One is sort of around to the right as you face the building. It is one we used a few years ago with no line. There is another gardens sales line once you are within the chateau courtyard. But there is no reason to stand in line if the goal is to visit the gardens on a fountain day without chateau entrance.
