We are thinking of booking a day tour from Paris to Versailles. Can anyone recommend a tour company?
This tour sounds terrific, but I don't know if Viator is a reliable company or not (have not used them). Also looking into their tours of the Cotswolds in England.
Here is there full tour of Versailles:
Thanks for any help.
Viator do not run any tours, anywhere they operate.
They are a reseller (at a profit) of tours provided by other companies. Reviews go both ways.
If the tour goes well everybody is happy. If the tour doesn't, Viator will do nothing saying your contract is actually with the provider, not them. It has been reported here that an actual provider has said it is nothing to do with them, talk to Viator.
Working with a middleman has ups and downs.
If you can figure out the actual provider - google some of the words in the description - you may be able to deal directly with them.
As nigel says.. Viatour just sells other companies tours.. they do not run them..
These are two of the main reliable. well established tour companies for big bus type tours in and outside of Paris.
and
Both offer about same product.
However I strongly recommend you do not do a tour there.. instead.. go on your own.. but prebook online their "Kings Apartment " tour.. this gets you timed entrance ( no line waiting ) and a nice tour of private apartments with a small group.. then access to rest of palace after .
The tours are WAY overpriced and too short to enjoy all the gardens , Marie Antionettes Hamlet and the Grand and Petit Trianons.
Train from paris is about 35-45 minutes.. and costs 4 euros each way.. think the Kings Apartment tour is less then 20 euros.. so look.. for less then 30 euros you can have a whole day.. or spend more and have less time and be rushed through with a group of up to 50 others.. .
Sorry did not look at your link.. there is no way in H E double toothpicks would I pay almost 400 dollars .. that is so insane.. seriously.. I thought they might milk you for 100 bucks.. but 393 dollars.. no.. even with the smaller group.. its wrong.
That's almost an 800 dollar day.. and the VIP Kings Apartment tour ( its SEVEN euros in addition to the all day passport ticket of 18 euros.. so a grand total of 23 euros.. not sure what that is in American.. maybe 25 bucks..?
My first time to Versailles I also coupled it with Giverny.
I ususally use Paris-trip for these sort of (get in there, and out as easily as possible) trips.
http://paris-trip.com/16/giverny-and-versailles-small-group-day-trip-from-paris.asp
This particular one had a nice little lunch at an old windmill.
It is very easy to do on your own with nothing more than a RS guidebook. You can use public transit the whole way and the cost will be nothing compared to a tour company.
Thank you all! RS book, and several reviews on TripAdviser, say that the lines can be horrendous and Thursdays and Fridays are the best days to go. I understand that there are trains directly from Paris that end at Versailles and there is easy access to the palace from there. It does seem a good idea to book a guided tour ahead of time. Versailles operates these tours and you pick it up through a separate entrance that avoids the long lines. You return to Paris on the same train.
Has anyone done Versailles this way? If so, please tell me if this is a good plan.
Many thanks again to everyone!
Here are some older threads with people reporting on the King's Apartment tour, as well as some other tips:
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/france/versailles-king-s-apartment-tour
If memory serves correctly, on one trip to Paris we had a museum pass that allowed us to skip the lines and use a special entrance at Versailles. Not sure if that is still the case. Perhaps someone else has more recent knowledge about the museum pass / Versailles situation.
We have not done a "tour" of Versailles, but just took the train, used our museum pass to do a normal tour of gardens and palace. The train transport is very easy (had to ask which train- we did get confused) but from there it is easy. Everyone getting off the train is going to Versailles, so just follow the crowd. We did the gardens first (had been to the palace before) then did the palace after. I think it was less crowded doing it that way....maybe?
It might not be your cup of tea, but I love the Fat Tire Bike tours day trip to Versailles. You ride the train, get a bike, buy a picnic at the market, ride all over the gardens and tour the palace at the end. You can stay there as long as you like and then get the train back. I personally prefer the gardens to the palace rooms anyway. And the last 10 years it has always been so horrendously crowded inside that believe I can understand why people have panic attacks - so maybe it's worth all that money if you can really avoid "the bulk of the crowds".
