Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte

My wife and I had the same problem finding a cab after taking the train. The gift shop did call us a cab and there was a 30 minute wait as the Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte is in the middle of nowhere.

There are detailed directions in Rick's Paris book. I've done it on public transit, and thought it was a bit of a pain. The taxi call stand at the train station was broken, so we had to wait ages for a taxi to just show up to take us from town to the Chateau. It was easier to get back--a woman in the gift shop called a cab for us.

We've been there twice and had the opposite experience from Christy - a taxi was there at the station which we shared with 2 other people we didn't know (to save $) but coming back was a pain, had to wait quite a while. It's well worth it though. We LOVE Vaux-le-Vicomte.

There's a shuttle bus that runs from the Melun train station out to the Chateau but, it only runs April -October or something like that. Catching the RER D2 out of Paris is the meat of the trip. Getting to that line from Troadero is a bear. Grit your teeth: Take Metro 6 to Denfert / Rochereau, then the RER B up to Chatelet / Les Halles (ugh!). Hop the D2 there. Edit: take a gander at this: http://www.vaux-le-vicomte.com/en/visite_infos_pratiques_horaires_plan.php - - the part above the drawing of a bus. Note that my initial thought is all wet - - my months are wrong and it only apparently runs on Saturday and Sunday. Regardless of bus or taxi, ignore the part about catching the RER from G. Lyon - - it's way too hard to get there from Trocadero without going through Chatelet anyway.

What if we were to leave from Metro Stop Saint-Michel or the Notre Dame area?

Not much difference. From St Michel, there's a metro line (#4 ?) that runs through Cite up to Chatelet. RER B from St Michel / Notre Dame does the same thing a block to the east. Personally, I'd just walk - - it's only a half mile or so and just about as fast. Alternatively, from the St Michel complex, you could catch the RER C to G. Austerlitz, but then you'd have to hoof it across the river to G. Lyon. That walk must be close to a mile and is not as interesting as cutting across Ile de la Cite. What I'd personally do (since I detest Chatelet and am a walking fanatic) is just wander either side of the river to G. Lyon. Walking up the islands and crossing to the right bank for the last little bit would work just as well if you hadn't walked that route yet. Either of the three routes is less than two miles.