Givergny

It's about a 45 minute train ride from Paris. There are 4 trains a day that depart from Saint Lazere to Vernon. From Vernon you can either take a bus that departs from the train station for 6 euro RT (IIRC), rent a bike or take a cab. It's about another 10 minute bus ride to Giverny.

We bought train tickets the day of departure and they were 25 euro each RT. The SCNF ticket office will have a brochure on it.

Well worth the trip. Try to get the earliest train (9:30 I think) and avoid the weekends as large (or noisy crowds) can really take away from the experience.

I'd suggest seeing the L'Orangerie the next day as well.

Yes, worth the trip. We were driving to Brittany and stopped along the way, quite close! Check out their site, http://giverny.org/, it has information that will be helpful. You will get to see his home, the light on the water garden and the apple growing espaliers!

Google Giverny and take a look at the official website to get a better idea of the place - and what's blooming. The gardens are beautiful.

To see some of his works, visit the Marmottan Museum. There is an excellent collection of his works, showing different styles over the length of his career.

Based only on an unguided visit there (so I may be missing something): the pleasures of Giverny are, for the most part, self-evident. There are no paintings there to talk about, just the house and the garden.

Knowledgeable guides might be expected to add something, probably about Monet's life while living there, but I suspect less than to, say, an historic walk in a city.

I've never had a guide there and never felt the need for one but I'm a Monet fan too and had read a lot about him. The house is pretty much as he left it and you can see into most of the rooms. If you have been to many Monet exhibits or looked at any Monet art books, you'll recognize at least parts of the gardens. I agree with the recommendations to get there early before the biggest crowds arrive. It's very worth the trip.

Leave Gare Saint-Lazare at 08:20 and arrive in Vernon at 09:05. The garden opens at 09:30. The current train fare is €12.80 each way.

I agree with Chani about the Musee Marmottan. Outstanding! As Tyson said, another Paris museum that features Monet is the Musee de l'Orangerie. After being closed for several years for renovation (including when I was in Paris--boo hoo), it reopened a year or so ago. The Musee d'Orsay also has a Monet collection.

Both the Orangerie and the Orsay are covered by the Paris Museum Pass. The Marmottan is not.

Also be sure to walk through the village of Giverny which is basically one street. It's absolutely worth it if you are a Monet fan.

We were just there. Get your tickets in advance to skip a rather long line. If you get there close to opening, you'll miss some of the tour groups and will have a more enjoyable visit. That being said, it is nearly impossible to get a picture of the bridge in the garden without a few people standing on it. If you are a Monet fan, it's like going to Mecca. It is very crowded, but everyone is quiet and very polite.

Thanks to all your replies. I definitely will go. Follow up question: Rick mentioned somewhere that the Orsay is undergoing renovation this year and much of the Impressionist collection is farmed out. Is that worth a visit this summer? The Orsay website mentioned the updating of those galleries, but, of course, didn't discuss what was NOT available for viewing.

A lot of the more famous paintings and statues are gone from the Orsay right now (some of them are in San Francisco as we speak). A good representation of each artist is still there though.

If you want an idea of what is currently NOT at the d'Orsay, you could get an idea by checking the website of the DeYoung Museum in San Francisco. The travelling Monets are currently there until early September.

Current advice on tripadvisor's Paris forum is to visit Giverny on Monday. Until recently, Monday was its "closed" day and many of the tour companies have not yet changed their schedules.

We didn't have time to visit the Marmottan which is not in the central tourist area, but it is supposed to have the largest Monet collection.

To those of you who have been to Giverny, did you hire one of the free-lance guides mentioned on the web-site? Are there self-guiding tape recorders to rent? In other words, how do you get the most from your experience? It looks like the guides should be booked in advance due to high volume. Thanks.

There is a wonderful magical childrens' book called "Linea in Monet's Garden" which is readily available here and they actually sell there. You can read it in advance and then just enjoy the moment in Giverny. I have been there in Spring and Fall and both times were lovely. The L'Orangerie gives me goose bumps. If you love Monet's the Marmottan Museum is nice. A big fav of mine in Paris is Jacquesmart-Andre Museum, a true delight but no Monets that I recall.

Hello Karen. My husband and I took the Gray Line/Cityrama day tour of Giverney and Versailles. We loved the tour. Yes, Giverney is beautiful and well worth the visit. We even bought two prints and a claendar there. We were there in June, 2009. Gray Line/Cityrama tours do a good job. We just returned from a 19 day trip to Paris last month. We used Gray Line/Cityrama day tours many times. Elaine