Important to state that we only have one day (8:00 am to 3 pm) to see both Versailles and Giverny before heading to our ship in Rouen for a 4pm departure. Plan: 1. From Paris, head to Versailles for arrival at 8:00 with a private driver. Start tour of palace at 9:00 am. 2. Depart at 11:30. Arrive at Giverny with driver by 1pm. 3. Tour Giverny for 1 hour, depart at 2:00.
4. Arrive at Rouen by 3pm. Question A: Is this doable? Please keep in mind that I know that I am not giving either place enough time! We want to see both and we may never be back........ Question B: If we skipped Versailles, are there any other comparable chateaus or palaces on the way to Monet's gardens (Giverny)?
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
I can only comment on the Versailles portion. While it is enough time to tour the chateau, you'll completely miss the gardens which for many is the real highlight. The gardens alone can take several hours to tour and include two smaller palaces (compared to the main one) and Marie Antoinette's Hamlet. As many have said here before, you'll see more highway than sites with your schedule. Be very careful about your timing for the ship. You can be delayed by traffic or other reasons. You should give yourself plenty of time to make your departure.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10633 posts
My first reaction was no way, but the Viamichelin calculates 50 minutes from Versailles to Giverny and another 50 minutes from Giverny to Rouen. With a private driver handling the bags and route you should be ok. Your only wild card would be road construction or an accident to slow you down. You could also see if tickets and tours, either public or private, can be reserved in advance. There are no comparable chateau or palaces on either route. IMHO, you've come up with a good plan to get a taste of both.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7889 posts
The ticket issue is important. Both these locations can have lines during peak season. If you're doing a VIP time schedule, you need all of the VIP perks, even if their cost is on top of the car and driver! Keep in mind that the same guy can't drop you off, park the car, and go into see his brother-in-law at the ticket office all at the same time.
Posted by
washington
837 posts
One other thought: while it is not a complete chateau, we found the Napoleon III apartments in the Louvre to be at least as interesting as the chateau interior at Versailles. Perhaps, in the interest of full disclosure, I should state that our opinion of Versailles is colored by the fact that we were not permitted to tour the gardens on our ticket. They were having an event and insisted on extorting additional funds to enter the garden area.
Posted by
Mission Viejo, Calif., USA
1010 posts
We took the Gray Line tour of Versailles and Giverney. It was great. They are based here in the U.S. We have used Gray Line in Canada, Boston, New York, Rome, London, Paris, Brugges, Switzerland, Australia., They do a thorough job.