Just starting to lay out our plans for a two-week trip to France in September. We're starting in Paris, where I have already booked three nights with hotel points. Here's what I'm thinking: Get up early on Day 4, a Friday (with bags) and take the train to Versailles. Stow bags at Versailles before spending the day touring the site. At the end of the day, pick up rental car in Versailles and drive to Giverny. Get up the next morning (Saturday) and see Monet's Garden, etc., before driving up to a TBD B&B near the D-Day beaches. Reasonable / doable? Does Versailles in fact have a bag check? Would it be better to take the train to Giverny and pick up the rental car there? And what are the locations of the rental car pick-up points in each place relative to the sites / train stations? Many thanks for any and all help you can offer!
Posted by
OP
Fredericksburg, VA, USA
409 posts
Adam and Tim - Thanks much for the quick reply. The only kicker here is that my original plan was to do exactly as you're suggesting....day trip to Versailles, then return to Paris and head out the next day. I had enough hotel points for only theree nights, so I thought I would just add on another night out-of-pocket. Wellllllll......the cheapest rate I could find for that extra night was 330 euros - OUCH! That's how I devised this unseemly plan. And I wasn't wild about any of the accommodations I saw close to Versailles. We were already planning on hitting Giverny enroute the beaches, so that's how this plan came to be.
Given all that, any other ideas? I'm all ears!
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
I think your creative plan can work. It's certainly no worse than many connections I have made to shoehorn things in to a tich itinerary.
However, I think the drive to Giverny after a day of sightseeing at Versailles will not be fun, especially on a week day. An alternative would be to return to Paris and catch an early AM train the next day, if you can arrange to rent a car in Vernon (the train stop for Giverny). Don't know if that works for you or not.
Re "Monet's Garden, etc."--you probably know this, but there isn't a whole lot of "etc." in Giverny, though the countryside is pretty and there is a small museum (of America impressionists) there.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
Yes, there is free luggage storage at Versailles.
viamichelin.com gives a driving time estimate of just under one hour for Versailles-Vernon and says that you can do that mostly on motorways with only a short distance on secondary roads.
However, I like Adam's suggestion of returning to Paris for the night and taking a morning train to Vernon. No packing and unpacking for a one-night stay and you'll save the cost of one day of car rental. Auto Europe lists Vernon as a rental car pick-up point with hours from 06:30 to 21:00 seven days/week. The gardens open at 09:30. You would have plenty of time to take an early train, pick up your car, and be in Giverny by 09:30.
Posted by
Ojai, CA
591 posts
Just my opinion, but I like your unseemly plan better than you going back into Paris for another night. Versailles opens at 09:30 and Monet's House is open 'til 18:00, so you could actually see both places the same day without too much trouble. It depends on how much time you want to spend at Versailles; some folks want to spend the whole day hanging out there, while others, like me, think about 3 hours is long enough. AutoEurope's rental location is near the Versailles RR station which is within walking distance to the Palace.