Versailles Palace and Trianon Guided Day Tour from Paris

Worst tour ever

This was a terrible experience. Went from 8 hour tour to 10 1/2 hour, which made us miss our dinner reservation. The tour guide did 2 hours at the place and then left the tour group in the garden, no maps or direction was given. It was not a all day guided tour. Andre was mad that my husband had to go to the restroom and asked him why he didn't go earlier. He was irritable, seemed annoyed and did not seem to want to show the tour group anything. Stated in the garden, Lunch is over the hill at the restaurant. There were 3 restaurants and we were not told which one to go to. He did not know about any alternative transportation. "Well if you have 38 euros you can rent a cart if you want to spend the money." The train he didn't even suggest. We have taken tours on Viator for years and this was the worst one. We feel we should get a refund.

Great family memories of Versailles!

The guide was great and she spoke English very well. We started the tour with the Palace of Versailles, then moved on to an overview of the gardens and fountains from the terrace above the Escaliers de Latone (Latone's Stairs) that gives a panoramic view of the grounds. The guide gives you hints about their favorite things to see, and then you are free to roam the grounds until your tour's assigned lunch time, when you meet at the restaurant (La Flotille) by the boat pond at the end of the long promenade between Latona's Fountain and the Apollo Fountain. Lunch was excellent and very satisfying. After lunch, you are given tickets (self guided) to the Trianon. I mention that the Trianon tour is self-guided, because one of the people in our tour group was upset because that she thought that the tour of the Trianon would be guided. Our family was glad that it was not guided because that allowed us to wander where our interests dictated at our own pace. BE WARNED; the walk from the restaurant to the Trianon is not short (but very rewarding). There are golf carts for up to 4 people available for rent if you prefer to ride to the Trianon. (You can not rent carts at the Trianon for the return trip from the Trianon back to the starting point - the carts are round trip from the starting point.) HINT: There is a free app available for your smart phone that will give you a visual / audio guide to the palace, gardens, and Trianon estate from the official Versailles website. This app can be downloaded prior to your visit and viewed offline while on site (no internet connection needed once you have downloaded the app). We did not use this app, so I can't speak to how well it works. We walked to the Grand Trianon and toured at our leisure, then went through the Petite Trianon to gain access to the trail leading to the Hameau de la Reine (Queen's Hamlet) - a group of rustic Normandy cottages around a man made lake that Marie Antoinette had constructed during her stay at Trianon. This is a real treat that is not to be missed, but it is NOT a short walk from the Petite Trianon. You can not ride a golf cart on the trails to the hamlet, so plan on walking to this site whether or not you have a cart. When you initially get off of your bus, your guide will give you a meeting place in the parking lot and let you know what time you need to meet the group at that designated spot to board your bus. Make sure you keep track of how long it takes you to get to the farthest spot that you adventure away from the starting point on the terrace so you know how much time to budget for the return trip to make it back to the departure point in time to meet up with your group. We kept that in mind, and made it back in plenty of time to use the restrooms and visit the gift shop near the entry gates before joining our group in the parking lot for the ride home. Also keep in mind that it is a slightly uphill walk from the Trianon to the grand terrace in front of the palace, so plan on a few rest stops. Overall, my family had a great time and made memories to last a lifetime! And we got in some nice healthy exercise in the mix.

Highly recommend!

The tour was very good. The bus was very comfortable and it was nice to know transportation was looked after, especially after a full day tour. Our guide Cecelia was very personable, knowledgeable and had some fun & interesting anecdotes! Felt a bit rushed in the Palace but I understand they limit viewing time to manage crowds and allow as many people through as possible. The set menu lunch was ok. Good value for money but also felt a bit rushed and like they wanted us out as soon as possible. This was also a good opportunity to meet others on the tour and hear their travel stories. When they said they’d pick us up at 6pm. I wondered what I’d do for 6 hours but in the end it wasn’t enough to see all the gardens & grounds. It is huge and truly magnificent!

Total Waste of Time & Money

Unfortunately, our experience on this excursion was terrible. I would not recommend this at ALL!! We could barely hear our guide through most of the tour and then once we got to lunch our guide left and did not finish the tour with us. We were left to wonder for an additional 5 hours before the bus came. In hindsight we should have taken a cab back to the meeting place. Also, the description of this tour is inaccurate as we didn’t see some of the things mentioned as the Queen’s private retreat or the fountain show. I would recommend doing only a half day tour. It’s more than enough time to see the castle. Do not waste your time or money on this tour!! Very disappointing!!

Well worth the visit

My trip was very good from the smooth bus ride to our guide being very knowledgeable about art and the history , to a very delicious 3 course lunch with wine It is such a huge property that even a whole day you can’t see everything

The jewel of Paris

The combination of the palace visit and the grounds. Absolutely stunning and even overwhelming in appearance and the work put into it. Also disturbing that this elite society lived in this fashion, while the Paris population suffered without adequate food, health reform or education.

Great facilitator and walking experience

I have been to multiple walking trails all over the world, and this is my 6th time at the Louvre. Adam was really a great facilitator and storyteller and among the best I have experienced so far. Was fact checking along the walk, as I understand that history can be quite subjective at times, but I must say that most of the fantastic stories Adam was sharing gave me wonderfully powerful new insights. I and my 10 year old daughter enjoyed ourselves very much; which speaks to the range that Adam was able to deliver on.

A LOT of walking, and even with a full day, still not enough time to see the Trianon compound

Note that this tour no longer provides bus pickup near the Hamlet at the end of the tour, which means you have to walk all the way back to entrance near the Palace (over a mile). Given that the included lunch took 2 hours, this means that in fact you really no longer have sufficient time to explore the entire Trianon compound. The tour of the Palace itself was okay, and the guide seemed to know his facts, but the Palace rooms were so crowded it was hard to see very much. Another issue was that MANY different tours were leaving from outside the Pullman hotel at nearly the same time, so hundreds of people were milling around trying to figure out which line was the one for their tour (which could easily be fixed by having some signs out on the sidewalk).

Not well organized

It wasn’t well organized. Needed more information about getting around the massive gardens. Tour guide left us at lunch and we were in our own to navigate the gardens and wasn’t there to help us find the bus.

Good Tour, beautiful day, lots of walking

Our tour of Versailles was a very positive experience. Our tour guide was lovely, though there was quite a bit of technical issues getting the earpieces to work properly while we walked throughout the castle. The biggest benefit of the tour was getting to hear a little bit about the history directly from the guide, instead of having to read all of the signage to understand the important bits (which were in French, and we couldn’t understand anyway). The lunch was good, but not anything to write home about. The gardens were absolutely amazing and well worth coming just to walk through the beautiful landscape and see the beautiful old buildings on the premises. Be forewarned that there is a lot of walking involved. We did 10 miles/16 kilometers and we didn’t even get to see half of what I wanted to explore in the gardens. If I were to do it again, I would just buy a ticket for the gardens and explore further. So beautiful!

FALSE ADVERTISING!

DO NOT DO THIS TOUR!!!! This “all day guided tour” is only a Guided tour of the staterooms for just over an hour, then you are walked down to the restaurant which is about 20ish minutes away from the front area and left to your own devices for the rest of the time. We were told there was fountain shows and that our tickets included the queens hamlet and Grand Troon. This tour specifies IN the description that it is a full day GUIDED tour with the afternoon also being a guided tour. Given that my partner and I love history and learning we chose this premium option. Being dumped for the entire afternoon meant we had to piece things together and as most stuff is in French without English translations (like about the furniture etc) we had no idea what it’s history was as I don’t speak French. The tour also ended late (it advertises approx. 8 hours but it’s closer to 10 hours as we didn’t leave until about 6:05 pm) so don’t make dinner reservations. Our bud was also 20 minutes late and the guide that met us at the gate for the return trip had no idea what was happening. I reached out to Viator about the fact that I paid just over $ 550 AUD (€ 335 ish) and was fairly upset but they are of the opinion that it’s fine to pay for a product (full day, 8 hour tour) and get a small fraction of that. Save yourselves $100s and go elsewhere. I wish I’d known before I bought this.

This “tour” is mostly “Free Time” at Versailles

This was surprisingly not much of a tour. Six or more of the hours were “Free” time. We could have paid for our own entry, ordered a much better lunch and bottle of wine, and still spent a lot less money.

No garden tour

Basically no garden tour. Walked from palace to lunch restaurant. Where guide dumped us. We were informed to find our own way back.

Unfortunate Experience

This was a waste of money. Our tour guide Blandine rushed us through Versailles, complaining that she was cold and tired. (Everyone was cold because it was a cold and rainy day.) She then left us and told us to make our own way around the grounds (Grand Trianon or Petit Trianon) or come back early. When we tried to come back early we were at first told we couldn’t go on the bus, that it was only for French people. We had to beg. The next morning we got 8 harassing phone calls and multiple texts from Paris City Tours, telling us to bring back our devices. However, we had already turned ours in to Blandine before she left us. Within 10 minutes of responding, I started to get multiple phone calls from unknown numbers and Facebook friend requests from strangers. Viator said that they felt this was not a good experience but then denied a partial refund request.

Amazing Versailles

Unfortunately the weather had an adverse affect on our experience today but there's nothing the tour operator could do about that. Our guide was lovely - very informative and went at a good pace making sure everyone stayed together. The restaurant for lunch was at the very far end of the garden and had we known we could have taken the petit train down for 4.6euros we definitely would have. We were absolutely soaked by the time we got there. Needless to say we caught the petit train back up after lunch, which was very good by the way. Because of the weather, our guide arranged for the bus to return 3hrs early to pick us up. We were very grateful for this. We missed the gardens totally but I'll do them next time.

Wonderful way to see all of Versailles

Would definitely recommend. This is a long day but worth it. We returned to Paris at 4pm. Was very efficient as well. Nicolas was our guide. Very friendly and engaging. TIPS: would consider a golf cart to explore the Gardens which are enormous You can walk it but will take a while. Download the Versailles garden app (QR code on paper map they give you). It is informative Also if you cannot walk long distances, do not do the full day tour—- the afternoon at the Trianon is long distance between sites

Would not recommend

We were rushed through the first part of the tour. Then had way too long at the restaurant. After seeing the Trianon, we had over 1 1/2 hours of free time which was not needed. The bus wasn’t there until it was time to leave so we couldn’t even board to wait for the rest of the people. Where we met the bus, there weren’t even any benches to sit on. So I standee there waiting for about 50 minutes.

VERSAILLES TRIANON DAY TRIP

Grasping the extent of the Versailles Trianon complex. Walking the grounds emphasised the enormous size of the place. We visited many places and saw a great deal. The guides commentary was informative and explained a great deal of what we saw.

Excited tour

The guide was not only knowledgeable but he was excited which made me excited. He clearly loves his job and made the experience great.

Best tour ever!

This was the most incredible tour I have ever been on. Our guide Claire was funny, informative and an absolute delight to spend the day with. I have wanted to go to Versailles for years and she absolutely made in a memorable experience. I definitely recommend this - if there were 10 stars it wouldn't be enough. Book this experience. The lunch was wonderful and the tour spectacular.

A perfect day at Versailles

Our tour guide was incredible. She brought the history to life in such an amazing way making it all so fun! Her knowledge was fantastic and you can tell she truly loves educating everyone. If everyone could teach history like this, we would all be enthralled by every detail!!! Thank you!!

A great tour!

This tour was fantastic! It is so worth it to book the longer tour in order to see much more of Versailles. The palace is jaw dropping and the grand and petit Trianons are so interesting to experience. Walking through the gardens is so peaceful and the lunch included is very delicious! Our guide was fantastic. Extremely knowledgeable and fun. This tour requires a ton of walking, so definitely don’t choose it if you’re unable to walk long distances. All in all completely worth the time!

Art history tour - 9000 years of art in less than 3 hours

The guide was incredibly knowledgeable in art and art history. It was more that just a tour it was a real learning experience.

The tour with no meeting location…

I cannot begin to tell you how disappointed I am with Viator! My family and I took a trip of a lifetime to Paris and set up tours well in advance to take in as much of the city as possible. The highlight of the trip was going to be an all day trip to Versailles. When I tried to check (the night before the tour) the meeting location for the tour. The App wasn’t working and the location didn’t show. I emailed the company with little hope of hearing back before the early departure the following day. As expected, I received an email after the group departed. I commenced to stay on the phone with an agent for 2 HOURS (all managers were busy). The result was that in order to go to Versailles (which was a must for us) we had to buy another tour. I was told that my complaint was going to be moved up the chain. I supplied a screenshot of the error message on their app and proof of me emailing the previous night. I received an email a couple of days later saying that they could not refund the money because “the tour operator was holding your place for this tour and you have been listed as a no-show.” Obviously we were no-shows, did anyone bother to check the complaint? Since then I’ve tried calling back a couple of times and had to explain to a different customer service person the situation only to have the agent say that the managers are unavailable or in meetings. No one took my name or offered to call back. I guess I have to start the process all over if I want to speak to a manager. I think the plan is to put you on hold long enough to make you not call back. I cannot believe this company is owned by TripAdvisor. Lost respect for two companies. Things aren’t a problem until they are a problem then you get the runaround.

Definitely worth spending the whole day

Claire was fabulous! The use of earbuds with a small transmitter to wear, allowed everyone to hear everything she said. So knowledgeable. Definitely worth spending the day. Plus lunch was great ( quite a surprise)

Great day

Wonderful guide! The palace was stunning. The gardens and Hamlet were our favorite. Each section of the garden held a hidden treasure…….. how fun and beautiful!!!

A very interesting day out.

Amaury, the guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and very easy to listen to. Alot of background information on every aspect of the tour.

Our trip to Versailles...

Our trip to Versailles was top notch from pickup to drop off. The guide brought each room to life as he described the history of the palace. Versailles was spectacular but we also thoroughly enjoyed seeing the Petite and Grand Trianons and the Queen’s Hamlet. We also had a lovely lunch in the gardens. I would highly recommend this tour.

Just like home!!

Try The whole thing!! Huge and very impressive. How did they do this? Good guide. Best part of our trip to Paris

A Day of Beauty

The most memorable parts of the tour were seeing the Palace, The Hall of Mirrors, the gardens, the Grand Canal, the beautiful grounds, the surprises at nearly every turn, and the lunch at the lovely inn. I enjoyed seeing the countryside and the beautiful city of Versailles. There were a few drawbacks: it was pouring rain the day we went and we had to stand outside the Palace for quite a while while our guide went in to check on something. We were soaked! One of of the women in our group was having a lot of trouble walking and we asked the guide about getting a cart for her; but he implied he couldn't do that for some reason. There were plenty of carts and drivers lined up and waiting. Two in our group got separated early on and we didn't see them until lunch. Our guide was fun at times; but impatient a lot of the time. In spite of the drawbacks it was a wonderful day and one I'll always remember.

The whole day tour is the best

This is a top tour. Versailles was great but Trianon was the highlight of this tour. If you’re going to Versailles, do the whole day tour. You won’t regret it.

BETTER THAN MOST LARGE BUS TOURS

Spouse and I did the all day Versailles tour that included seeing everything: palace, Grande Trianon, Petite Trianon, gardens, grand canal and The Hamlet. They were pretty organized. This is a large tour company and they were getting several bus trips off that morning. Bus was clean and comfortable. We did skip the line when we got to the Palace though everyone still has to go through security line (went pretty fast). Our guide did a good job and having the audio receivers and ear buds so you can actually hear the guide was great. There was a large group for the Palace (filled a double decker bus) and gardens but most left after that. There were only 7 of us in the afternoon group touring the gardens, Grande and Petite Trianon and The Hamlet after eating lunch together. Lunch at the restaurant wasn't bad: pumpkin soup, pasta with a beef sauce and beef ( like pieces of pot roast), wine and chocolate lava cake for dessert. Note that in February the fountains are not on and there are few flowers. Overall, not a bad tour for one of those large group things.

Versalles and beyond

If your visiting Paris the full day trip is the way to go. Begin your trip seeing the Palace which is simply amazing to imagine the culture at that time period and see the decorations, paintings and including the decorated ceilings. The day trip includes going beyond the palace. We stopped at a restaurant outside the garden grounds that used to be a horse stable. Wow.. It has been transformed but you still can see how the stable was set up. Amazing Three Course lunch with French Wine included. We then spent time over at the “hunting lodge” also where Louis’ mistress stayed. Spoiler it’s a mini palace we also saw the woods and the queens get away “another mini palace” then we saw where the queen made her “girls only” village. Very informative and full of history. Vincent was our tour guide and made it a wonderful day see if he will be doing your tour. Lastly if your attending in summer be ready for hot temps and long lines that’s why we went on the off season “Feb” was in the 40’sF just needed a jacket was great experience.

Very wonderful tourguide (Claire) and amazing company

Hi, we are a mother and daughter duo from Singapore. We thoroughly enjoyed the trip, especially the second half to visit Marie Antoinette’s hamlet. To be honest, the food is not amazing, but the place is, and we also met a very lovely Texan husband and wife duo. I didn’t manage to exchange email addresses with them as I was preoccupied with finding alternative accommodation in Paris, but if they see this, I just want to let them Know that if they see this, to drop me a message here, that if they ever want to come to Singapore, we will be happy to bring them around.

Full day at Versailles

Great tour although due to the size of the place quite fast paced & expect loads of people you have to be quick to snap photos

Did not skip the line and poor customer service

On January 19th, my mother, niece an I went on the afternoon Versailles tour. One of the benefits of this type of tour is fast access and a tour. When we arrived, instead of being admitted to the palace, we were made to wait at least 45 minutes while our guide, the staff atVersailles argued in rapid fire French. Apparently there was a problem with our reservation that was only resolved once one of the other tour guides paid with her credit card. Once in, The tour was entertaining, but rushed. We did not even have time to use the facilities or check out the grounds or check out the gist shop. When we returned from the exertion, you would think that we would get an explanation, refund and apology. We did not. Instead we were told to email customer service. I emailed customer service the same day and have not received a response. I will be reaching out to viator to recommend that his group be removed from the trip advisor website and to request a refund.

Run, Run, Run

Choose this tour specifically as there are only 2 days a week fountains in Versailles are working. And believe - they are working not whole day, just few hours, and not all together. What was a disappointment to learn, that we had less than hour and half for the entire park and fountains visit, although even local Tourist guide recommended "park highlights visit" would require 2 hours. And if you leave part to go to the palace tour, to comeback- fountains already stop working. Palace visit- different story, won't cover just not to "put the salt on the wounds". Bottom line- Paris City Vision tours are poorly planned and organized- nice description to grub your attention, but no delivery on it. Everything could be different would they just extend duration of the overall trip to 1- 1.5 hours, so you can at least visit "highlights", but doesn't seems they are interested in that

Don’t bother

The only good thing about this tour is that you get a ticket and faster entrance into Versailles. The tour guide pretty much walked us into the garden, gave us a 5 min intro and left us to roam the gardens for 1.5 hours. We had to wait 30 mins in the heat for the other tour guide before starting the palace tour. Our guide pretty much skimmed over each room ‘here is a portrait of so and so, here is where they slept’, which was disappointing.

We had a wonderful time at...

<p>We had a wonderful time at Versailles. This tour was the highlight of our entire 3 city european trip. I highly recommend picking this option mainly because of the wonderful lunch we had in the garden restaurant. 5 star meal with a jug of wine on the table to make the second half of the tour more enjoyable : our guide was very informative and gave us plenty of free time to roam on our own. I can't wait to come back in the summer time!!!</p>

I liked the Versailles tour, but...

<p>I liked the Versailles tour, but would rather do a private tour. If not for a tall person in my group I would have lost the tour group several times because our guide had no flag. It was a large group, and hard to ask any questions because we were moved so quickly from one room to the next.</p>

We both enjoyed our tour very much...

<p>We both enjoyed our tour very much. Our tour guide was pleasant and knowledgable. We did the entire day and we both would recommend it over the half day. Our lunch was relaxing and gave us a chance to socialize with our other tour members. Delightfully, the food was very good.</p>

Belen was a most outstanding guide...

<p>Belen was a most outstanding guide for us! Our tour of the Louvre and Orsay museums were the high point of our 3 week trip. A most memorable experience! Thanks again -</p>

Guide was not as proficient in...

<p>Guide was not as proficient in English thus it detracted from experience. Should include transportation from Gardens to Little Trianon and then to bus. Extensive walking so not recommended for persons having difficulty walking or standing for 7+ hours.</p>

Guide was nice but not clear and...

<p>Guide was nice but not clear and didn't really make the tour come alive in any way. Then for some (probably financial reason) we were joined by Spanish speaking tourists after lunch so our guide had to speak in both Spanish and Eng. Not what we paid for. Very average. Wouldn't recommend.</p>

For those never having previously...

<p>For those never having previously been to Versailles this was a wonderful tour. The guide was kind and very informative. Having been there four times previous, I got to see far more on this specific tour than any other. I highly recommend the tour and the guide.</p>

Very long day and unexpected long...

<p>Very long day and unexpected long distances to walk. Recommend stressing proper foot wear. We had comfortable shoes but I heard grumblings from others. Guide was well versed although in a 'rush'. Restaurant meal was wonderful.</p>

Knowing the castle and principal...

<p>Knowing the castle and principal gardens its a good experience. The tour through the Trianons although a nice place to be, I would have prefer using that time to go to Giverny which is nearby to see the gardens that inspired Claude Monet's paintings.</p>

Eye opening opulence and grandeur...

<p>Eye opening opulence and grandeur . You need a full second day to see all the gardens and grounds.<br/> Pleasant and knowledgable guide gave great insight to history and routine of palace and staff.</p>

This was an amazing tour. I wouldn't...

<p>This was an amazing tour. I wouldn't change anything about it. There is a of walking. The tour itself is over 4 miles. skipping the lines was wonderful because they were extremely long. The lunch was good, it could have been more choices as the food in the restaurant all looked good. There really in know time to buy souvenirs during the tour. So, I think a few minutes added for that. The coach ride was nice and quick.</p>

Excellent, well managed tour from...

<p>Excellent, well managed tour from start to finish. Guides were extremely friendly with great sense of humour. You really need the full day tour - a half day tour would not be anywhere near enough! The restaurant had deilcious food and the transportation was in a high quality coach. Of course, in Winter the fountains aren't in operation and the gardens aren't at their best, however you still need plenty of time to see everything and enjoy the grandness of Versailles. Highly recommend!</p>