One of the MUST-GO-TO places in Paris is actually about an hour or so away from Paris and it's The Château de Versailles. I've looked forward to going to the Palace of Versailles since hearing about it in History class in high school. Paris has a lot of palaces and castles to go to and I'm sure one day I will visit them all! It should be noted that Versailles is a day trip so plan accordingly! We made sure we woke up super early and our first stop was a local café to grab our usual: coffee and a croissant(or two). We took the first train out of Paris to Versailles. The train system was not too complicated, just make sure you pay attention to the signs or else you'll end up in a whole another side of town! This was the only time we used the train system during our whole stay in Paris, otherwise we used Uber. The good thing is when you have a distinct perplexed look, you will get approached by a kind Parisian and be given directions. Thank goodness we encountered so many friendly and approachable Parisians! It is important to buy your ticket in advance or use your Paris Pass to avoid long line ups! You can chose your own experience throughout your visit. If you are a history buff and would like to be fully submerged into the history I recommend for you to join some kind of guided tour. There are different levels of guided tours. I also saw people carrying what appeared to be a cassette recorder which gave an audio recording explaining each painting/piece in each section. We wanted to go at our own pace and not be tied down to a group so we walked around and read each tidbit for each piece. Also, at some points we managed to eavesdrop the tour guide and listened in and we weren't even a part of the group (LIFE HACKS). We took our time going through each of the rooms. We especially spent a lot of time in the hall of mirrors, I mean how could you not mirrors everywhere calls for selfies and multiple photo ops! After spending some time inside, we moved on to the gardens. The reason why you need to spend a day at this place because the palace grounds is HUGE! We walked for the most part weaving through some secret gardens and some mazes. Eventually we got tired and we rented a golf cart to explore the rest of the palace grounds.
To say this place is beautiful is such an understatement. I recommend everyone to visit this place you will not regret it. History, architecture, beauty & elegance. What more can you ask for?
As per their website the prices of the self-guided tours start from 15 euros to 20-27 euros. If you want to include the private rooms it goes up to 450 euros! As for the guided tours, its an additional 10 euros to the entrance fee of your choosing. They also offer "private" and "prestige" tours, go check out their website for full details.
Tips for the trip:
1. Leave early!
2. Either buy your ticket in advance or use your Paris Pass! We got to the palace about 30min to 1hour before it opened and the lineup to get tickets was double the size of those who had advanced tickets. Also you have to consider that tons of guided groups attend daily so THERE WILL BE LINEUPS.
3. Be sure to check the time the palace opens as it differs per day. Each section of the palace grounds also have different hours of operation.
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