we leave Paris on a Saturday flying to Venice at 3:30...timing we need to be at airport by 2...is it feasible to visit Versailles that morning from 9:30-? - assume it is a little over an hour drive frm there to CDG airport..is that too quick of a trip? we are staying near Arc, so maybe 20 minutes to get to Versailles (Saturday)
|||
I don%26#39;t think I would count on 20 minutes to drive to Versailles, remember the train is usaully faster not slower then cars, no need to worry about traffic or wrong turns.
I think you could do it, but I would leave Paris by 8:30 ,, to be in line and in Versailles soon as it opens, spend two hours( perhaps three,) or so, and then head to airport, I like being EARLY so I double time allowed.
|||
Hi Jenann
We have just come back for paris. One tip re: versailles, if you dont have a pass you will need to queue for ticket and then que to get in.
When facing versailles there is an entrance marked %26#39;C%26#39; on the left, you can go straight to this if you have a pass. Might save some time.
Also the audio set is free with ticket, if you have kids under 18 and they have got in free them it will cost €6 for each set.
|||
When you were a kid, were you the one who climbed to the highest limbs on the tree....and then climbed out to the very end of the thinnest branch ??...%26#39;Cause that%26#39;s pretty much what you%26#39;re tryin%26#39; to do here.
You%26#39;re betting that you can drive to Versailles in 20 minutes, get in see the Chateau, then get from there to CDG in record time, drop-off your rental car without difficulty or problem, then get through airline check-in and airport security (at an airport that is INFAMOUS for inexplicable delays and problems) and make your outbound flight.
All it would take would be for a only one of the lesser %26#39;..gods-of-travel..%26#39; to step out for a coffee-break in the process....and next thing ya%26#39; know you%26#39;re standing at CDG....scratching the place on your scalp that you%26#39;ve just pulled your hair out of....trying to figure out what went wrong with the %26#39;best laid plans%26#39;....and how to re-book a later flight to your destination....that doesn%26#39;t require a connection in Helsinki or Karachi.
Bonne chance.
|||
Agree with KDKSAIL that you are risking the unknown. Versailles is in the opposite direction from the city than CDG. BUT, if this is a lifelong dream and the only time you can fit it in, my advice is: be there before it opens. Allow for traffic snags en route or back to CDG. Have a Carte Musee %26amp; Monuments (museum pass) in hand. DO NOT rent the audio- each room has small boards describing what you see. (The audio did not come with our M%26amp;M pass, anyway.) We rented one, tho I%26#39;ve been before; thought it might give my girls a better understanding. It drones on and on and will kill your time. Better to read a good tour book.) IF you can get in quickly and are not slowed by other tourists, you can actually do the main rooms in an hour. (Trust me, I did this once.) You%26#39;ll get some garden view from many of the palace windows. Or, fit this trip in on another day in Paris. It can easily be done in a half-day, total, with train.
|||
exactly why I was asking - as I have no idea as have not been to Paris since I was a young child...that is why I asked! we do have a private car and driver and it is a Saturday so I thought it might be a little faster but apprently I was wrong. thanks for the info anyway, I woudl prefer to stay out of the trees! at least the thin branches!
|||
I agree with some of the other postings...I think you%26#39;re tempting fate to try this but there are a few things you can do to make it more possible. You can probably do it on a Saturday if you get a very early start...
My family spent a month near Versailles in June/July and discovered a few tricks to make it cheaper and easier to access the palace and grounds if you have a car.
Don%26#39;t park in the main lot in front of the chateau - it%26#39;s very pricey and crowded. Drive around the chateau to the right (you%26#39;ll have to navigate with a map to do this but it%26#39;s not very far)and enter the gate nearest the Petite Hameau with your car. You can drive right onto the grounds and park in a number of places depending on what you want to see - it%26#39;s much cheaper and really interesting to drive around the palace grounds. We always parked in the trees right next to the grand canal You can also park next to the petite trianon or in a number of other lots around the grounds. You can probably find a map of this on the Versailles website.
If you don%26#39;t take one of the tours inside the chateau you can walk the fountains and grounds and get a very good idea of the place. If you only have a few hours I recommend walking from the grand canal up to the chateau and winding through some of the gardens on the sides along the promenade leading up to the chateau. Then drive over to the Petite Hameau and pay to walk around the peasant village that Marie Antoinette constructed to amuse herself. You can also rent a boat and row around on the grant canal. There are a couple of little restaurants near the car park at the end of the grand canal closest to the chateau if you choose to eat there before you head to the airport - you can also rent bikes right there to ride around on the grounds but you can%26#39;t take the bikes up to the area around the chateau.
If you need to be a CDE by 2 then I would leave Versailles no later than noon. The traffic can be terrible and if you need to return a rental car this adds an extra thing that could go wrong.
Good luck and I hope it works out for you!
Anita
|||
-:- Message from TripAdvisor staff -:-
This topic was inactive for 6 months and has been closed to new posts. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.
To review the TripAdvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html
We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.
Removed on: 3:21 pm, September 24, 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment