Train direction to Versailles

My wife and I will be in Paris from 5 to 9 May 2008. We will be staying at the following hotel:

HOTEL DE ROUEN

42, Rue Croix des Petits Champs

75001 PARIS

The nearest train stations to our hotel are:

METRO:

Line 1 (Palais-Royal Musée du Louvre and Louvre Rivoli stations)

Line 4 (Les Halles station, rue Rambuteau exit)

Line 7 (Palais-Royal Musée du Louvre station)

Line 14 (Pyramides station)

R E R:

Line B (station Les Halles)

My questions are:

(1) How do we get to Versailles? I need specific instruction on taking the train. I know that we can take RER C. Should we take a Metro from one of the above Metro station to St Michel Notre-Dame to transfer to RER line C?

(2) On RER line C, it seems to split up at some stations. For example, after Champ de Mars Tour Effel, one goes toward Avenue de Ptd Kennedy, and one toward Javel. We need to take the one toward Javel. Then after Chaville-Velizy, one goes towards Varsailles-Rive Gauche and one towards Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. Does that mean that we need to transfer at Champ de Mars Tour Effel and Chaville-Velizy stations?

(3) Where do we buy the ticket? Do we buy the ticket for the entire trip from the Metro station which we start our trip? If we had bought a carnet of 10 Metro tickets, can it be used?

(4) Which day should we visit Versailles? 8 May is a holiday, so I suppose I should not go on that day.

Thanks.

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Hi,

You can use www.ratp.info to plan your ride.

If you enter %26quot;42 Rue Croix des Petits Champs%26quot; as your departure and %26quot;Versailles - Rive Gauche%26quot; as your destiny, you can see that there are directs RER C trains from Saint-Michel Notre-Dame – RER so no transfer is needed.

You can%26#39;t use your carnet since it%26#39;s for Zones 1-2 only while Versailles is Zone 4, so you%26#39;ll need to buy a separate ticket.

I believe that you can buy a ticket in any metro/RER station. There%26#39;s also a combined ticket that offers you transportation and admittance to Versailles.

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Hi,

Thanks for the info. According to the web site below, I can actually purchase a pass which includes return train ticket and entrance to Versailles. However, from the table, I am not sure which zone I am travelling from.

transilien.com/web/…Chateau-de-Versailles

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I should state that I haven%26#39;t yet gone to Versailles, but I have been making plans as we will be in Paris the same time as you. You will be originating in Paris, Zone 1. I think you will want to buy the FORFAIT LOISIRS in advance from one the main train stations or RER stations, so that you can take advantage of the metro-to-RER transfer on the day you go to Versailles (it is not sold at the metro stations). It looks like you can take the metro line 4 from Les Halles to Saint-Michel and connect to the RER C line there. The direction you want is Versailles-Rive Gauche.

We will also have the option of going on May 8th, or avoiding it for the crowds. I do know that the fountains will be running on the 8th as well as on Saturday and Sunday. I don%26#39;t know if the fountains matter to you or not, and I don%26#39;t really know if Thursday the 8th will be any busier than Saturday or Sunday. We would like to see the fountains, and will probably go on Sunday and just be sure to be there early.

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Hi,

Are you sure that it is open on 8 May, a holiday? According to its web site below, the Palace and Estate of Marie-Antoinette are closed on certain holiday, though it doesn%26#39;t say which holidays.

chateauversailles.fr/en/planning-your-visit/…

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I checked the web site again. Versailles is open on 8 May, and the fountains will be on! But does the package (return train ticket + admission) allow you to the Gardens and Groves of the Palace where the fountains are?

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Hi,

From comparing the list of locations that that the Versailles pass gives you access to (chateauversailles.fr/en/…01176-.html) with what is written in transilien.com/web/…Chateau-de-Versailles regarding the %26quot;FORFAIT LOISIRS%26quot;, it seems that it seems that everything is included.

By the way, according to chateauversailles.fr/en/…0167-prices.html the access to the gardens is free.

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Actually, the versailles web sites states %26quot;Gardens

free access (excluding Grandes Eaux Musicales days)%26quot;. If I%26#39;m not mistaken, the exlusion refers to days when the fountains are running.

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Does that mean that we need to buy separate admission tickets into the garden on days which the fountains are on?

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The gardens ARE included in the Forfait Loisirs, which I%26#39;ve also seen referred to as Le Passeport. You will find they do charge a bit extra for weekends and holidays during the summer. They are NOT included in the Museum Pass, but they are included in the one day pass sold at the ticket booths. So yes, otherwise, you must pay extra 8 euros for the gardens when the foutains are running.

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Actually are the fountains running a big deal? I am thinking whether I should time my visit on the day that the fountains are running.