Paris & Around - Discover France: Experience the Best of France - page 201

Château de Versailles ( 01 30 83 78 00; www.chateauversailles.fr ; palace
adult/child €15/free, Passeport adult/child €18-25; 9am-6.30pm Tue-Sun) was
built in the mid-17th century during the reign of Louis XIV - the Roi Soleil (Sun
King) - to project the absolute power of the French monarchy. It is currently under-
going a €400 million restoration program and until it's completed in 2020 at least a
part of the palace is likely to be clad in scaffolding when you visit.
The château complex comprises four main sections: the palais (palace building),
a 580m-long structure with multiple wings, grand halls, sumptuous bedchambers
and the Grands Appartements du Roi et de la Reine; the vast gardens, canals and
pools to the west of the palace; two much smaller palaces, the Grand Trianon and,
a few hundred metres to the east, the Petit Trianon ; and the Hameau de la Reine
(Queen's Hamlet).
The basic palace ticket and more elaborate Passeport both include an English-
language audioguide and allow visitors to freely visit the King's and Queen's State
Apartments, Royal Chapel, the Appartements du Dauphin et de la Dauphine
(Dauphin's and Dauphine's Apartments) and various galleries. The so-called
Passeport additionally gets you into the two Trianons and, in high season, the
Hameau de la Reine and the Grandes Eaux Musicales fountain displays.
Try to time your visit for the Grandes Eaux Musicales (adult/child €8/6;
11am-noon & 3.30-5pm Tues, Sat & Sun Apr-Sep) or the after-dark Grandes Eaux
Nocturnes (adult/child €21/17; 9-11.30pm Sat & Sun mid-Jun-Aug) , truly magic-
al 'dancing water' displays set to music composed by baroque- and classical-era
composers throughout the grounds in summer.
The queues are longest on Tuesday, when many of Paris' museums are closed,
and on Sunday. Most importantly, buy your château ticket in advance online
( www.chateauversailles.fr ) or from a branch of Fnac.
Getting There & Away
BUS RATP bus 171 (€1.60 or one metro/bus ticket, 35 minutes) links Pont de
Sèvres metro station (15e) in Paris with the place d'Armes every six to nine minutes
from between 5am and 6.30am to 1am.
TRAIN RER line C5 (€2.95) goes from Paris' Left Bank RER stations to Ver-
sailles-Rive Gauche station, 700m southeast of the château and close to the tourist
office.