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Tag Archives: Vaux-le-Vicomte

Paris: Get out of town day trips

19 Sunday Mar 2017

Posted by Trailblazer Travel Books in Paris Day Trips, Paris sidetrips, Paris tips, Paris travel

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Chambord, Chenonceau, Cheverny, Day trip tours, Fontainbleau, Giverney, Paris City Vision, Paris Day Trips, tours, Vaux-le-Vicomte, Versailles

versaillSometimes it’s refreshing to break up hustle and bustle metropolis days with a break to the country. I’ve found some of the bus tours cheaper than hiring a guide, private car or taking the train. From my own experience, Paris City Vision has always delivered a first-class experience (and I’m not getting kickbacks), just my personal opinion. Here’s a rundown of the creme-de-la creme:

Versailles small group
$108
Half-Day Tour: Select either a morning or afternoon tour and depart from your Paris hotel bound for Versailles. Your host for the trip will give you recommendations about planning your Versailles visit and provide you with an audio guide for a tour of the palace and gardens.

Weekend visitors from April to October can see the famous fountain shows.

Versailles and Giverney
Guided $206 (all day)
• Skip the line ticket
• Entrance fees to the gardens
• Lunch with drinks

giver

Economy Versailles: RER from Paris:  A round trip ticket to Versailles by train costs 7,1€ per person. It takes less than 1-1/2 hours to get there. It’s the cheapest way to reach the chateau. Choose RER C; buy your tickets to Versailles-Château – Rive Gauche. The Palace of Versailles is only a 13-minute walk away from the train station. Be prepared to wait in line and spend all day wandering.

Chambord

Loire Valley Castles Day Trip  Chambord, Cheverny and Chenonceau.
Guided, all day $176. (such a deal)
Skip the line tickets, leave at 7:15 from a central Paris location. Guests traveling between November 1 and March 31 will receive a traditional lunch and drink.

Chateaux de Chambord, Chenonceau and Loire Valley Wine-Tasting Day Trip. $180
Wine-tasting at Nitray Vineyards
Eat a gourmet French lunch sourced from fresh, local ingredients

VauxVic

fontain

Fontainebleau & Vaux le Vicomte. $75
Skip the line tickets
Full day excursion to Fontainebleau and Vaux le Vicomte châteaux from Paris by luxury coach. Explore the imperial château in the heart of the forest of Fontainebleau. Visit the stunning Vaux le Vicomte château that inspired Versailles. Audio guide tour of the châteaux and free time to explore the magnificent French-style formal gardens. Leave Paris 9:15

Happy tripping!

 

 

 

 

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Chateau hopping & tour shopping

17 Saturday Sep 2016

Posted by Trailblazer Travel Books in Paris Day Trips, Paris travel, Paris Wandering

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Amboise, Chambord, Chateau de la Loire, Chenonceau, Cheverny, Expedia, Fontainebleau, Paris day tripping, Vaux-le-Vicomte, Viator

vauxlevicomte

So you want to head out of Paris for the day and favor the grand architecture of the fairytale chateaus. Here are some tips that can save you time and money.

Vaux-le-Vicomte and Fontainbleau are practically neighbors and can be visited together in 8 hours with plenty of time to tour the gardens and get some lunch. By train and shuttle it can take hours to get to VLV.  From Paris Gare de l’Est, take the direct train Line P (in the direction of Provins). Get off at the Verneuil l’Etang train station. Direct trains every 60 minutes (travel time 35 minutes). Add to that waiting in line, purchasing tickets and taking the same route back from the Chateau. Inexpensive, headachy.

fontainebleau

Fontainebleau is about 35 miles away from Paris. For $20 you can get there via public transportation. Trains leave from Gare de Lyon station regularly and the train ride is about 41 minutes. The train will be heading to Montargis. When the train arrives at Fontainbleau Avon station there are two options for getting to the chateau. There is a bus that leaves from bus station next door to the train station at the arrival of each train.

Now, I never thought I would recommend a tour because I like getting to places the cheapest way possible. But after researching this 2-castle trip and visiting each chateau website, I arrived at the decision that taking a tour cut out alot of grief (which train, timetables, avoiding lines).

The good news: for about $70 you can visit both via a deluxe air conditioned coach. Includes price of admission (you skip the lines), audio guides (or tour guide depending on $$), no extra walking or worrying.  Leaving Paris at 9:00, you get back around 6:00, just in time for cocktails.

The best companies to book with are Expedia and Viator. Their packages are very similar and one or the other always has a deal. I don’t recommend the ParisVision site…wonky confusing and you pay in euros.  Expedia represents them and you pay in dollars and immediately can printout your voucher, price a little cheaper.

chambord

Then there’s the Vallée de la Loire, one-hour away from Paris.  This tour adds up to a twelve hour day, but taking in 3 chateaus and being delivered to each door (price of admission included) by deluxe bus for around $177 is a real deal! You get to see the beautiful countryside out the window and can choose the audio guide or personal tour guide. Time to wander the grounds is taken into consideration. Again, I found the most economical way to see the chateaus I love the best is reserving through the Expedia site…Chambord, Cheverny, and Chenonceau (they even have one that’s a little pricer that includes wine tasting). Through Viator (a TripAdvisor company), the price for Chambord, Chenonceau and Amboise is $169, tour guide included. Note, you travel by van.

“Leave the driving to us” is now my motto. I like to maximize my vacation time, maybe you do too.

 

 

 

 

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