Versailles

Versailles: The Palace, the Gardens, and Why You Need More Than Four Hours

Louis XIV moved the royal court to Versailles in 1682 and kept it there until 1789, when the Revolution ended the whole arrangement. For over a century, the palace was simultaneously a royal residence, a government headquarters, and a strategic tool for keeping the French nobility under close observation. At peak, some 10,000 people lived within the palace complex. The Hall of Mirrors, finished in 1684, was not primarily a decorative space – it was a propaganda statement: the ceiling paintings by Charles Le Brun explicitly celebrate Louis XIV’s military victories, and the 357 mirrors facing 357 windows announced that France could manufacture mirrors as large as those of Venice, whose glassmakers had held the secret until French industrial espionage acquired it. Understanding the building as a political instrument changes what you see in every room.

Ticket Prices in 2026

Versailles raised its prices again in January 2026. The Passport ticket, which covers the Palace, the Trianon estates, and the gardens, now costs €35 in high season for non-EEA adults (up from €32), and €32 for EEA residents and nationals. The first Sunday of each month from November to March offers free entry to the entire estate, including the Palace – though you still need to book a timed entry slot online even for free admission. Book the timed entry slot before you go, regardless of ticket type; turning up without one during peak season results in a long queue for nothing.

The Palace Interior

The Hall of Mirrors is 73 metres long, 10.5 metres wide, and 12.5 metres tall. The restoration completed in 2007 returned the gilding to something close to its 17th-century appearance. It is the most visited room and the most crowded between 10am and 4pm from April through October. The Royal Apartments – the King’s Grand Apartments and the Queen’s Apartments on the first floor – are less congested and architecturally equally significant. The Hall of Battles in the south wing covers French military history through an enormous painted gallery and is often empty when the Hall of Mirrors is packed.

The Gardens

The formal gardens were designed by André Le Nôtre and extend 3 kilometres along the central axis from the palace. Walking the full axis to the Grand Canal and back is 6 kilometres; add the cross-axis and the Trianon visit and you have a full day outdoors without rushing.

The fountain displays, Les Grandes Eaux Musicales, run on weekends and selected days from April to October. The fountains operate in sequence along the main axis to period music. Timing your visit for a display day is strongly recommended and requires checking the seasonal calendar on the Versailles website. Garden admission is free on non-display days; around €10 on display days.

The Trianon Palaces

The Grand Trianon was built by Louis XIV in 1687 as an informal retreat – pink and white marble, smaller and less theatrical than the main palace, and consistently quieter. It is a 20-minute walk from the main building, or reachable by the park’s small train (around €8.50 return). The Petit Trianon and Marie Antoinette’s mock-rustic hamlet, the Hameau de la Reine, are in the same northern section of the park. The hamlet – a collection of thatched buildings constructed in the 1780s for the queen to play at pastoral life – is slightly bizarre and worth seeing. It tells you something about pre-Revolutionary royal excess that no textbook quite captures.

Getting There

The RER C train from Paris runs directly to Versailles Château-Rive Gauche station, about 40 minutes from central Paris and less than €4 each way. The station is a 10-minute walk from the palace entrance. Avoid driving on weekends; the approach traffic is slow and parking is not much of a time-saver. Buy tickets online before you go, with a timed entry slot for the Palace. Paris Museum Pass holders still need to book a free timed slot online to access the interior.

The palace at 9am opening, the gardens in the afternoon, and the Trianon palaces before closing is a reasonable structure for a long single day. A second day is not excessive for anyone genuinely interested in the grounds.