7 Palace Day Trips in France to Put on the Itinerary

1.Giverny and Versailles Palace Guided Day Trip

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 1,324 reviews · 11h 30m · from $163Our pick

Travel from Paris by air-conditioned coach to Monet’s house and gardens at Giverny, then continue to Versailles for a guided palace visit and free time in the gardens. Guides such as Hendrix, Lawrence, Anais, and Helin have been praised for lively storytelling. Expect an 11.5-hour day, walking, crowds, and little time for a long lunch.

“Great! Eric at Versailles was knowledgeable and entertaining, and so was our Giverny guide (Emma I think)”

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2.Giverny Monet’s Home & Versailles Palace Day Trip from Paris

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 746 reviews · 11 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $167

Travel by air-conditioned coach from Paris to Versailles and Giverny in about 11.5 hours. A guide leads the Versailles palace visit, while you explore Monet’s house and gardens with an offline audio app. Expect separate guides, timed entry, lots of walking, and free time in both gardens.

“The trip to Giverny was great. Our guide was Hendricks.He was pleasant and gave informative info and showed photos to small groups on the bus to and from Giverny. Seeing inside Monet’s house was wonderful, the gardens were lovely. Hendricks left our group before we traveled to Versailles to pickup a different guide. The trip to Versailles was nice. However, our new guide, Frederick was not so nice! Once we got into the palace, had a restroom stop, etc. we had an unpleasant issue with Frederick. My sister and I are in our late 70’s and were already tired from the Monet tour. We asked if we could use the…”

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3.Fontainebleau & Vaux-le-Vicomte Châteaux Day Tour from Paris

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 454 reviews · 9 hours · from $123

Travel from Paris to two remarkable châteaux in one day. Explore Vaux-le-Vicomte’s furnished rooms, kitchens, dome, and formal gardens, then visit Fontainebleau, the royal residence used for seven centuries. Round-trip coach transport, admission, and audio guides are included, but there is no live guide or lunch.

“As expected, it was just round trip from Paris to the 2 castles and entrance tickets plus audio guides for the venues. The schedule was ok, 3.5 hours for Fontainebleau and 2.5 hours at Vaux-le-Vicomte, just enough for the castles and a bit of gardens. Luckily, everyone was on time for each leg of the trip so everything went as planned.”

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4.St-Emilion & Médoc Wine Day Tour: Chateaus, Tastings and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 430 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $235Top rated

Travel from Bordeaux in a small group of up to eight with an English-speaking wine guide such as Karim, Pauline, Yev, or Daniel. Visit Saint-Émilion, tour family estates and a 1855 Grand Cru Classé château, taste across both wine regions, and share a French picnic lunch. Bring extra water and expect a long day on the road.

“The day was a wonderful and informative experience. Karim,our guide was exceptional, - he filled us in with many details about the region, culture and history of this wine making area. Highly recommend.”

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5.Full Day Tour & Shuttle from Paris

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 356 reviews · 7 hours (approx.) · from $107Best value

Travel by air-conditioned coach from one of three central Paris meeting points to Versailles. You receive timed palace admission and a multilingual audio guide, then explore the State Apartments, Hall of Mirrors, chapel, gardens, Park, and Trianon estate independently. The host helps with departure, but this is mainly transport and entry rather than a guided tour.

“The mirrored rooms were beautiful! The jardines were incredible! Large and tranquil. A must do attraction!”

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6.Fontainebleau and Vaux le Vicomte Chateaux Day Trip from Paris

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 339 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $138

Travel from Paris to two remarkable French châteaux by air-conditioned coach. Explore Vaux-le-Vicomte’s grand rooms, cellars, dome, and 99 acres of gardens, then tour UNESCO-listed Fontainebleau with an audio guide. This is an independent visit, not a guided tour, so you set your own pace at both sites.

“A no hassle trip. It is self guided but the coach ride was relaxing and they are timely and give you plenty of time to explore and eat. The Chateau Fontainebleau was not crowded and really let you see so much more of chateau life. The Vaux le Vicomte Chateau was also amazing although smaller.”

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7.Saint-Émilion day tour: village visit, Châteaux and lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 121 reviews · 7 hours (approx.) · from $187

Spend about seven hours with an English-speaking guide such as Xavier, Margaux, René, or Valentin, traveling in a small air-conditioned van from Bordeaux to Saint-Émilion. Walk the UNESCO-listed village, visit three varied wine estates, taste several wines, and enjoy a château picnic with regional charcuterie and cheese.

“Our St. Emilion city tour and wine tasting were exceptional. Our guide, who holds degrees in enology and hospitality, expertly explained the wines and wineries. The tour, personalized to our group of two couples and a single traveler, featured a picnic among the vines and visits to three Grand Cru Classé wineries, each offering informative tours and tastings of 3-5 wines. Our guide knew all the best spots for wine, sightseeing, and photography.”

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