What to expect
Our journey begins at 9:30AM in front of the main entrance of the Palace, at the foot of the majestic golden Grille Royale, which is our meeting point.
We will first head towards the south parterre, located on the opposite side of the Palace, where our rides (golf carts) will be waiting for us. Our golf carts are the perfect way to travel through the amazing formal gardens and discover all the wonderful hiddens Groves created by the brilliant André Le Nôtre. Sit back and relax or take the wheel and enjoy the beauty of formal French Gardens while our guide tells you all about them !
After our journey through the groves and the Apollon Pond, we’ll arrive at the Petite Venise, next to the Grand Canal. We will then trade our carts for bikes and pedal along the Grand Canal and through the Royal Forest to reach The Petit Trianon. There, we will park the bikes and, after receiving some amazing historical informations about the place, you will enjoy free time to discover the rustic retreat built for Marie Antoinette, inspired by traditional architecture of rural Normandy and the Petit Trianon, where Marie-Antoinette would regularly come to escape the formality of court life and shake off the burden of her royal responsibilities. It will then be time for our picnic lunch break. Relax and sip some wine while our guide shares fun facts about French Royalty.
Once we have regained our strength, we will cycle to the Grand Trianon and after hearing more fascinating stories about Louis XIV and his mistresses Madame de Montespan, you will explore by your own this amazing pink marble palace. King Louis XIV used this enchanting palace to get away from the court and pursue his affair with Madame de Montespan.
We will then head to the Neptune fountain where we will drop our bikes and make our way back to the Palace on foot, crossing through more amazing groves and fountains.
It will time to access the Palace, when it is less crowed, with a skip the line ticket. From there you will be able to explore by yourself, at your own pace, the royal residence of French Monarchy and it’s most iconic room : the magnificent Hall of Mirrors.
What's included
- Skip the line access to the Palace
- Ticket for the Petit Trianon
- Ticket for the Grand Trianon
- Ticket for the Queen's Hamlet
- 1hour golf cart rental (4pers/ car)
- 4 hours bike rental
- Picnic lunch
- Live guide
Highlights
- Palace
- Groves
- Queen’s Hamlet
- Picnic lunch
- Grand Trianon
- Grand Canal
- Royal grounds
- Petit Trianon
10am
Meeting point at the main entrance (golden gate)
10:30am-11:30am
South terrace-Petite venise (1h drive)
11:50am-12pm
Petite venise-petit Trianon(10min bike)
12pm-12:30pm
Petit Trianon (30min visit)
12:30pm-1pm
Queen’s hamlet (30min visit)
1:15pm-2pm
Lunch (45min lunch)
2:15pm-2:45pm
Grand Trianon (30min visit)
2:45pm-3:45pm
Grand Trianon- Neptune fountain (1h bike)
3:45pm-4pm
Neptune fountain-Palace (15min walk)
4pm
Palace with skip the line ticket (Palace closing time : 6:30pm)
Lunch
INCLUDED picnic lunch from iconic Angelina‘s tearoom & restaurant : parisian sandwich (cooked ham, comté cheese, mesclun salad, mustard, butter) OR vegetarian cheese sandwich (emmental cheese, mesclun salad, mustard, butter, pickles)
- soft drink OR little bottle of wine
- mineral water (still or sparkling)
- vanilla financier (small French almond cake, flavoured with hazelnut butter, usually baked in a small mold)
Duration
+/- 7hours
we will spend 6 hours together (10am-4pm), then you will visit the Palace on your own, at your own pace. You can stay until the Palace closing time at 6:30PM. Then you can still wander in the gardens and enjoy the evening light until the gardens closing time at 8:30PM.
Meeting point
9:30 AM, in front of the Grille Royale (massive shiny golden gate). After passing security check, you need to keep going up, you can’t miss it ! You are responsible for arriving at the meeting point in time for your tour.
Conditions
Up to 4 persons per car
Valid driving licence for the drivers
Driver’s minimum age : 24 years old
All participants under 18 must be accompanied by an adult and carry proof of age documentation All participants over 12 must be able to ride a bike
Tour minimum
If the tour minimum of 4 persons has not been met, we will alert guests 48 hours before the tour in order to re-schedule or cancel the tour.
Kingtours reserves the right to change or cancel a reservation if the tour minimums are not met
Cancellation policy
FREE !
Free cancellation 48 hours before the tour (A for C, before noon) 30% fee for cancellation less than 48 hours before the tour
No refund in case of no show.