Tickets to the Palace of Versailles: ticket types, prices, how to avoid queues, etc.

Just 25 kilometers from Paris, Louis XIV ordered to rehabilitate an old hunting lodge that, over the years, became what we know today as the Palace of Versailles. Scene of many period films, this place is not the result of fiction, but of centuries and centuries of history in which the figure of Marie Antoinette stands out.

Surely you already have it clear, but do not hesitate to buy your ticket to Versailles. With it you will be entering a world where art, culture and nature go hand in hand. There are many secrets hidden among the former royal apartments and its immense gardens, but with a well-organized visit nothing will escape you.

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Palace of Versailles, Gardens and Marie Antoinette Tickets

Get your ticket to the Palace of Versailles without queues

Want to make the most of every moment of your visit to Versailles? With this ticket you can forget about waiting in line, get priority access and have much more time to visit the Palace and the Gardens.

From $39 at Hellotickets

Do you hate waiting in line as much as I do? If you don't want to waste valuable Versailles visit time waiting in a long queue at the entrance, I recommend you take the priority access ticket. With it, you will enter the Palace, the gardens and the estate of Marie Antoinette and all without delay, with the sole task of admiring and understanding the paintings, tapestries, mirrors, fountains, sculptures... In short, all the art that makes Versailles a World Heritage Site.

Is it really necessary? Believe me, when you get to Versailles the last thing you will want to do is to wait in line at the ticket office and then at the general access. With this ticket to Versailles, which you can buy in advance, you save almost two hours of waiting.

Recommended if... You want to avoid long lines and waiting to make the most of your visit to Versailles.

The general and full entrance to Versailles costs approximately 22€ for adults. However, if you are under 18, have an EU passport and are under 25, have purchased the Paris Pass or the Paris Museum Pass, or are visiting on the first Sunday of the months between November and March, you are in luck because admission is free.

However, these tickets only include access to the Palace, the Gardens, the Domaine de Trianon (the palace that Louis XIV had built), the Park and the temporary exhibitions.

Don't want to visit all that? There are cheaper ticket options to visit only the Palace (approximately 20€) or the Domaine de Trianon (approximately 12€). Access to the Gardens is always free, unless there is a musical lighting of the fountains of Versailles(Great Musical Waters).

My advice is not to wait to buy tickets at the box office, because you may have to spend a long time waiting. To avoid this, I recommend you to buy your tickets in advance and choose the specific time slot in which you will go, so you will save time.

Versailles is a huge and spectacular place, you don't want to waste time in line!

Yes, it is highly recommended to take a guided tour of Versailles. The Palace and the Gardens are so huge that the best way to visit them is with a guided tour. This way you are sure to see the main thing and also understand every piece of art and history that surrounds you.

Although you can visit Versailles on your own, doing it with a guide is an investment in culture and also in your experience. I'm sure you've often come back from a visit not quite knowing what you've seen. Believe me, you won't want to go back to Paris with that feeling, but with the certainty of having seen every last corner of Versailles.

Moreover, by buying your ticket and booking your tour in advance, you avoid waiting in line at the ticket office and you can enjoy your visit from the very first minute.

It's easy! The ticket offices are located to the left of the Cour d'Honneur, which welcomes visitors to Versailles. There you can buy general admission tickets. The wait is about 40 minutes and the price is around 27€. If you want to avoid queues, I recommend you to buy them in advance. So you will not have to wait your turn at the ticket office and you will save almost an extra hour in line.

If you only want to buy the entrance to the Domaine de Trianon to visit the accommodation that Louis XIV built and then enjoyed so much Marie Antoinette, you should go to the ticket counters of the palace.

Once you buy the ticket at any of the ticket offices, you will have to go to Access A and, there, wait about an hour, as it is usually very crowded. If you want to save yourself that wait, be sure to book a priority access ticket (through gate B), where the queue is always faster (about 20 minutes waiting time).

Yes, within the Paris Pass or the Paris Museum Pass are included the entrances to the Palace and Gardens of Versailles. These passes are a great option if you want to save queues and secure your entrance to the vast majority of Paris tourist attractions.

Both options are a great idea to not only visit the Palace of Versailles without long waits, but also have the opportunity to enter other museums in the French capital, such as the Louvre.

The Paris Pass is priced from 109 euros (depending on the number of days you want it for) and in addition to the pass to museums and landmarks of Paris, it also includes a transport card to move freely around the city.

The Paris Museum Pass, from 48 euros approximately, is the perfect card if you are passionate about museums and in your list of things to do in Paris there are a few. In most Parisian museums there is a specific queue, much faster than the general one, for those who have this tourist pass.

Versailles is a must-see if you travel to the French capital, so there are many connections that allow you to get there easily from Paris. The fastest and cheapest option is undoubtedly the regional train (RER), which takes about half an hour and its cost is about 4 € each way, although you have other options, such as private transport or car.

These last two options are more exclusive, as you do not have to be aware of schedules and leave you directly at the entrance of Versailles, without intermediate stops. Of course, their price is somewhat higher.

Organized tours to Versailles

If you are sightseeing in Paris and want to forget about looking for transportation to go to Versailles, the most convenient way is to take one of the organized tours from Paris to Versailles. Being a very visited monument all kinds of tours are organized to get there, some of which include a guided tour of the Palace and Gardens, for a price of around 100 euros. Undoubtedly, a highly recommended option.

Before arriving at Versailles, it is important that you check the opening hours, as they vary depending on the time of the year and not all areas are open at the same times or every day.

• From April 1 to October 31 the Palace is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm and the Gardens every day from 8:00 am to 8:30 pm.
• From November 1 to March 31, the Palace is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm and the Gardens every day from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm.

In addition, I recommend that you note the hours when, during weekends in spring and summer, a beautiful show is held in the fountains of the Gardens, where lights, water and music will mark the rhythm of your visit. You can check the schedule and the days on which the lighting takes place on the official website.

There is never enough time to see Versailles in its entirety, but I recommend that you at least set aside a full day. When planning your excursion to Versailles you should keep in mind that, if you have not pre-purchased your ticket or booked a tour, you will need about 2 hours to queue at the ticket office and access. Once you get in, my advice is to spend the rest of the morning at the Palace and, after lunch, stroll through the Gardens until it is time to return to Paris.

You will also need to account for the time it takes to get there and back, which will be approximately 40 minutes each way. Although it may seem like a long time to dedicate a whole day of your trip to Paris just to Versailles, I assure you that you will want to come back a second time to see everything that remains.

The list of wonders you will find during your trip to Versailles is long. The luxury, culture, nature and history hidden in the Palace and the Gardens will leave you open-mouthed. What you can't miss during your visit?

Without a doubt, touring the royal chambers of the Palace of Versailles will give you an idea of the luxury and wealth enjoyed by the French court during the time of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, but you must also visit the Hall of Mirrors, where the Treaty of Versailles was signed, the document that ended the First World War.

It is clear that the Palace inside is a great museum, but you will see that the art continues when you go outside to stroll through its gardens, not only for the vegetation, but also for its sculptures and fountains.

I'm not going to fool you, the day can be long for the little ones of the family, although both the Palace and the Gardens are suitable for everyone, even if you go to Versailles with children.

If you allow me a recommendation, organize the visit well so that the part of the Palace is not too long, as it can be more boring for children, and enjoy longer in the Gardens, where they can run and play.

I'm sure you already have most of your visit planned, but I'd like to give you a few tips for visiting Versailles to make it even better:

• It is best that you buy your tickets in advance and choose the "no queues" option, as long lines form both at the ticket office and at the entrance.
• Bring your own food, as there are not many places to eat in Versailles, but if you prefer, here are some recommendations for eating in Versailles that meet with my approval.
• Remember to check well the opening hours of the Palace of Versailles and also those of the shows in the Gardens, as they depend on the day or the time of the year.
• You will be walking a lot, so go with comfortable clothes and shoes; at the end of the day you will appreciate it.
• Versailles is a place with a lot of history, so I recommend you to visit it with a specialized guide to not only see but also learn.

Do you already have your ticket for Versailles? A world of kings, history and art is waiting for you there. Are you going to miss it?