Monet's Escape: Giverny
Highlights: Monet's home; gorgeous gardens; water lilies
Duration: five to six hours
Exertion level: low to moderate
Accessible by: train, bus, foot
Impressionist painter Claude Monet is championed for many things, including the way he used light in his paintings. From 1883 onward, Monet lived in the small town of Giverny, where he landscaped a garden around a pond. In Giverny, Monet painted his famous massive-scale works depicting the play of light across this very pond of water lilies. Monet's declining vision can be traced in the changing ways that he rendered the lilies and light over time.
Monet's Giverny gardens are a perfect idyll, and the Monet house on the grounds is a great place for Monet fans to take stock of the painter's life. The only warning we feel compelled to offer is that the garden grounds and house are often packed with tourists in high season. Plan accordingly.
To get to Giverny, take the train from Paris St.-Lazare to Vernon and connect via bus 240 from Vernon. The roundtrip train journey costs €23.20 and takes about 45 minutes. The bus journey runs an additional €2 per single journey. Those who enjoy a medium-length walk can traverse the distance between the train station in Vernon and Monet's gardens by foot. It's about a 45-minute leisurely stroll.
Check out the Fondation Claude Monet site. Admission to the house and museum costs €5.50. The grounds are open from April through October, and are closed on Mondays.
When you return to Paris, be sure to check out Monet's water lilies at the Musée de l'Orangerie, which has exhibition rooms built specifically for his large paintings of water lilies.
For more information, visit the Giverny website.
Cathedral City: Chartres
Highlights: important cathedral; quaint town; great tower views
Duration: four to eight hours
Exertion level: low to moderate
Accessible by: train
An angel statue on the Cathédrale de Chartres.
Photo courtesy of Maison de la France.
The Cathedral Notre-Dame of Chartres has been an important sacred site since the 9th century, although the cathedral visible today doesn't date back much more than eight centuries. After a fire in the late 12th century, the cathedral's body was rebuilt and completed in the early 13th century.
The resulting Gothic cathedral is one of Europe's most stunning. It is worth a lengthy visit, as it's full of interesting elements and details. Among these, be sure not to miss the porch sculptures and stained-glass windows that date back to the twelfth century. Admission to the cathedral is free. Those wanting to ascend the tower will need to fork over €5.
While the Cathedral is clearly the main draw in Chartres, the town itself is very appealing as well. Little alleyways and streets are a charming medieval counterpoint to the cathedral's enormous scale. Riverside walks are also recommended.
The train journey between Paris Montparnasse and Chartres takes just over an hour. A roundtrip journey costs €25.40.
For more information, take a look at the official Chartres tourist site.
Royal Respite: Versailles
Highlights: historical site; magnificent palace; grand gardens
Duration: four to eight hours
Exertion level: low to moderate
Accessible by: commuter train
The gallery of mirrors at Château de Versailles.
Photo courtesy of Maison de la France.
We originally had misgivings about putting Versailles on our daytrip list, but the fact is (admit it!) Versailles is one of your Paris "Must Visits." With this in mind, we thought we'd cook up some Versailles tips.
In 1660, Louis XIV ordered that a rather modest hunting lodge at Versailles be expanded into a massive royal palatial estate. Once the complex was completed in 1682, Louis XIV finally moved in. Many parts of Versailles were subsequently added -- for example, a remarkable Opera House was opened in 1770.
Versailles is, arguably we suppose, the world's most magnificent palace complex. For centuries, the baroque complex was the model for royal palaces throughout Europe. Versailles remained the seat of power in France until 1789.
Don't lose sight of the fact that Versailles is massive. There's a ton to see and do, and there are many ways to approach the site. We recommend purchasing a day pass, which costs €16 in the off-season, €20 during the week in high-season, and €25 on weekends in high-season. A day pass offers access to Versailles' gardens, the Marie-Antoinette Estate, the park, temporary exhibitions, and the Coach Museums and Grand Eaux Musicales fountain show on weekends and holidays. Additionally, the day-pass provides access to audio-guided tours of the Chapel, Opera House, King's State Apartments, Queen's State Apartments, Dauphin's Apartments, and Mesdames' Apartments (on weekends only).
The fastest and most direct route to Versailles is on the C5 RER suburban train. From the Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel station, it's about a twenty-five minute journey to the Versailles-Rive Gauche RER station. A roundtrip tickets costs €5.30. From the Versailles-Rive Gauche RER station, it's an easy walk to the Versailles complex.
Check out the Versailles Web site.
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