Vaux-le-Vicomte Castle: Independent Day Trip from Paris with Chateaubus Shuttle

Embark on an independent day trip from Paris to Vaux-le-Vicomte Castle, the inspiration behind the Palace of Versailles. Explore the castle and gardens, and learn about the fascinating history of Nicolas Fouquet, King Louis XIV’s Minister of Finance.

Duration: 5 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte - the tour includes the shuttle bus round trip and the visit of Vaux le Vicomte castle , the french style gardens and the carriage museum
What's Included
  • Entrance ticket included
  • Complimentary round-trip shuttle from local train station
What's Not Included
  • Food and drinks
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • RER train ticket
Additional Information

Experience a self-guided journey from Paris to the Castle of Vaux-le-Vicomte, the inspiration behind the Palace of Versailles, through this package which includes entrance to the castle and return transport via the ‘Chateaubus’ shuttle from the local railway station. Your journey begins by traveling to the Melun railway station by RER (R) train…

Location
15 Av. Gallieni
Avenue Gallieni
Meeting point is in front of the " café de la gare" which is avenue Gallieni, in front of the pharmacy. the bus will be waiting there. Please check the shedules of the shuttle on our vaux le vicomte website (directions)
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.2
(20 Ratings)
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Triplover42
Jul 4, 2024
Splendid Chateau - I chose to do Vaux-le-Vicomte because Versailles sounded too crowded. While I can't, then, compare directly to Versailles, Vaux-le-Vicomte did not disappoint! It's a splendid chateau and estate; it started the classic French garden tradition; and it's the palace that INSPIRED Versailles. Plus, like half the size but a tenth of the crowds. I'm glad we went. I suggest starting with the chateau tour. I thought the audioguide was excellent; it dramatically told the tragic story of the man who built the chateau. Actors portray different characters and the production values are high; you can hear voices coming from the side or doors closing behind you. It's easy to use because the narration starts up automatically when you enter different rooms. However, my husband noted it didn't tell the story quite in order, so it left us still slightly confused as to what went down. The audioguide covers the upper rooms. There is an additional 5 euro charge per person to enter the dome at the top, so we skipped that. After you hand in the audioguide, you descend below stairs to learn about the kitchens and the maitre d'hotel who set up a lot of the rules of French gastronomy. As of July 2024, there was also a temporary exhibit on French gardens, which is why I suggest do this before you enjoy the gardens. There is also a kids' audioguide, a kids' search for a squirrel (the mascot of Foquet who built the castle), and sometimes it looks like kids can rent costumes for the latter half of the tour. The garden is huge! It doesn't look it from the top, but it goes on and on. If you really want to check out the whole thing, consider renting the golf cart (seats 4, 25 euros for an hour). Or, just walk a bit and look at it. There are lots of statues and the chateau is surrounded by a real live moat! Then you can wrap things up in the carriage house. There is also a very nice gift shop. Lots of squirrel theme stuff. We brought a picnic for lunch; there are lots of nice tables overlooking the garden where you can eat.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Daniel_b
Jun 4, 2024
Don't miss this tour! - The audioguide was helpful in understanding the people involved in the history of Vaux Le Vicomte. The self-guided tour was well designed and the audioguide continues when you're ready to move to the next room. Each room also has an information board where you can learn more about the room and the things in it. I highly recommend visiting Vaux Le Vicomte because it is an important link in the History of France and in the development of French architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture.
Review provided by Viator
Giovanni_r
May 14, 2024
a day tour to Vaux Le vicomte - We got a bus near The station in Melun and we arrived at the castle in a quarter of an hour-We visited the gardens and then the castle.We had an audioguide.We knew the story of the castle.Good price
Review provided by Viator
Teresa_s
May 9, 2024
Great way for history to come alive - We loved this self guided tour. The audio portion was really fun. It brought the story of the property alive. The only glitch was that we bought the shuttle and audio tour but we didn’t get tickets ahead for the shuttle and had to pay twice. The person handing out the headsets said we didn’t get them but then relented. Other than these issues it was a fun place to slowly stroll through, take in the history and understand the turbulent times in which this house was created.
Review provided by Viator
Niccid_12
May 9, 2024
A day in the Sun - Beautiful Chateau with less people than Versailles. Make sure you spend all day there, take a picnic, or grab something to eat at either the Kiosk or the restaurant outside of the lunch rush. The bus from Melun is well worth it, though consider catching the 6pm bus home so you have more time in the garden - it’s huge, 3km! The audio tour was exceptional and for non French speakers a must.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Eric94130
Mar 9, 2024
A very well maintained castle - Very pretty castle, the audio guide tour is very very well done ✅. The restaurant is quite good and the restaurant prices remain good despite it being within the premises.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Wanderer11940565390
Sep 1, 2023
Visit to the Chateau vaux le Vimconte 60 km from Paris - Well-kept castle and gardens 60 km from Paris. The story of the Sun King's envy for the grandeur and sumptuousness of the furnishings to obscure Versailles is very interesting. Many rooms still have original furnishings and wallpapers. The reconstruction of the kitchens is also interesting. Free parking The visit was very affordable, as was the internal selfie service where we had lunch.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ericmo2322ky
Aug 20, 2023
Fun chateau experience. - Interesting house tour. No crowds, on a day when Versailles was packed. Having golf carts for the huge gardens was fun for the kids.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Heidi_c
Apr 2, 2024
Beautiful Palace, no show on shuttle - Shuttle was no where to be found after arriving at the melun train station. Went to the pickup up point and waited, finally I asked a bus driver, and he said “it’s not running today due to Easter Monday”! We ended up taking an Uber! Would like to be refunded for the transportation portion, please! Palace was beautiful!
Review provided by Viator
D1172yxericl
Oct 27, 2023
Disappointment - The headsets for the tour don't work very well. Obligation to change helmet 3 times. Young man for the cart rental very unpleasant, bordering on incorrectness. Magnificent setting which is spoiled by very average speakers.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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