To fully immerse yourself in rich French history while in Paris, you are probably considering a visit to Versailles.
You probably already know it: to visit the Palace of Versailles, skip the line tickets are absolutely necessary. I can assure you that there is an incredible waiting line there every day!
How Long is the Line at Versailles?
The ticket office line at Versailles can take anywhere between 30 minutes and 2 hours. Afterward, you will need to again wait in line at the main palace entrance, followed by the security check, which can collectively take another 1-3 hours.
There is nothing more annoying than having to wait 1 to 3 hours standing in line instead of enjoying your day trip. But Versailles is one of the most famous châteaux in France, and everybody will tell you that the visit is well worth it.
Luckily, there are several ways to skip the line at Versailles – or avoid the longest lines -, and we are going to share our best Versailles skip the line tips with you in this post.
If you are looking for information on how to visit Versailles from Paris, the articles below are in-depth guides to plan your Versailles trip.
About the Palace of Versailles
Versailles is one of the most popular day trips from Paris. Check out the list of best day trips from Paris.
Situated 21 km south-west of Paris, Versailles Palace is a true wonder of the world. With its opulent Baroque rooms and halls and surrounded by magnificent formal gardens, Versailles is one of the best castles near Paris, an awe-inspiring site easy to reach from the French capital.
Have a look at the Palace of Versailles inside – history, things to know, and the best rooms and halls.
The Palace of Versailles is one of the top sights to visit near Paris. We recommend visiting Versailles Palace in the following Paris itineraries:
1. Buy Your Palace of Versailles Skip the Line Tickets Online
With nearly 10 million visitors every year, Château de Versailles is one of the world’s most visited historic sites, and you definitely want to buy skip the line Versailles tickets online.
The advantage of buying these Palace of Versailles skip the line tickets online in advance is that you are avoiding the line to the ticket office (on the left in the Cour d’Honneur in the South Ministers Wing).
When you buy your Versailles tickets online, you choose a date and time slot, and you are sure to enter the Palace within your time slot.
You can buy the ticket to visit the Palace of Versailles alone or in combination with tickets to other parts of Versailles.
Below we list the different Versailles skip the line options you will need advance tickets for and have added links to our favorite trusty providers for your convenience.
- Versailles Full Access Passport (Palace, Gardens, Trianons) with audio guide
- Versailles Palace access tickets with an audio guide
- Marie-Antoinette’s State and the Trianons access tickets with an audio guide
2. Museum Lovers: Check Out the Paris Museum Pass
The Paris Museum Pass is a Paris tourist pass that offers visitors direct access to more than 50 top attractions and museums in Paris at a discounted price. This Paris travel card offers visitors 3 different options for 2, 4, or 6 days. Click here to read our Paris Museum Pass review.
Not many people know that the Paris Museum Pass also includes access to Versailles Palace, Queen Marie-Antoinette’s State, and the Trianons! So if you were considering the Paris Museum Pass for your Paris vacation, now there’s one more reason to purchase this pass to skip the line at Versailles.
Click here to buy your Paris Museum Pass
3. The Access to the Palace for Guided Tours is through a Special Gate
The only access to the Palace of Versailles is through La Grille d’Honneur. On the sides, there’s Gate A for individual visitors (left) and Gate B for guided groups with reservation (right).
Gate B definitely sees shorter lines than Gate A, which is another reason to consider a guided tour to visit Versailles.
The following tours are consistently top-rated. Click on the links for more information:
- Versailles Palace & Gardens 3-hour guided tour
- Versailles skip-the-line day tour & transfer from Paris
4. Best Day to Visit Versailles Palace to Avoid the Biggest Crowds
With your Versailles skip the line tickets, you are going to avoid the longest lines. Also, you may want to avoid the biggest crowds when you visit the Palace of Versailles inside.
With the crowds, the rooms’ staff make visitors circulate faster to avoid bottlenecks, so the visit is less enjoyable. Also, there are more people concentrated around the information panels.
Before purchasing your Versailles skip the line tickets, have a look at the best day of the week to visit Versailles. The table below shows the frequency by day during the low season and high season.
The low season is considered from 1 November to 31 March, while the high season is considered from 1st April to 31 October.
When is the best day to visit Versailles to avoid the biggest crowds inside?
NB: The table does not consider the national or official holidays.
Versailles is particularly crowded on Tuesdays and during the weekends. If your schedule is flexible, prioritize Wednesdays and Thursdays, when there are fewer crowds.
5. Best Time to Visit Versailles Palace to Avoid the Biggest Crowds
The table above is divided into time slots, and it also shows the best time to visit Versailles Palace to avoid the biggest crowds.
The most popular time slots are between 10 am to 3 pm, so your best bet for visiting Versailles Palace is first thing in the morning when they open or during the last time slot.
6. Days to Avoid Visiting Versailles
Versailles is open every day from Tuesday to Sunday, holidays included. The table above does not consider the national or official holidays. These are particularly crowded days in Versailles and should be avoided:
National holidays in France 2021
- New Year: Friday 1 January 2021
- Easter Monday: Monday 5 April 2021
- First of May: Saturday 1 May 2021
- Armistice WW2: Saturday 8 May 2021
- Ascension Day: Thursday 13 May 2021
- Whit Monday: Monday 24 May 2021
- National Day: Wednesday 14 July 2021
- Feast of the Assumption: Sunday 15 August 2021
- All Saints: Monday 1 November 2021
- Armistice WW1: Thursday 11 November 2021
- Christmas: Saturday 25 December 2021
School holidays in France are also busy periods in Versailles. For two weeks, parents and grandparents try to keep the kids busy with sports and cultural visits, and Versailles is a great place to learn about the last kings of France, Queen Marie-Antoinette, and the French Revolution.
In France, there are school holidays common for all the country (e.g., Christmas, Easter…) while other periods of school holidays are different depending on the region. The dates below correspond to zone C (Paris, Créteil, Montpellier, Toulouse, Versailles).
- Christmas holidays: 19 December 2020 to 4 January 2021
- Winter holidays (C): 13 February 2021 to 1 March 2021
- Spring holidays (C): 17 April 2021 to 3 May 2021
- Summer holidays: 6 July 2021 to 1 September 2021
- All Saints holidays: 23 October 2021 to 8 November 2021
- Christmas holidays: 18 December 2021 to 3 January 2022
So there you have it, the best tips to skip the line at Versailles, together with the best day to visit Versailles and the best time to visit Versailles for a wonderful day trip to Versailles.
