Day Bike Tour of Versailles from Paris

Meet your guide at a central location in Paris and take the RER train together for the ride to Versailles. After picking up your bike a short distance from the Palace of Versailles, continue to a nearby village market to purchase baguettes, cheese, ham, wine and whatever else you’d like to feast on (own expense) for your picnic later on in the day.

The gardens and forests of Versailles span 1,976 acres (800 hectares), and are crisscrossed by a network of picturesque trails and tree-lined paths. Follow your guide and leave behind the pedestrians as you explore parts of the grounds that few venture out to, including Marie Antoinette's country-style hamlet, the Petit Trianon, and the Grand Trianon.

Arrive at a lovely secluded section of the Grand Canal that only those on bicycles can reach easily, and settle in for your picnic lunch. Get a kick out of the fact that you are sitting on the same spot where Louis XIV, XV, and XVI enjoyed their meals when they wished to admire their spectacular palace from the outside.

Then, cycle back toward the palace and spend time inside. With your provided audio-guide, learn about the lives of the French monarchy before their removal from power by the 1798 Revolution. See the King's State Apartments and Chapel, and walk through the unforgettable Hall of Mirrors, where the treaty ending WWI was signed.

Your Versailles bike tour ends with a return to Paris via RER train.