Castles in France
 

I will be going to Paris for the first time and will be staying there for about a week. I was looking for and castles/mansions around the Paris area that I could visit in one day. If anyone has any information it would be most appreciated.

Here.. this will get you started...

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34613058

Of course, there are also palaces at/near Paris - - Versailles, Vaux le Vicomte, Fontainebleu, just to name the most obvious...

Best wishes,

Rex

Whoops - - bad typo! Fontaineble<b>A</b>u, of course...

as rex said-versailles is closeby and beautiful, i've never been to fountainbleau but my cousin was just there and loved it. my only advice for versailles, when i was there they had different ticket options to see different parts-they had one that allowed you to see the king's apartments-that was very worth it (if you like that kind of thing) good luck and enjoy your trip! oh-and if you buy tickets to the louvre in advance you can go in an alternate entrance and not wait on the line (which can get ridiculous in the summer).

Thank you both for all your information.

FYI - none of these is actually a castle - they're really chateaux - but it sounds as if your definition is open - and you're just looking for some really big residences.

If you want to see a real castle (midieval fortress for defensive purposes) you would be better off going to the Loire - Amboise for example.

At the risk of sounding defensive, nytraveler, please note that the very first thing in my reply was to direct JameJ to a recent thread - - the first line of which contains the URL

http://www.medieval-castles.net/french/vincennes.htm

...which very much IS &quot;a real castle (midieval [sic] fortress for defensive purposes)&quot;

...and then I mentioned that there are <i>also <u>palaces</u></i>...

The Loire, of course, is full of <i>chateaux</i>, of which the best known were never &quot;real castle(s)&quot; - - Chenonceaux, Azay-le-Rideau, Chambord are all &quot;fantasy castles&quot;, created with many purposes: hunting (&quot;lodges&quot;), status, &quot;courtly&quot; functions and otherwise...

I am sorry to not specify. I did mean Chateaux.

Rex -

I'm not trying to be pedantic. Just letting the OP know which is which - so he's not disappointed going to Versailles if he really wants to see 12-foot thick walls, arrow slits, dungeons and displays of midievel arms and armor.

I have not been to Chateau de Vincennes... does it have all these trappings of a m<i>e</i>diev<i>a</i>l castle? I'm thinking that it probably does.

In any event, there seems to be chateaux enough to satisfy the hoped-for objectives of the OP.

An overnight stay would even be posible.. at Chateau d'Esclimont, to name one (about 45 minutes out) - - or in the Loire valley, I can fervently recommend Chateau d'Artigny.

While not ancient or historic, it IS spectacular. The cosmetics tycoon Coty spent his entire life's fortune to create it, and you can be the beneficiary for an evening, or even just for dinner.

Try the Ch&acirc;teau de Chantilly for a lovely but not overly large mansion. The library is especially beautiful.

Let me second Underhill's suggestion. We really enjoyed our day at Chantilly, including the interesting horse exhibition and museum as well as a small boat ride through part of the grounds. We found it far more interesting than Fontainebleau.

But Versailles is the standard to which all other &quot;palaces&quot; and gardens are compared. I'd make that my first choice!

Also, don't forget the Chateau at St-Germain-en-Laye, accessible via the RER from Paris (about a 45 minute ride). Here you get a two-fer. A really old and historically significant chateau and France's museum of antiquities, where you can see archaeological artifact from all over France, like Bronze Age weaponry and jewelry from the tribes of Gaul.

I guess Versailles is a must, but I was recently blown away by a long bus daytrip to the Loire Valley Chateaux. Many companies offer this at high prices, but the cheapest one was superb (Panorama/Greyline non-mini bus; easily found on web or visit their office opposite NW corner of Louvre).

Possibly a few days of the year they skip Chambord - do not allow yourself to miss that stunner, and don't listen to the large proportion of visitors who are under the misimpression that it is unfurnished. Even the guides chatter between chateaux can be amazing - the story of the Loire is really key to understanding why France became the way it is, esp art-wise.

Vaux-le-Vicomte has been our favorite. Check the web site. I can e mail a daytrip file.

topping...

When we visited Chambord, only a small number of rooms were furnished. Have things changed in the last ten years?

The Ch&acirc;teau de Chantilly is a beautiful mansion, and it's not far from Paris by train.