Day trips from Paris
 

I will be in Paris with my husband and 11 <BR>year old daughter for 10 days in early April. <BR>We plan on seeing a lot of Paris but would also like to take some day trips. I am aware of Versaille, Giverney, Fontainbleu, etc. but am also interested in lesser known sites and lovely towns. Not sure yet if we'll be renting a car....Also, is anyone familiar with Hotel le Serre on Rue le Cler (7th)?

If you have auto, Chambor with its 365 chimneys or Reims where the kings of france were crowned are great to visit. <BR>Chantilly is closer to Paris.

Hi. Versailles is a good day trip from Paris. The RER goes from stations like Invalides to Versailles Rive Gauche. <BR>From the RER station, you have a reasonable walk to the palace entrance. <BR>My wife and I freelanced it with no trouble. <BR> <BR>Last summer we visited a chateau known as Vaux le Vicomte. It is near the town of Melun, which is east and a little south of Paris. It is not far from Fontainebleau. I was totally captivated by Vaux le Vicomte. Its desingers and architects were Louis le Vau (architect and engineer), Andre Le Notre (landscape architect), and Charles le Brun (artist). Their accomplishment is staggering when taken as a complete whole. They are the same three men who were "requested" by Louis XIV to create Versailles. It is one place in Europe I would dearly love to revisit. <BR>Hopefully I will be able to. <BR>We took a bus tour out there, but next time I will free lance it even though I probably will need to take a taxi from Melun. I would have stayed longer last time, but the tour was moving on. <BR>Both Vaux and Fontainebleau are magnificent, so I recommend doing them separately. It is a shame to rush through any of it.

You could consider St Germain en Laye which is at the end the end of RER line A. It is an attractive town with a lovely chateau and park. There is also the chateau Pierrefonds which is in hte Chantilly direction. <BR>You might also consider, though it's a very long day trip, a visit to Gien. It is a very attractive town on the banks of the Loire, not far from Sancerre which is also attractive. Gien has a castle and the porcelain factory shop.

La Serre didn't receive good reviews but did undergo lots of renovation. Hopefully things have improved: <BR>La Serre- <BR>undergoing renovations (4/00) <BR>some of the walls have cracks <BR>the carpets are worn <BR>Bathrooms for the most part are good <BR>clean, quite, comfortable <BR>friendly staff <BR>small room <BR>Luxury it is not. <BR>tiny, tiny, tiny room <BR>no room for clothing <BR>exposed wires <BR>For more go to www.anamericaninparis.com <BR>[email protected]

Rick Steves removed the Hotel Le Serre from his recommended list in the lastest addition of his Paris book, as he had received so many complaints from readers about its cleanliness, unfriendly staff, etc. So, you might want to consider other hotels in that area.

<BR> I could suggest the medieval Provins (east of paris), the pleasant town of Senlis (cathedral, remains of the roman wall and medieval palace)not long away from Chantilly, or the impressive ruins of Chateau-Gaillard, a medieval fortress on a beautiful spot over the Seine river (80 kms or so west of paris, in a village called "les Andelys"). <BR> <BR>No doubt that all the places listed by the other posters are equally interesting. I added these ones to complete the list, not because they are my prefered. <BR> <BR>And just because nobody cited it, Chartres, of course, though it's hardly a "lesser known site". <BR> <BR>Oh! And St-Denis Basilica, where the french kings used to be buried, and which is interesting as one of the older gothic cathedrals (the older?). It's not a "daytrip" since it's situated just north of Paris (you can go there with the metro), but I never see its name appear on this board, so...

Another place I have just remembered is Auvers, where Van Gogh worked and died. There is a small museum and a wallk round some sites where he painted, with reproductions of the works so that you can compare them with the present scene. Especially well known is the church. <BR>Auvers is just to the west of Paris

My 8 year old daughter loved the Chateau de Thoiry - a wildgame park, zoo, botannical garden and Gastronomy Museum all rolled into one. It is located in the village of Thoiry, 27 miles west of Paris. (25 miles southeast of Giverny). <BR> <BR>As another poster indicated, Les Andelys and the Chateau de Gaillard is also a great history lesson for kids.

Questions about daytrips from Paris have been posted many many many times. Do a search to catch any good answers that aren't repeated here. My favorite: Chartres. The windows are of course spectacular, and I also love the old town. It's easily reached by train from Paris. CHARTRES!!! <BR>P.S. In case anyone cares, I hate Versailles.

ttt

Pamela, look into Hotel de Turenne on avenue Tourville at Metro: Ecole-Militaire. They have a triple for around 96 Euro. We stayed in a twin/dbl last April and enjoyed it. Hotel is clean and convenient, with a nice continental brkfst downstairs if you want it (extra). This location is a few blocks from rue Cler and is probably a little quieter during the night/early morning. I booked with them by fax and had no problems.

Well, wouldn't it be more polite if I included the pertinent hotel information? Hotel de Turenne, 20, avenue de Tourville, 75007 PARIS, International Phone: <BR>+331 47 05 99 92 <BR>International Fax: <BR>+331 45 56 06 04<BR>See: http://www.france-hotel-guide.com/h7...renneengl.html

I just discovered this site - thanks everyone!!! I've been looking everywhere for ideas for daytrips out of Paris, never having been in the countryside, but not having a car to get places. Now I have some ideas. If you get on here with ideas how about notes on how to get there, not that i'm lazy to do this but often people who've done this know best how it works. Hey, Thanks.