I just read Rick Steves' website for the sidetrip to Versailles from Paris. It's a 2hr metro ride (give or take a few minutes) to a 30min taxi ride or self-drive (provided we don't get lost). I'm tempted to do the taxi or the self-drive.

1. Would I need to pay the taxi driver for his empty ride back to Paris?
2. Can I get a taxi back to Paris from Versailles?
3. If self-drive: what are the driving conditions like? I've read it's pretty manic in Paris itself but to go outside? And sorry if this is a stupic question but is it right hand or left hand drive?
4. What are car rental rates like in Paris?
5. If I do self-drive, where do I park?

There are frequent suburban trains to Versailles with a journey time of around half an hour. I can't imagine how Rick Steves stretches the journey to two hours. There's no reason to hire a car or take a taxi.

We took the suburban train and this was very easy and pleasant trip. It was less than one hour, I don't remember exactly how many minutes, but for sure less than one hour. From th railway station there is a short walk till the palace.

I do not see any reason to take a taxi or rent a car.

If it took Rick Steve's 2 hours to get to Versailles , he better pick up a Fodor's guidebook for directions! ABout 45 minutes from most stations on the RER to Versailles-Rive Gauche, then a short walk.

Rick Steves is way off the mark (no surprise there). It takes half an hour to get to Versailles by train or Métro (RER). You can catch commuter trains there out of Montparnasse station, or you can ride Line C of the RER out there.

There's a train every 15 minutes or less -- every 8 minutes or so at rush hour. It certainly takes less time that a taxi. The only advantage of a taxi would be to drop you right in front of the château, but one of the pleasures of Versailles is walking slowly up to the château from a distance.

OP must have mis-read the Rick Steves Guidebook. Mine clearly states 30 minutes.

The thought of renting a car IN Paris and driving to Versailles is certainly an interesting exercise in time and cost management.

Sorry, I read it again. It states a 30min train ride but more like a 2hr transit ride back and forth tops.

As for cost management: while we are not planning on an excessive European tour,we are not on a tight budget. We would be open to anything that will cut short whatever travelling time there is from point to point.

Look up schedules here:

http://idf.sncf.fr/GB/default.htm

If you want to cut short the travelling time to Versailles, hop on the train.
If you want to cut short your life expectancy, hire a car and drive there in the rush hour (I've noted that you don't even know which side of the road they drive on).

Of the three rail routes to Versailles RER Line C is the best as it drops you off a few blocks from the palalce's front entrance.
Main line trains from Montparnasse stop at the Versailles-Chantiers station quite a bit farther away and trains from Saint-Lazare go to a station several blocks further away than RER C. RER C is also convenient because it runs thru the center of Paris along the Seine, meaning it can be boarded at many places in Paris, such as the Latin Quarter.
Once in Versailles many folks neglect the fine regional town there - if you stroll thru the commercial town, with a neat old-world market in the main square, then the Rive Gauche train station (think that's the name) back to Saint Lazare would be convenient as well.
RER C is valid with railpasses valid in France though you wouldn't want to use a day of travel for such a cheap few euro fare.

Don't miss the subtlety of renting a car and time management. Take the Metro to the car rental agency. Fill out papers. Go to car. Find way out of Paris--maybe. Find way to Versailles. Find car park.
Retrace steps for return trip.
Shouldn't be more than 6 hours just for transit time.
Renting a car for the day in Paris not having made arrangements from US or over the internet--priceless.

Dear Zizz, I have both rented a car and taken a day trip out of Paris, and taken the train to Versailles. PLEASE do yourself a favor and take the train. It is very simple. My French is pretty lame, and I managed it with no difficulty whatsoever. Renting a car on the other hand is a huge deal. We reserved from the States, and still had at least a 45 min ordeal at the rental office. Also factor in walking from the office to whatever lot or garage the car is actually in. Traffic going out of Paris--(do I even need to elaborate here). And traffic back to whereever the car is rented from. We returned our car on a Monday evening, and got turned around in traffic several times, thus getting disoriented, which in turn caused me to need to say more than a few Hail Mary's when we got back! Save the car rental for a trip that is difficult to reach by public transportation. The train will be much faster, easier, and cheaper. Have fun on your trip!!

zizz: just a wild guess - you haven't been to Paris before, right?

The idea of renting a car to get to Versailles is simply crazy. You could NEVER drive it as quickly as taking the train. (and neither could a taxi driver)

The best ways to get around Paris and anywhere nearby are the Metro, RER, sometimes buses, and often - on foot.

Renting a car is expensive, inconvenient, and almost always slower.

Agreed … renting a car would be disaster.

In the past it has sometimes taken me 3-4 hours to get from Versailles to Paris, even though it's only about 15 miles. The traffic can be horrendous, even on the freeway, and if you don't know exactly where you are going, you'll get lost. Taking a car can turn a 30-minute commute (by train) into an all-day test of endurance.