Rouen port question for Versailles and Giverny

[martinandmaddy]

We will be on an Oceania cruise this year and will be at the Rouen port. Because we have an overnight stay, we plan on booking a room in Paris for one night. The next morning, we would like to take the train out to Versaillles but also want to go to Giverny on the way back to the ship.

 

I do know that this will be challenging so I thought it best to ask for advice from fellow cruisers.

 

1. Do you have any recommended private tour guides that can take us from Paris to the sites mentioned (Versailles and Giverny) and then to the the Rouen port?

 

2. Is there a recommendation for a rental car company near the Versailles train station that we can take to Giverny and drop off near the Rouen port?

 

Thank you in advance!

[dwelsh]

We will be on an Oceania cruise this year and will be at the Rouen port. Because we have an overnight stay, we plan on booking a room in Paris for one night. The next morning, we would like to take the train out to Versaillles but also want to go to Giverny on the way back to the ship.

 

I do know that this will be challenging so I thought it best to ask for advice from fellow cruisers.

 

1. Do you have any recommended private tour guides that can take us from Paris to the sites mentioned (Versailles and Giverny) and then to the the Rouen port?

 

2. Is there a recommendation for a rental car company near the Versailles train station that we can take to Giverny and drop off near the Rouen port?

 

Thank you in advance!

I think if I was contemplating that trip i would have a car delivered to the dock in Rouen, drive to Giverny, then to Paris for the night and drive to Versailles the next day before returning to Rouen. You do not indicate the times your arrive and depart from Rouen.

If you have not been to Rouen before there is a lot to see in that ciity and environs alone; trying to "do" Paris and Versailles is a little ambtious! IMHO

[martinandmaddy]

Thank you for your reply. I know that it's very ambitious and that's why I am seeking assistance from others. It's very important that we see Versailles and Giverny and we only have one day to do it.

 

I appreciate your idea but we do not want to drive in to Paris, nor have a car overnight in Paris. We aren't interested in seeing Rouen either. I am seeking assistance on the options I laid out in the original post. Any ideas on how we can make it happen are much appreciated!

 

Thank you again......

[Earl Rosebery]

We will be on an Oceania cruise this year and will be at the Rouen port. Because we have an overnight stay, we plan on booking a room in Paris for one night. The next morning, we would like to take the train out to Versaillles but also want to go to Giverny on the way back to the ship.

 

I do know that this will be challenging so I thought it best to ask for advice from fellow cruisers.

 

1. Do you have any recommended private tour guides that can take us from Paris to the sites mentioned (Versailles and Giverny) and then to the the Rouen port?

 

2. Is there a recommendation for a rental car company near the Versailles train station that we can take to Giverny and drop off near the Rouen port?

 

Thank you in advance!

 

What time of year? Is your budget unlimited? From mid May to Oct. both Versailles and Givernay are madhouses. We made the mistake of going to Versailles without a reservation. Well over an hour to buy an admission ticket. We thought we were home free. Wrong. Another hour to go through security and then we were herded through the royal apt's like sheep to the slaughter. At the end I hated the experience. As far as Givernay is concerned, it's very important to get there before the dozens and dozens of tour buses.

 

Very difficult to do both in one day. How about Givernay on the way to Paris and Versailles on day 2. Or skip Paris and stay near Versailles and visit it first thing in the morning. In any case you have a lot of planning to do. Good thing you started early.

[potterhill]

I would think doing both in one day is near impossible. They are on opposite sides of Paris and as a previous poster said, it can take forever to get into Versailles.

 

The building is impressive but what I loved at Versailles was walking in the grounds/gardens. I have NEVER encountered such long lines to get in (the exception might be Rio airport) The drive is massive and the lines fill it and wind back on themselves several times. I was there twice in one year, once in May and again in August and it was the same.

 

Giverney is about an hour on the express train and then you need a bus for a short way. Takes time. It is lovely and once again we enjoyed lingering. I had to force my DH to take this daytrip. We took the train around 8 am on a Sunday. We spent the entire day there, and caught the last bus to the town, then the train, and got back to Paris around 8 pm. Yes, we could have left earlier but the grumpy man who didn't want to go, didn't want to leave!

 

As Earl Roseberry suggsted, the best way would be to do one the first day and one the second. I assume you also want to see some of Paris.....I think a private driver is what you need and even then you will be rushed off your feet.

 

Personally I would prefer to see one or the other and spend some time in Paris if you have never been there. Versailles is grand and on a huge scale and the walking of the grounds can take hours. My husband estimated that we walked at least 8 K or more that day. Giverney on the other hand is truly lovely and on a much smaller scale and almost intimate by comparison. When The Grumpy One went to visit DD for her graduation, the first place he wanted to go back to was Giverney!

 

Whatever you decide, however you manage it, have a wonderful time.

 

PS another time guzzler is going up the Eiffel Tower. I think it is highly over-rated and the lines are long and SLOW. But I love to go there and wander underneath it, take tons of pictures from all crazy angles, eat a crepe from the street vendors and bargain for the keychains. They make great little gifts for everyone back home and if you buy enough of them you can get them for .50E each. Takes some bargainlng though, as you walk down from the Trocadro and along the Champ de Mars.They usually give in if you buy 20 or more. It is also the best place in the world for a picnic.

 

Mo

 

I forgot to say that the day we went to Versaille we took the train and it ws a very long day. We had a bite to eat in the town before catching the train back. As I recall we dropped into the bed like stones!

[martinandmaddy]

Thank you everyone.......

 

We will be taking the first train to Paris after we pull in to Rouen. I believe it departs the station at 10:57 am. We will devote the day to Paris as we have never been.

 

We plan on spending the night and taking an early train to Versailles from Paris. From Versailles, we will need to take a driver or rent a car. I undersand that we should devote a day but we don't want to because we will be heartbroken to miss Giverny. We have done whirlwind tours before but actually getting to Giverny after most of the tour buses have left will be as nice as getting there early.....

 

So, if anyone can share the following:

1. recommend a private car/guide that can spend the day with us

2. a reputable rental agency near Versailles that will allow us to drop off the car at/near the Rouen port.

 

Thank you again. I know that my fellow Oceania cruisers can help make this happen!

[Earl Rosebery]

Thank you everyone.......

 

We will be taking the first train to Paris after we pull in to Rouen. I believe it departs the station at 10:57 am. We will devote the day to Paris as we have never been.

 

We plan on spending the night and taking an early train to Versailles from Paris. From Versailles, we will need to take a driver or rent a car. I undersand that we should devote a day but we don't want to because we will be heartbroken to miss Giverny. We have done whirlwind tours before but actually getting to Giverny after most of the tour buses have left will be as nice as getting there early.....

 

So, if anyone can share the following:

1. recommend a private car/guide that can spend the day with us

2. a reputable rental agency near Versailles that will allow us to drop off the car at/near the Rouen port.

 

Thank you again. I know that my fellow Oceania cruisers can help make this happen!

 

You've never been to Paris and you want to go to Versailles!!! Huge mistake. Skip versailles. You've seen one huge royal palace, you've seen them all.

[ClaudiaF]

Please go with your ideas, and do not skip either.. they are fabulous.

Now for the driver/ contact, my favorite limo-tour company in Paris and ( where u want to go) is

http://www.barons-limousines.com/

 

I think to rent a car or try to do trains for this itinerary will be most impossible .. ( in time frame, so a limo company is the right idea)..I 've had them take us everywhere.. had a blast..

while pricey sure to be memorable.

good luck and have a great time!!

[martinandmaddy]

Please go with your ideas, and do not skip either.. they are fabulous.

Now for the driver/ contact, my favorite limo-tour company in Paris and ( where u want to go) is

http://www.barons-limousines.com/

 

I think to rent a car or try to do trains for this itinerary will be most impossible .. ( in time frame, so a limo company is the right idea)..I 've had them take us everywhere.. had a blast..

while pricey sure to be memorable.

good luck and have a great time!!

 

Thank you Claudia F! I am looking for recommendations on drivers/guides and rental agencies and you gave me exactly what I asked for. You heard me!

[2foodies]

Check to make sure that both Versailles and Giverny will be open for tours on your day. We totally missed Monet's garden because it wasn't open and there is a really high wall around it so you can't peek inside. We had taken the train and then the bus. It was a big disappointment!

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

We were just at Versailles last week (the 16th I believe). Took the ~9:30 RER train from St. Michael/Notre Dame station (a somewhat confusing place, do your homework). Got to Versaille about 10am. There were hordes milling around, but no line in the ticket office (in a building to the left of where the big line is going in, the line is security). Took about 20min to get throught the security line. It was a bit of a cattle call to go through the palace proper, but worth it (we were not in a hurry). We then went out to the gardens and found a cafe for an early lunch (pretty decent duck confit). Then hoofed it over to the old palace (Marie Antoinette's place). Then made a bee-line to the train station. I think we were back to the Notre Dame area about 3pm

 

You may be able to pre-book a tour of Versaille that bypasses security, but I'm not sure about that.

 

Sorry for an spelling errors above :-)

[tobes]

We will be on an Oceania cruise this year and will be at the Rouen port. Because we have an overnight stay, we plan on booking a room in Paris for one night. The next morning, we would like to take the train out to Versaillles but also want to go to Giverny on the way back to the ship.

 

I do know that this will be challenging so I thought it best to ask for advice from fellow cruisers.

 

1. Do you have any recommended private tour guides that can take us from Paris to the sites mentioned (Versailles and Giverny) and then to the the Rouen port?

 

2. Is there a recommendation for a rental car company near the Versailles train station that we can take to Giverny and drop off near the Rouen port?

 

Just another thought, I visited all of those places from a river cruise and it was fabulous waking up in those little towns, walking off the boat right in town and following my nose to the local bakery. You might save these places for another trip.:)

[martinandmaddy]

Thank you everyone...... I am going for it! I will probably feel like a contestant on the Amazing Race but we can't choose between the 2.

[Mura]

You have to follow your heart, but having been to Paris, Versailles, Giverny, Rouen ...

 

I'd stay in Rouen for the day. MAYBE hire a car to go to Giverny/Vernon.

 

Don't try to do too much in one day. When I went to Versailles, my husband was on a business trip to Paris and I had a free day. I took a Grey Line (or whatever) tour to Versailles and it took most of day. The lines were horrendous (this was early June for what that is worth). We took a lunch break in town and came back for the afternoon.

 

For further perspective, we spent 3 days in Rouen and were never bored. That is why I recommend not trying to do Paris/Versailles from Rouen if you only have one day.

 

(Bear in mind that I also object to trying to do Berlin in one day from the northern ports. These cities require more time as far as *I* am concerned.)

 

But, as has been said, you need to decide what YOU want to do and not pay too much attention to what the rest of us say!

 

Have fun! There is so much to see in France that you're always going to miss something, especially if you only have one day!

 

Mura