Reservation conditions
These reservation conditions apply to guided tours and self-guided tours.
Visit with my group School Groups offer in one look
How to make a reservation?
- Reservations open 3 months prior to the date of visit, on the first day of the month at 9 am (e.g. for a visit in January, reservations open on the first working day of October at 9 am).
- Reservations close 1 month prior the date of visit (except for the self-guided tours: reservation by phone until the day before the visit).
- Self-guided tours: reservation required by phone at +33 (0)1 30 83 04 05
- Guided tours: online reservation required
To create an account granting access to the online ticket office dedicated to school groups, please complete this form. You will then receive an email with your login ID and password, to make your reservation.
If you wish to later modify the information in your customer account (filled in via the online ticket office), please send an email to versailleseducation@crm.chateauversailles.fr
How to pay?
Once the reservation made, payment must be made within 15 days. Means of payment accepted:
- Bank card
- Payment on invoice only permitted for legal persons governed by French public law by sending an order form by email (the original ticket must be presented on the day of the visit)
- Bank transfer
- Bank or postal check payable in France
Read the General Conditions of Sale
How to finalize the booking?
To finalize the booking, please confirm within 15 days following recipt of this booking form:
- For a paid activity, your payment must be processed and cleared within 15 days.
- For a free activity, this document must be signed and dated and returned via email to versailleseducation@crm.chateauversailles.fr within 15 days.
If the payment or signed document is not received before this deadline, the booking will be cancelled without any further notice.
Cancel your reservation
Once the payment was made, the cancellation of your reservation is possible until 15 days before the date of the visit by email notification on versailleseducation@crm.chateauversailles.fr
For all cancellation requested less than 15 days before the visit, the payment is owed to the Public Establishment of the Palace, the Museum and the National Estate of Versailles.
Admission to the gardens at Versailles
From 1 April 2025, admission to the gardens will be free for French school groups and extra-curricular activity groups.
Different booking arrangements for admission to the gardens apply: each member of the group must have their own individual “Gardens” ticket.
Please note, school groups must not exceed 35 people maximum, including accompanying adults. The number of accompanying adults who can enter for free with the group depends on the educational key stage of the class:
- Pre-school/Nursery: 1 accompanying adult for every 5 pupils
- Elementary: 1 accompanying adult for every 10 pupils
- Secondary: 1 accompanying adult for every 15 pupils
Each additional accompanying adult must purchase a full-price ticket for the gardens. Please purchase here.
1. French group – Online booking – visit of the Palace with a facilitator
When you book a visit with a facilitator, you can also order your free “Gardens” tickets at “schools” online tickets for each member of your group. Select the number of tickets, add them to your basket, and submit your booking. You can then access the tickets in your personal online account.
2. Telephone booking – visit of the Palace without a facilitator
When you book your visit without a facilitator at the booking centre - 01 30 83 04 05 – please remember to order your free “Garden” tickets for each member of your group.
3. French groups visiting the gardens only
Tickets for tours of the Versailles gardens only can be collected directly from Château Versailles Spectacles at the gatehouse at the entrance to the gardens.
Documents required:
- For a school group: The teacher’s “Pass éducation” and a signed list of pupils
- For an extracurricular activity group: Copy of the children’s activity organization declaration (ACM) and a formal written statement with the name of the group leader and proof of identity (driving licence, national identity card, passport, etc.)
4. Groups from abroad
To visit the Palace Gardens, please buy your entrance tickets online at a cost of 10 euros per person. This will give you direct admission to the gardens without queueing at the ticket office in the gardens. You can buy your ticket here now.
Tutorial
Consult the tutorial to guide you through the online ticket office.
VISITING CONDITIONS
Group composition
For guided tours and self-guided tours, groups may consist of a maximum of 30 people including accompanying adults.
- Nursery School: 1 accompanying adult per 5 pupils
- Elementary School: 1 accompanying adult per 10 pupils
- Junior High School: 1 accompanying adult per 15 students
If the group contains additional adults not considered to be accompanying adults, they must number a maximum of 3 and will be required to purchase a ticket.
Access and meeting place
It is advised for school groups to enter through the Chapel Gate that is much less used than the Gate of Honour. In addition, it will give you direct access to entrance B (self-guided tours) and to the North Minister's Wing (guided tours).
You can nonetheless access the Palace through the Gate of Honour. After crossing the Court of Honour, entrance A (entrance without booking) will be situated on your left and entrance B on your right. This access is recommended for people with disabilities.
- If you have booked a guided tour, go to the North Ministers’ Wing with your booking confirmation, where you will meet a member of staff who will show you around the Palace.
- If you have booked a self-guided tour, go to entrance B to start the tour directly.
- If you are visiting without pre booking, please note that you cannot be granted a no-queuing access. Only the group leader should go to the North Ministers’ Wing to collect the tickets. They should have an official list of the attending students and their date of birth from the institution. The whole group should then go to entrance A. Please note that the group leader does not have speaking rights.
This interactive map can be also consulted on the Palace of Versailles’ app - available free of charge on the App Store and on Google Play.
Staff on site
Welcome and security staff are on hand to provide information. They can be identified by their badges and are present throughout the visit route (in the courtyard and gardens and at the museum entrances and exits). If a pupil gets lost they can approach them directly. The pupil will immediately be assisted and staff will take the necessary measures to find their chaperones. Likewise, chaperones can also receive assistance from security officers if they have lost a student.
The speakers, intermediaries and artists are professionals whose job it is to share the history of the estate of Versailles. It is essential to follow their instructions to ensure that the visit runs smoothly.
Museum etiquette
Teachers are responsible for their students for the duration of the visit at the Palace of Versailles. Pupils should be made aware of the challenges of preserving heritage and behave properly in the museum.
Move around calmly:
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do not run, bustle, slide or climb.
Keep noise down inside the Palace:
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turn mobile phones off, speak quietly and stay focussed to help the visit go smoothly.
Keep the areas clean:
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food and drinks are not allowed inside the museum;
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picnics are not allowed in the gardens. However, it is possible to have a picnic in the park.
Help preserve the paintings, sculptures and other precious items:
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admire with eyes only: the decor is old and the works of art are fragile;
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no flash photography and only take photos when permitted;
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follow the instructions in the rooms.
Respect the security perimeters.
Consult the visitor regulations for the museum and the estates of Versailles and Trianon
PREPARING YOUR GROUP BEFORE THE VISIT
Identifiying locations before arriving with your class
Since April 2009, the "Pass Éducation" has enabled all teachers working under contract in public a private schools and secondary levels establishments (school, college, high school) to access permanent collections at museums and national monuments free of charge.
The Palace of Versailles invites these teachers to use their card to access Versailles free of charge in order to scout out locations before arriving with their class.
The "Bienvenue" interactive map
To supplement the website, "Bienvenue" offers you information before and during your visit by helping you to find your way around the Estate's locations and services. Built as an interactive map, the site answers 150 of the most frequently asked questions. Compatible with tablets and smartphones and accessible via 3G connection, this site can be visited anywhere at any time.
Picnics in the gardens
There is a designated picnic area in the gardens at the Marmousets Hall near the Water Walk. This area, which has toilet facilities, is the only place in the gardens where picnics are permitted.
Picnics in the Park
Picnics are permitted in the Park, notably on the Saint Antoine Plain, situated between the Palace and the Trianon palaces; ball games are permitted there. Visitors can also picnic at the Lake of the Swiss Guard opposite the Orangery, which is located outside the Estate and accessed on the town side from rue de l’Indépendance américaine, or from the Park via the Matelots’ gate.
Admission to the Park is free every day.
