 | Paris Versailles Reviews | Tips 1 - 10 of 79 |  |
Versailles
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Getting to Versailles
Versailles is just outside of Paris. Here is how you can get to Versailles from Paris :
By car:
Take the Motorway A13 (direction Rouen), exit Versailles-Château to get to Versailles.
I went by car from Paris to Versailles and had no troubles in getting there. Just outside the Palace there is a huge parking lot (place d'Armes) where you can park your car (payed parking) and walk to the Palace.
By train :
RER ligne C direction Versailles-rive-gauche-château
from Montparnasse station train SNCF direction Versailles-Chantiers
from Saint-Lazare station train SNCF direction Versailles-rive-droite
By bus :
from Pont de Sèvres ligne 171 de la RATP direction Versailles-place d'Armes Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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'Fountain of the Evening'
Before you go down the stairs towards the basin and fountain of Latona, you should take a right turn. This will bring you to the 'Fountain of the Evening'. I really enjoyed seeing the sculptures here, and in the picture you can see one of them.
This sculpture is called 'Air' and it is made by Etienne Hongre (1628-1690), who also made the sculpture 'The Marne' at the 'Water Parterre' that I mentioned in an earlier tip. Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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'Group of Children' at the Water Parterre
As mentioned in the previous tip, this is a close-up of one of the 'group of children' at the Water Parterre. These statues at the 'Water Parterre' were a project of Balthazar Keller (1638-1702) with together with several artists. Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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Basins and fountains
The last part of this page will be about the basins and fountains in the gardens of Versailles. I've added a map of this part of the garden so you will know which are I will be talking about. A map like this is great when you walk through the garden because it gives you some idea where you are and what you are looking at. My guidebook provided one of these maps which was very useful.
1 - Basin of Apollo
2 - Basin of Latone
3 - Basin of Neptune
4 - Water mirror
5 - Basin of the Obelisk
6 - Basin of Flora (Spring)
7 - Basin of Cérès (the Summer)
8 - Basin of Bacchus (the Autumn)
9 - Saturn basin (the Winter)
10 - Basin of the Dragon
11 - Basins of the Crowns
12 - Pyramid
13 - Basin of the Island of the Children
14 - Basins of the Lizards
15 - Fountain of the Point of the Day
16 - The Fountain of the Evening
17 - Basin of the South
18 - Basin of North
19 - Basin of Encelade
20 - Basin of the Orangery
21 - Large Channel Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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Sculpure 'The Evening'
I hope I don’t bore you too much with all these sculptures in the garden of Versailles. But I just loved to see them so much and I wanted to share some of them with you. You’ll probably be amazed yourself when you visit Versailles by the amount of sculptures you will see here, they are everywhere you look and each of them is wonderful.
This sculpture is, like the previous one, at the ‘Fountain of the Evening’. It is called ‘The Evening’ and it is made by Martin van den Bogaert (1637-1694)
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Versailles
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So disappointing...
It’s time to mention the fountains at Versailles. I think they were my biggest disappointment and also the greatest thing to see here at the same time. How that's possible? Hmmm, that is quite easy to explain.
Somehow I always thought that the fountains would ‘work’ in Versailles, but unfortunately they don’t. No splashing water, no nothing. And to see a fountain in its full glory I would think it should be doing something, don't you think so too?
I was so much disappointed by that! It must be so fantastic to see the fountains with all their water displays in action. But now it was just pools of water and many ornaments and sculptures. You can see the fountains in action, but only at certain times of the day. I think it even differs at what time a certain fountain is working. If you want to make sure the fountains will 'work' pn your visit, you might want to check out the website of Versailles and find the current info for the : Versailles website
When I went into the gardens I had to pay an extra fee to see the fountains. The only big problem was that it would take hours before the ‘show’ would start and I didn’t have that much time left. So I had to pay for something that I would have loved to see, but couldn’t see. Sigh… so disappointed! But…. The fountains are fantastic to watch even if they are not working. So it was one of the highlights of my trip to Versailles :-)
In the photo you can see the ‘Fountain of Latona’. I’ll write more about this particular fountain in the next tip. Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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The Fountain of Apollo
If you walk from the 'Fountain of Latona' down the garden through the 'Royal Avenue' you will end up at the 'Fountain of Apollo'. The 'Fountain of Apollo' is wonderful to see, I couldn't get enough looking at all the details of these sculptures of the fountain.
The group depicts Apollo in his chariot and is made by Tuby from Le Brun's design. Tuby worked on these sculptures from 1668 to 1670. A year later it was brought to Versailles, gilded and installed. Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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The fountain of Latona
The fountain of Latona is probably one of the fountains you will see for sure. It is located rather close to the chateau of Versailles. From the 'Water Parterre' (which I mentioned in earlier tips) you can walk down some stairs and you will arrive at this fountain.
The central marble group that you can see in this photo, depicts Latona and her children, carved by the Marsy brothers. This group originally stood on a rock in 1670. It was surrounded by 6 frogs, half emerging from the water. There were also 24 other frogs arranged outside the fountain on a grassy platform. The fountain was modified in 1687 by Jules Hardouin-Mansart between 1687 and 1689. The rock was replaced by the basins (which you can see more clearly on the previous photo). Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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The fountain of Saturn
When you walk to the left or the right you can take a side path in the direction of the chateau again. Here you will find some of the many 'small' gardens of Versailles. This is just one of the small discoveries you can see on your walk. This is the Fountain of Saturn. You can see Saturn on the Island of the Winter, surrounded by four Loves. This fountain was made by François Girardon (1628-1715). But there is so very much more to see at Versailles.
Because of the time limit I was only able to see parts of the garden. Maybe some day I will return to Versailles; I will certainly include the gardens in this visit. But I also learned not to visit Versailles on a 'normal' time of the day. I think I'll be waiting at the gates to get in as soon as it opens in the early morning. This all in the hope to see Versailles in a descent way before the huge crowds arrive. Leave a Comment
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Versailles
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Flowers in Versailles
I visited Versailles in May and the garden wasn't in its full glory yet. But some of the flowerbeds were already in full bloom and looked lovely. There was a lot of work going on in parts of the garden when I visited and these areas were closed to the public. But the garden is so huge that there is still plenty to see and enjoy! Leave a Comment
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on December 7, 2003
