Around Paris
Following is a tour list of popular Paris locations : please click on the respective name for more detailed tour information.
Versailles
Giverny
Chartres
Saint Denis
Fontainebleau
Vaux le Vicomte
Auvers sur Oise
Chantilly
Any other location upon request
Fees & Transportation:
To go to the sights, we can use either public transportation or private car.
All the entrance fees are on your charge and have to be paid directly on the spot.
Please contact me for more tour details and rate information at contact@nicolestours.com
Versailles:
Versailles was the political centre of France in the 17 and 18 century.
Louis XIV, the Sun King decided to create the Chateau and the formal gardens which carry out a solar theme.
The king commissioned the same artists who already worked together for Nicolas Fouquet at Vaux le Vicomte. They created a masterpiece so much so that many countries have built copies of Versailles .
You can visit Versailles in a half day or a full day.
Half day : visit of the Chateau (State's apartments and the Hall of Mirrors) and the French garden.
Full day : visit of the Park of Trianon where the kings and queens could enjoy more privacy away from the Etiquette of Versailles. Louis XIV had the Grand Trianon built,Louis XV had the Petit Trianon built and Queen Marie Antoinette had a farm built so that she could learn farming.
To get to Versailles , we will use public transportation or a private car.
For more details and rates, please contact me at contact@nicolestours.com
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Giverny
Giverny is a small village located 70 km from Paris at the limit of the Ile de France and Normandy .
This charming spot was chosen by Claude Monet who settled down in 1883 and spent the rest of his life, studying the light and the reflection of the sky on his pond at different hours of the day.
We will see the flower gardens, the famous Japanese bridge, as well as the house which offers such a variety of delightful colours. We will tour the studio where Monet painted the large series of water lilies up to the end of his life.
I will show you the village which attracted many artists such as Metcalf, Marie Casatt…who lived for a while in the Hotel Baudy. We will also tour the cemetery where Monet and his family are buried.
Contact me please for more details and rates at contact@nicolestours.com
You can combine this tour with the visit of Auvers sur Oise to explore another great artist Van Gogh.
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Chartres
a city located 90 km away from Paris in the plain of the Beauce.
The historic centre is on a hill topped with an imposing cathedral, well known for its collection of stained glass windows, its architecture and its labyrinth.
The labyrinth is an archetype found in all religious tradition in various forms around the world, but very few remain in our churches.
This labyrinth offers a tool for meditation in action.
I will guide you in the cathedral showing you :
The glass windows with their unique blue colour from the 12th and 13th century; many windows include the signs of guilds who gave them.
The sculptures and the architecture.
I will guide you in the historic city which is located around the cathedral by the river Eure.
We will go their either by train or by car.
For more details and rate, please contact me at contact@nicolestours.com
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Saint Denis
Burial place of the kings of France.
Half day or a full day in this city, located north of Paris .
This city is very well connected to Paris and is so important in the history of France .
It bears the name of the first bishop of Paris who brought the message of Christ in the 3 rd century. Over his tomb, several churches have been erected; their foundations can be seen in the crypt.
Saint Denis had such a radiance that the kings of France wanted to be buried here.
We will visit the crypt and see the evolution of the royal funerary monuments such as the striking tomb of Anne de Bretagne and Louis XII, immortalized in their last breath.
After the visit to St Denis cathedral, I can guide you in the Museum of Art and History located in a former convent. This museum shows the development of the city as well as the most important collection about a crucial period in the history of France, the Commune.
I can also present you the industrial history of Saint Denis which still has a few 19 cy factories such as Christofle, a well known goldsmith. His brilliant works of art are in a museum located in the heart of his still operating factory.
Half day : visit of the cathedral
Half day : visit of the Musée Christofle and Musée d'Art et d'Histoire
We will reach the city of Saint Denis by subway.
Contact me please for more details and rate at contact@nicolestours.com
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Fontainebleau
Located 60 km away from Paris in the middle of a huge forest, the château presents a long history. It has been nicknamed by Napoleon the house of the centuries.
This chateau shows a wide variety of styles as it was inhabited since the 12 century.
We will visit the Royal apartments, especially the unique Renaissance rooms, the Gallery François I and the ball room decorated by Italian artists. We will see the apartments where Napoleon I signed his first abdication.
We will reach Fontainebleau by car and on the way back , we can see the little village of Barbizon where many artists settled down in the middle of the 19 century.
If you would like to spend the day out of Paris , you can extend this program either with the visit of Moret sur Loing, a village located on the river Loing where Sisley lived or a visit to Vaux le Vicomte, the chateau built for Nicolas Fouquet.
For more details and rate, please contact me at contact@nicolestours.com
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Vaux le Vicomte
The forerunner of Versailles, the Château was built for Louis XIV's finance minister, Nicolas Fouquet, who organised a magnificent party in honour of the Sun King. This made the king so jealous that his minister was arrested a few weeks afterwards by the Musketeer d'Artagnan.
To create his estate, Nicolas Fouquet commissioned 3 artists who worked for the first time together :
Le Brun, the main decorator
Le Notre, the landscape designer who created a French garden.
The same team was asked by Louis XIV to create Versailles . There are many parallels in the history of the 2 chateaux.
Vaux le Vicomte is a great introduction to help you understand the “Grand Siècle”, the golden age of the monarchy.
During my tour, I will guide you in the reception rooms of the chateau as well in the garden.
Located 50 km south east of Paris in the countryside of the Brie, we will go by car.
You can combine this tour with the visit of Fontainebleau which is located 25 km away from Vaux le Vicomte.
Fouquet chose this spot because it was not far from Fontainebleau . He expected a royal visit while the king would be staying in his residence of Fontainebleau .
For more details and rate, contact me please at contact@nicolestours.com
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Auvers sur Oise
A village located north of Paris in the valley of the Oise river appreciated by many painters, especially Daubigny who had a studio and a barge for his painting.
Van Gogh decided to come there thanks to Doctor Gachet who recommended that he stay in an inn kept by the family Ravoux located in front of the city hall.
Vincent Van Gogh spent the last months of his life at Auvers sur Oise .
He died in the Ravoux inn and is buried with his brother Théo in the cemetery of the village, a few steps from the church he depicted.
We will see the Auberge Ravoux, the city hall, and on the way to the cemetery, I will point out the different sights painted by Van Gogh, especially the church of the village.
To get there, we will go by car.
You can combine this program with a tour in Giverny, in the steps of another great artist : Claude Monet.
For more details and rate, please contact me at contact@nicolestours.com
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Chantilly
City located north of Paris , well known for its horse race track, its horse's museum and especially for its château, nicknamed the small Louvre, because of its exceptional art collections such as
The prayer book of the Duke of Berry
The Italian works such as Simonetta Vespucci painted by Piero di Cosimo ,
the Virgin of Lorette by Raphaël…..
Visit of the apartments, the museum and the park
We will go there by car.
On the way, we cross the forest of Chantilly and also the city of Senlis which has kept its medieval atmosphere.
For more details and rate, please contact me at contact@nicolestours.com
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