Fontainebleau

fontainebleau castle view from the pond

This Unesco World Heritage site, located Southeast of Paris, was considered by Napoleon as the true home of French kings. Indeed, our monarchs used this place for 800 years as their hunting grounds. It was then embellished by king Francis Ist with an Italian Renaissance decor. Napoleon occupied the palace and left a throne room, the only one in France to retain its original furniture. Close to another marvel, chateau de Vaux-le-Vicomte, enjoy a whole day visiting both places at once.

For more information click on the pictures below.

fontainebleau castle the white horse courtyard with horse-shoe-shaped-staircase

General information

Admission fee : 12 € per adult. Opening time : 9h30-17h (Oct to March), until 18h (April to Sept).

fontainebleau castle the throne room with a splendid blue curtain

The highlights

Guided tour of 2h00 through this huge palace showing different periods of French History. Free time for the gardens.

 

 

Portrait of Marie Antoinette

Women of Fontainebleau

Guided visit related to the queens, princesses and courtisans who lived here. And the two empresses of the first and second Empire : Josephine and Eugenie.

My favorite trips around Paris

Join me on one of my favourite guided trips around Paris. Enjoy a visit of la Malmaison, the splendid house where Napoleon and Josephine resided during the Consulate. Monet’s garden at Giverny is a very relaxing and peacefull area, at lunch time especially. Vaux-le-Vicomte is according to me the best palace to discover outside Paris, contemporary to Versailles, but less busy.

vaux le vicomte castle view of the garden and the crown in the middle of a fountain
Giverny water lilies pond
Portrait Josephine in front of Malmaison
Vaux le Vicomte palace seen from the french style garden
claude monet the water lilies pond painting
More guided tours