Travel Around The Clock

The Château de Vincennes, located on the eastern border of Paris, is a fortified royal residence used by the king until the 18th century, when he moved to Versailles . Chateau de Vincennes The origin of the castle dates back to 1150 when king Louis VII built a hunting lodge here, which was later expanded. At the beginning of the famous Hundred Years' War , works began to build a fortress and the impressive dungeon (that, at 52 meters, it is still Europe's tallest dungeon) near the manor. In the 14th century, the construction of the Sainte Chapelle started. This chapel is indeed very impressive; its portal is one of the first masterpieces of flamboyant Gothic and the work of the stained windows is exquisite, in harmonious contrast with the purity of the white stone. In 1410 the fortress was provided with protective walls no less than 1200 meters long, lined with nine towers, originally reaching a height of 42 meters (although they were leveled off in the 19th century w...

We are going to be on the move again very soon, so I am determined to make the most of our time in Paris and to visit as much as possible of what this extraordinary city can offer in terms of art and history.  Clearly Versailles had to be on the list: isn't it one of the most significant touristy destinations in Paris? So, we bought tickets in advance and the first bad surprise was that weekends tickets are more expensive (€25 compared to the €18 during the week): I may see the point of trying to push people to visit during the week, but it's a bit of a disadvantage for the people living and working in Paris! Anyway, it's an important historic site, so spending a bit more for the entrance is not such a big deal. We got there 10 minutes before the opening trying to avoid the long queues, but the situation was already  scary. Most groups had already arrived.  No separate entrances for groups and individuals and no staff controlling the queue. But, luckily, the e...