Giverny and Auvers-sur-Oise Day Trip: Monet and Van Gogh in One Day

What Is in the Price

The listing includes all entrance fees, return transport from Paris by air-conditioned minivan, a driver-guide, and the small-group format of 8 people at most. The two paid sites are both covered: Monet's house and gardens in Giverny, and the Auberge Ravoux in Auvers-sur-Oise, the boarding house where Van Gogh spent his last days. The self-guided visit to the Monet Foundation alone costs €13 at the official online rate, so a good part of the ticket value sits in that first stop. Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before departure.

One honest note: the guide is a driver-guide. The listing does not promise a guide walking you through the rooms of Monet's house or the Auberge Ravoux, so expect to visit those interiors on your own with the group moving together between stops.

What You Pay on the Day

Bring money for lunch in Auvers-sur-Oise. The listing points to a boulangerie with fresh baked goods and several small restaurants serving local food at reasonable prices, and leaves the choice to you. Add a tip for the driver-guide if the day went well, and whatever you spend on drinks or souvenirs at either village.

Nothing else is compulsory. The operator lists no mandatory extras and no drinks in the price.

Morning in Giverny

You meet the driver-guide outside 8 Avenue de Villiers in the 17th arrondissement, at the Cafe des Dames, 15 minutes before the start. The van is a grey minibus that arrives about 10 minutes before departure. The operator is explicit that the tour leaves sharp and that there is no way to catch up once it has gone, so the meeting time is a hard one.

The drive to Giverny takes the group out of Paris for the first stop of the day. Once there, the listing gives 1 hour in the Clos Normand flower garden, where it says a hundred different flowers bloom through the season, then 30 minutes of free time inside Monet's home of more than 40 years. A third 30-minute slot goes to Monet's grave, which the listing describes as tucked away in a little church graveyard in the village. That is a total of about 2 hours on site in Giverny.

Afternoon in Auvers-sur-Oise

The van then crosses to Auvers-sur-Oise, the village where Van Gogh painted his final works. The first hour there is your lunch break, at the boulangerie or one of the small restaurants the listing mentions. After lunch the group spends 1 hour at the Auberge Ravoux, the boarding house where Van Gogh lived his last days, and a final 30 minutes at his grave, described in the listing as a humble gravesite covered in ivy.

The day closes with the drive back to Paris. The operator states the tour finishes around 5:30 PM at the same point where it started, 8 Avenue de Villiers, depending on traffic. Over roughly 10 hours, the timed stops add up to 4.5 hours including the lunch break and the rest is driving and transitions, so it is a full day rather than a relaxed one.

Families with Young Children

The minimum age is 7. Children under that cannot join, so if you are travelling with toddlers this listing is closed to you. The day trips from Paris with kids guide covers options that work for younger families.

Anyone Who Struggles to Walk or Stands in Heat

The operator says the tour suits all fitness levels but requires that all participants walk well, even on hot summer days, and states that if you have trouble walking or feel faint in the hot sun this is not a good tour for you. The garden visits are on foot and much of the day is outdoors.

Travellers Who Want a Short or Late Day

The day runs about 10 hours and ends around 5:30 PM, with no hotel pickup and a start that nobody can join late. If 10 hours is too long, the Giverny half-day trip from Paris covers only Monet in less time and from $78. If you want Monet plus a palace instead of Van Gogh, the Giverny and Versailles day trip is the alternative.

Both are compared with every other listing on the day tours from Paris homepage.

Wheelchair and Stroller Access

No accessibility information is stated for this listing. Between the gardens, the house interior and two graveyards, assume you need to ask the operator directly before booking if access matters to you.

Giverny by Train

Trains to Giverny leave Paris Saint-Lazare for Vernon-Giverny, a journey of about 50 minutes. Vernon is 5 km from Giverny, and the last mile has options: the electric Navette Giverny shuttle costs €5 single or €10 return and runs from April to November, the little tourist train costs €8 return, and the walk takes about an hour or about 20 minutes by bike with rentals by the station. The Monet Foundation opens from 1 April to 1 November, 10:00 to 18:00 with last admission at 17:30, and online booking is advised.

The Normandy tourist board suggests weekdays and avoiding July and August and the 10:00 to 16:00 peak. The Paris to Giverny by train guide has the detail, and Giverny appears among the day trips from Paris by train.

Auvers-sur-Oise by Train

Auvers-sur-Oise is reached from Paris Gare du Nord on line H via Valmondois, or from Saint-Lazare on line J to Pontoise then line H. On Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 4 April to 1 November a direct train leaves Gare du Nord at 9:38 and reaches Auvers at 10:24, with a return at 18:30, which makes the village an easy standalone day. Île-de-France transport on this route uses the flat €2.55 single ticket. Mainline SNCF fares to Vernon are dynamic, so no fare is quoted here.

The Paris to Giverny by train page covers the Normandy leg.

So Does the Tour Earn Its Price?

Honest answer: if you only want Giverny, do it yourself for the train fare, the €5 to €10 shuttle and the €13 entry, and you will spend far less than $252.28. The tour earns its money on three things. It chains both villages into one day, which public transport makes awkward since they use different stations and lines.

It includes the Auberge Ravoux entry and handles the tickets and timing for you. And it caps the group at 8, so you are not moving through the gardens with a coach crowd. If you have two spare days, doing each village separately by train is cheaper and calmer, and the 2 day trip from Paris and 3 day trip from Paris pages show how to build that.