The Hall of Mirrors is a gallery 73 metres long inside the Palace of Versailles. Its 357 mirrors face 17 windows onto the Gardens. The Hall is on your Palace route, and the Passport costs €25 today.
Updated Hours and prices Palace of Versailles: the Hall of Mirrors and Palace of Versailles: practical information, read ; tour prices read
The Hall of Mirrors is upstairs in the Palace of Versailles, between the King's Apartments and the Queen's Apartments.
The gallery
The Hall of Mirrors is the gallery that links the King's Apartments to the Queen's Apartments. The gallery is 73 metres long. You see 17 windows onto the Gardens and 17 mirrored arches facing them. See how big the Palace of Versailles is.
The 17 mirrored arches hold 357 mirrors. The mirrors showed that the new French manufacture could rival Venice, which held a monopoly on mirror making.
The Hall replaced a terrace. Louis Le Vau had designed a large terrace that opened onto the garden. His successor Jules Hardouin-Mansart drew the gallery that took its place, and work began in 1678.
Look up for the ceiling by Charles Le Brun. The ceiling holds 30 painted compositions. The scenes cover 18 years of Louis XIV's reign, from 1661 to the peace treaties of Nijmegen. Above the centre of the Hall is the painting titled The King governs by himself.
From the centre of the gallery you can look through the windows down the Grande Perspective. André Le Nôtre laid out this long axis of the Gardens.
History
At the time of the Court the Hall was a passage. Courtiers and visitors crossed it every day, and it served as a place to wait and to meet. Ceremonies were rare: balls or games for royal weddings, and diplomatic receptions.
Ambassadors crossed the full length of the gallery to reach the king. The Doge of Genoa did so in 1685, the ambassadors of Siam in 1686, of Persia in 1715 and of the Ottoman Empire in 1742.
The German Empire was proclaimed in the Hall of Mirrors on 18 January 1871. The Treaty of Versailles was signed there on 28 June 1919.
The signing of 1919 lasted 50 minutes. It brought together 27 delegations representing 32 powers. The desk stood under the painting of the king at the centre of the Hall. Presidents of the Republic still receive official guests there.
On the route
You can visit the Hall of Mirrors without a guide. Book a time slot for the Palace. The Palace's own route takes 90 minutes, including the Hall.
If you arrive on RER C, use Versailles Château Rive Gauche station. Your walk from the station to the Palace takes 10 minutes. Independent visitors enter the Palace through Entrance A.
Follow the route to the first floor, where the King's Apartments begin. At the end of the King's Apartments comes the War Room, at the corner of the Palace. The Hall opens from the War Room. The Peace Room closes the Hall at its south end, next to the Queen's Apartment.
The Palace advises the 9:00 opening or the afternoon after 15:00. That advice covers the Palace as a whole. Tuesdays and weekends in high season are the crowded days.
You can take photos of the Hall without flash. Selfie sticks are not allowed. Lifts serve every level of the Palace that is open to visitors.
The lighting plan for summer 2025 calls for fewer chandeliers. The plan centres on 24 torches recreated in 1980, alongside some chandeliers. Compare older photos with the lighting you see during your visit.
What to do: Book your 9:00 slot if you want to visit the Gardens afterwards. If you prefer the morning outdoors, book a Palace slot after 15:00.
The ticket
| Ticket | Adult price |
|---|---|
| Free admissionVisitors under 18 and EU residents under 26; a free time slot is still booked | Free |
| Passport, low season2 November to 31 March; €22 for EEA residents and nationals | |
| Passport, high season1 April to 1 November; €32 for EEA residents and nationals |
Official adult prices, read
The Hall of Mirrors is part of the Palace visit. You book a Passport and a Palace time slot. The Passport costs €25 today, or €22 for residents and nationals of the European Economic Area.
If you are under 18, you enter free. EU residents under 26 also qualify. You still book a time slot. The tickets page lists every rate.
Opening times
The Palace9:00 to 17:30. Tuesday to Sunday, closed on Mondays, last admission 16:45
Low season, 2 November to 31 March. open, you can enter open, last admission has passed
The Hall of Mirrors keeps the hours of the Palace. The Palace opens at 9:00 from Tuesday to Sunday. It closes at 17:30 in low season and at 18:30 in high season.
Last admission to the Palace is at 16:45 in low season and at 17:45 in high season. The Palace is closed on Mondays and on 1 January, 1 May and 25 December.
The Hall of Mirrors is inside the Palace of Versailles, 16 km from Paris. The Hall is on the first floor, at the end of the King's Apartments, with windows onto the Gardens. You reach it on the Palace route, after the War Room.
The Hall of Mirrors takes its name from the mirrored arches facing its windows. The mirrors were made in France. They showed that French makers could rival Venice's monopoly on mirror making. The windows look onto the Gardens. You can see the gallery as part of your Palace visit.
The German Empire was proclaimed in the Hall of Mirrors on 18 January 1871. The Treaty of Versailles was signed there on 28 June 1919, in a session of 50 minutes. You can see the painting above the signing place at the centre of the Hall.
The Hall of Mirrors was a place for court life and diplomacy. Courtiers crossed the gallery daily. Ambassadors walked its length to meet the king. The German Empire was later proclaimed here. The Treaty of Versailles was signed here too. Charles Le Brun's ceiling paintings show scenes from Louis XIV's reign.
Yes. You can visit the Hall of Mirrors with a Passport and a booked Palace time slot. The Passport costs €25 today, or €22 for EEA residents and nationals. You can follow the route at your own pace. Use the free Palace app if you want audio commentary.
Work on the Hall of Mirrors began in 1678. Jules Hardouin-Mansart designed the gallery to replace a terrace by Louis Le Vau. Charles Le Brun painted the ceiling with scenes from 18 years of Louis XIV's reign, starting in 1661. Read about who built the Palace of Versailles.
With a guide
Each tour below includes the Hall of Mirrors on its Palace route. The Passport alone costs €25 today. You can also visit without a guide.
What to do: Choose a tour if you want a guide to explain the Palace rooms. If you prefer your own pace, visit with a Passport and the free Palace app.
Palace rooms with reserved entry
Compared option: English Guided Tour
The State Apartments and Hall of Mirrors fill this 1 hour 30 minutes Palace visit. Your group has up to 27 people. It suits a day focused on the rooms.
from €70 per adult
See the tourPalace guide then independent exploring
Compared option: English Guided Tour
Your guide covers the State Apartments and Hall of Mirrors in 1 hour 30 minutes, with up to 27 people. The gardens and Trianon are self-guided. This fits a day with time to explore after the Palace.
from €75 per adult
See the tourPrivate guide with golf cart
Your private guide starts in the Gardens by golf cart. The 3 hours tour also goes inside the Palace and Hall of Mirrors. Choose this if you want a private visit with less garden walking.
from €350 per adult
See the tourPrices in euros per adult, read : the usual lowest price of each option, without short sales. The booking page shows the price for your date. We add no fee.
Nearby
The rooms on the route and the time slot
Fountains, groves and the days with free entry
Every Passport rate and where to book the time slot
