You are planning a short stay or a weekend around Paris and you wonder what to do in the Val d'Oise?
Want to go not too far from Paris (- 100 km COVID obliges), desire for nature, escape, to discover pretty little villages, beautiful castles ... So no hesitation: You will find all this in the Val d'Oise all around the Norman Vexin ! It is an ideal destination from Paris to make tourism and take a breath of fresh air in a sublime nature.
Yes, but what to do in the Val d'Oise? where are the most beautiful tourist sites in the Norman Vexin ? How to visit them in 2 days or during a long weekend?
These are the questions I asked myself when I organized my tour for visit the Normand Vexin and take the opportunity to discover Auvers sur Oise et Giverny, places emblematic of 19th century painters.
So I share here with you one of the most beautiful getaways near Paris which you can enjoy in a weekend or for the day. I also publish below theroute of the most interesting tourist circuit with her google map, my opinions on the sites and my Airbnb good deals.
Why the Val d'Oise?
Val-d'Oise is a department of Île-de-France located north of Paris. It is a very attractive territory because it includes two regional natural parks and a very rich tourist and cultural heritage (villages, castles, gardens, museums…), not to mention good restaurants which know how to delight the most demanding gourmets!
You understand : Less than 100 km from Paris, the Val d'Oise has everything to seduce travelers, sportsmen, nature lovers, walkers, history buffs and art and painting enthusiasts ...
How to visit the Val d'Oise?
Given the tourist wealth of the department, when we organize a weekend or a little one tourist circuit in the Val d'Oise, it is better to be organized and plan everything in advance.
That's why I selected for my tour only the most beautiful sites et the closest to each other in order to visit them in 2 days or more for the lucky ones!
What to do in the Val d'Oise - My essentials
According to my tastes and my desire for discovery, here are the tourist sites that I have selected as stages the must-see sites for my circuit in the Val d'Oise :
- Auvers sur Oise
- Gisors
- Castle Boury
- Chateau d'Alincourt
- Magny-en-Vexin
- Domaine d'Ambleville
- Domain of Villarceaux
- Giverny
- La Roche Guyon
- Route des Crêtes
What to do in Val d'Oise - Map Itinerary
Click on "More options" in the map to switch to GPS mode
What to do in Val d'Oise - DAY 1
The first stop of my weekend is at 35 km north of Paris à Auvers sur Oise in the village and in the countryside which inspired so many painters ...
Visit of Auvers sur Oise - Morning
How to get to Auvers sur Oise from Paris
By car or train:
- From Gare du Nord, line H: Join Valmondois then transfer to Auvers sur Oise;
- From St Lazare station, line J: Join Pontoise then change to line H for Auvers sur Oise;
- By RER C: Join Pontoise, then change to line H for Auvers sur Oise;
- By RER A: Direction Cergy le Haut then get off at Cergy-Préfecture + bus n ° 9507.
What to do in Auvers sur Oise?
Auvers sur Oise owes its tourist fame to Vincent Van Gogh who stayed there for 70 days, who died and was buried there.
It is here that he painted some of his most famous canvases such as Cornfield with crows, the hillsides of Cordeville, Maisons in Auvers sur Oise, Rue Callé in Auvers sur Oise, the Portrait of Dr Gachet or The Church. d'Auvers.
But Auvers sur Oise has also been able to inspire many other well-known painters such as Paul Cézanne or Camille Pissarro. To visit Auvers sur Oise, it is therefore to follow in their footsteps and soak up the views that they have been able to sublimate!
Interactive map in the footsteps of the painters of Auvers sur Oise
Here is the interactive map that the site generously shares: https://www.auvers-sur-oise.eu/
Castle of Auvers-sur-Oise
A 10-minute walk from the station, this castle is the essential museum in Auvers sur Oise. It houses a scenic route that transports visitors to the second half of the 19th century at the time of Van Gogh and the Impressionist painters.
in the magnificent formal gardens bordering the Château d'Auvers.
Van Gogh route from Auvers sur Oise
I recommend that you follow a walking tour of around 1h30 in the footsteps of Van Gogh. This is an itinerary to be done on foot in 1 hour and a half which leads to the places painted by Vincent Van Gogh. This tour starts from the church Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption immortalized by Van Gogh the year of his death and passes through the cement quarry where his grave is.
You can also visit the House where the painter stayed: theAuberge Ravoux. His bedroom has been preserved intact and the inn's dining room has also kept the decor of the time ...
Other routes are offered by theSaint-Martin Tourist Office (Aubigny route, Illustres route, Impressionists route, etc.) and even a hike towards Pontoise “the path of the painters” which will take you
leads into the beautiful surrounding countryside.
If, like me, you like circuits in the footsteps of the impressionists, discover my road trip in Normandy which combines classic tourism and cultural tourism.
Gisors stopover for noon
For your lunch, I suggest you make a 45-minute drive to get to Gisors. It is a pretty village dominated by a fortified castle which is worth a detours. After a quick tour of the village, you can enjoy a nice setting on the banks of the Epte river to enjoy your lunch.
It is at the Brasserie of the Town Hall that I recommend you to go. Simple but well prepared dishes, warm welcome and affordable prices!
In the heart of Vexin in the afternoon
After lunch, my circuit takes us in 10 minutes by road to Castle Boury. It is an elegant castle known because it was occupied by Richard Lion's Heart.
8 kilometers further on, you will pass Parnes where is the magnificent Chateau d'Alincourt which a privately owned medieval castle.
5 kilometers later, you will arrive at Magny-en-Vexin in the heart of the Vexin Regional Natural Park.
The bravest will be able to take a "tree climbing" course at the Land Adventure Park which is in the middle of the forest or to go hiking (see hike from Magny en Vexin)
Airbnb Magny en Vexin
To spend the night near Magny en Vexin, I recommend a very nice Airbnb accommodation. This is a small old house from 1620 but well equipped in a quiet location in the small village of Nucourt in the heart of Vexin Normand.
See this Airbnb in the Normandy Vexin
What to do in Val d'Oise - DAY 2
This 2nd day of my weekend in Vexin allows you to discover magnificent estates and castles and to return to the era of the impressionist painters with a visit to Giverny, Claude Monet's house and its magnificent gardens.
On the road to Giverny
On the journey that will take us from Magny en Vexin to Giverny in a 40-minute drive, you will have the opportunity to discover 2 beautiful estates which deserve a few photos:
- Le Domaine d'Ambleville which includes a superb Renaissance castle and beautiful gardens of Italian inspiration organized on three terraces. Listed as an historic monument, the gardens of Ambleville have received the label " remarkable garden »;
- Le Domain of Villarceaux located in Chaussy. At the crossroads of the roads that lead to many Vexin châteaux (fortified castles and resort castles), this area is interesting to visit for:
- The manor
- Ninon's pavilion
- The Saint-Nicolas tower and the medieval terrace
- The parterre on the water
- Ninon's mirror
- The castle says "from the top"
- The farthingale
- The main courtyard
Visit of Giverny
It is very easy to visit Giverny because you just need to follow the signs for cultural trail to make a small circuit where the impressionist views are indicated while discovering the history of the village.
Then, if you have time, you can visit the Impressionism Museum or continue the walk to the Claude Monet's grave.
Finally, I recommend the unmissable visit to Giverny: The famous Claude Monet's house where he lived from 1883 to 1926 and his beautiful gardens which inspired the artist so much and which are always maintained identically as Claude Monet had conceived them.
Route of the Vexin ridges
To enjoy breathtaking panoramas on the meanders of the Seine, the limestone plateaus and the dazzling colors of the Vexin fields, you can take a beautiful hike on the heights of the rocky cliffs.
Located in the heart of Vexin Français Regional Nature Park, the departure is at La Roche Guyon which is classified among the most beautiful villages in France (see below).
Visit of La Roche-Guyon
It is one of the most beautiful villages in the Val d'Oise. La Roche-Guyon is located below the slopes of Vexin plateau on the bank of a meander of the Seine.
This village is renowned for its castle (property of La Rochefoucauld) which leans against a chalk cliff and whose medieval keep has stood the test of time.
Where to sleep in La Roche Guyon
To spend the night in the heart of this charming village, here is a good guesthouse address that you can book with Booking:
See this apartment in La Roche Guyon
Other desires of weekend in France ?
Why not another weekend around Paris,
or head south with my cheap weekend in Marseille
or why not a nice weekend in Occitania !