A cathedral-scale jewel box: the multicolored stained glass tapestry of the Sainte-Chapelle. Photo © Art Journey Paris.
Be in awe inside the Sainte-Chapelle
The Sainte-Chapelle is neither a chapel, nor a church, nor a cathedral. It is a genuine piece of jewelry on the scale of a cathedral.
In the 1240s, the Crown of Thorns was considered more precious than all the gold in the world. Rather than being placed inside a small jeweled box shaped like a chapel, the jewel box was enlarged to the size of a building.
The result is almost entirely made of stained glass windows, a reference to Heavenly Jerusalem, the city the Bible describes as pure gold, clear as glass, and radiant with a dozen different precious stones.
And it was no 'Gothic' work either: the Goth barbarians were long gone. The architect who conceived such a gigantic box of light was certainly no barbarian.
Like Notre-Dame's master builder, he reinforced the stone skeleton with iron beams and chains, pioneering a new architecture that opened walls, turning them into multicolored stained glass windows.
In the Middle Ages, a visitor to the Sainte-Chapelle wrote that it possessed "such degree of beauty that entering it one feels like being taken to heaven and imagines being introduced into one of Paradise's most beautiful rooms".
Climb the narrow stairs with our private tour, step into that multicolored light, and find out whether this is true.
Notre-Dame private visit: a conversation, not a lecture
December 2024, the reopening of Notre-Dame cathedral. Photo © Art Journey Paris.
Which is precisely why, regretfully, we are ending our private guided tours inside Notre-Dame.
Notre-Dame de Paris receives eleven million visitors a year. Its administration first answered that pressure with an inadequate reservation system.
Then, from July 1, 2026, it made tour reservations compulsory even for a single visitor, who must also wear an audio headset throughout.
Asking for a reservation is understandable. Imposing a headset on a single visitor is not. We make every visit a conversation, never a shouted lecture, and a headset is the precise opposite of what an unhurried, art historian-led visit requires.
Overtourism is a real problem; this is not the answer to it. So rather than hand you a headset and call it a quality private tour, we would rather step away.
This is an opportunity in disguise. Instead of being overwhelmed by crowds, be overwhelmed by cathedrals that have almost none.
We now offer private tours of the great cathedrals and medieval monuments, most only 40 minutes to one hour away from Notre-Dame.
Twice as big as Notre-Dame, one twentieth of the crowds
An exclusive architectural alignment drawn to scale: Notre-Dame de Paris set beside Amiens. In interior space Amiens is twice the size. Illustration © Art Journey Paris.
Notre-Dame de Paris would fit tightly inside Amiens' cathedral... Its interior is twice the size of Notre-Dame, as Amiens' cathedral is the largest cathedral in France, a country of more than 80 cathedrals.
Reims and Chartres are only an hour from Paris, and Amiens is less than two. Any of them makes a full day private tour, beginning with the Sainte-Chapelle before heading out of the city.
Imagine being almost alone in a cathedral as beautiful as Notre-Dame. No crowds, no reservation, just wonder.
The royal necropolis of French Kings, only 40 minutes from Notre-Dame
The basilica of Saint-Denis, birthplace of the 'Gothic' new medieval architecture of light. Photo © Art Journey Paris.
Saint-Denis Basilica is arguably more important than Notre-Dame, as the resting place of 40 kings of France. It is also the model for all 'Gothic' medieval cathedrals, where the new style of architecture made of stained glass and light was born. It also is nearly 90% of the size of Notre-Dame.
So much history makes it one of the world's most important monuments, yet it receives a tenth of the visitors. How? Find out, only about 40 minutes away, with a private tour of Saint-Denis basilica.
Vincennes: A royal castle, dungeon, and Sainte-Chapelle, 30 minutes away
The donjon of the royal castle of Vincennes, only 30 minutes from Notre-Dame cathedral and the Sainte-Chapelle. Photo © Art Journey Paris.
Just as the Goths never built these beautiful cathedrals, a dungeon is not a dark, underground cell. The French donjon, the root of the English word, is its opposite: a keep, the tallest, safest, and most prestigious part of a castle.
Vincennes, only 30 minutes from Notre-Dame, is the largest and best-preserved royal keep in France, the heart of a castle that almost no visitor gets to see. And it has its own Sainte-Chapelle!
These marvels are but a small list of possibilities to visit instead of an overcrowded Notre-Dame de Paris.
Sainte-Chapelle private tours “à la Carte” medieval Itineraries
Please see different solutions for private tours, either half-day, in or near Paris, or full-day, to visit cathedrals easily accessible from Paris. Do not hesitate to enquire about bespoke, multi-day journeys, curated entirely for you.
Half-Day Paris medieval private tour
Sainte-Chapelle + Musée Cluny
Visit the Sainte-Chapelle with reserved priority entry, the Conciergerie, and an introduction to the wonders of the Musée Cluny, the Middle Ages Museum.
Or we can instead visit Vincennes castle, its dungeon and Sainte-Chapelle.
1 to 2 people - 480 € plus skip-the-line fee
3 to 5 people - 720 € plus skip-the-line fee
Family (two adults, up to 3 children) - 480 € plus skip-the-line fee
The professional reservation fee to skip-the-line at the Sainte-Chapelle is 180 €, and includes visitor tickets.
Sainte-Chapelle + Saint-Denis Basilica
The Sainte-Chapelle combined with the Saint-Denis basilica, about 40 minutes from central Paris.
Wonder at two unique medieval monuments, and be in awe inside the necropolis of French Kings and birthplace of 'Gothic' architecture.
1 to 2 people - 550 € plus skip-the-line fee
3 to 5 people - 800 € plus skip-the-line fee
Family (two adults, up to 3 children) - 550 € plus skip-the-line fee
The professional reservation fee to skip-the-line at the Sainte-Chapelle is 180 €, and includes visitor tickets.
Full-Day medieval private tour
Sainte-Chapelle + Chartres or Reims cathedral
Reims cathedral saw the coronation of most Kings of France. Its architecture is arguably the most elegant of all medieval cathedrals, and can be accessed by high-speed train in less than an hour.
Chartres cathedral is not only one of the best preserved French cathedrals. Its stained glass windows are nearly intact, and standing inside Chartres amidst the famous 'Chartres blue' on a sunny day is truly the experience of a lifetime.
1 to 2 people - 850 € plus skip-the-line fee
3 to 5 people - 1200 € plus skip-the-line fee
Family (two adults, up to 3 children) - 850 € plus skip-the-line fee
The professional reservation fee to skip-the-line at the Sainte-Chapelle is 180 €, and includes visitor tickets. Transport by train or with a chauffeur extra.
Sainte-Chapelle + Notre-Dame of Amiens cathedral
Amiens' cathedral, like several French cathedrals, is called Notre-Dame. It is difficult to comprehend how a cathedral that is twice as large as Paris' cathedral only gets one-twentieth of the number of visitors.
By train, Amiens is less than two hours from Paris, so you can visit the Sainte-Chapelle first thing in the morning, then arrive in Amiens for lunch before an afternoon of wonder, nearly alone, in France's largest cathedral.
1 to 2 people - 850 € plus skip-the-line fee
3 to 5 people - 1200 € plus skip-the-line fee
Family (two adults, up to 3 children) - 850 € plus skip-the-line fee
The professional reservation fee to skip-the-line at the Sainte-Chapelle is 180 €, and includes visitor tickets. Transport by train or with a chauffeur extra.
Contact
To inquire about a private tour of the Sainte-Chapelle and choose a half-day or full-day theme with an officially certified guide-lecturer, please mention the date of the visit as well as the number of participants, using the form below, thank you.
More Information About A Sainte Chapelle & Notre Dame private tour
Can I still visit inside Notre-Dame?
Yes. The cathedral is open, and its entrance is free. What we no longer offer is a guided visit inside, because the new rules require a headset for private visits, even for one visitor, which is the opposite of the unhurried conversation our tours are built on.
You can, and should, certainly step inside the marvelous Notre-Dame cathedral, alone. The difference is that you will not have an art historian beside you to help you understand the architecture, the history, answer your questions, and appreciate why Notre-Dame is magnificent.
Why is there a separate skip-the-line fee at the Sainte-Chapelle?
The Sainte-Chapelle is visited with a reserved entry time, which lets us skip the line. For a certified professional guide, that reservation now costs 180 €, including the visitor tickets. We pass it on exactly as it is, with no markup. It is listed separately from the guiding fee so you can see precisely what you are paying for. Please note that it is not refundable.
How do we travel to the day-tour cathedrals?
For Saint-Denis Basilica and Vincennes, by taxi or metro. For Chartres and Amiens, by regular train or with a chauffeur. For Reims, by TGV, the high-speed train, needing only 45 minutes. Transport is always extra. The ideal itinerary would be to visit the Sainte-Chapelle first thing in the morning, at 9 am, and then visit other sites, in or outside Paris.
The Conciergerie. Photo © Art Journey Paris.
The Conciergerie
The Sainte Chapelle, as Royal Chapel, was part of the Conciergerie, the King's palace in Paris. On the same location of the center of power since the days of the Roman Empire, the Conciergerie was the main Royal residence in Paris, before the Kings moved to the nearby Louvre castle.
The Conciergerie then became an infamous prison, where Queen Marie Antoinette was held and judged.
