The Loire Valley Tours

The Loire Valley, less than an hour away from Paris via the TGV express train and about 2 hours by road, is a perfect destination for a France vacation. It stretches for around 280 kilometres/170 miles along the River Loire, roughly east to west. It has been described as “The Garden of France” due to the many vineyards and fruit orchards found along the river banks.  It is also home to a large number of magnificent and grand chateaux which are a combination of a castle and a stately home. There are around 300 chateaux built during the period from the 10th Century to the 16th Century for French royalty and nobility. Some of the best known is the Chateau de Chenonceaux near Tours with its beautiful formal gardens, the Chateau de Chambord near Blois with 400 rooms, the Chateau Villandry in the town of the same name with its 6 wonderful landscaped gardens, the Chateau d’Amboise in the town of Amboise and where Leonardo da Vinci stayed for some considerable time and the Chateau d’Azay-le-Rideau near the town of the same name with its excellent collection of Flemish tapestries. 

Tours is the largest city in the Loire Valley and are famous for its medieval district called le Vieux Tour with its preserved half-timbered buildings, its cathedral with its interesting stained-glass windows, and its many bridges crossing the River Loire and the former home of Joan of Arc. Blois, with its medieval architecture, is a very attractive town. It also has an excellent fine arts museum and a 17th Century cathedral. Saumur is a historic town with a weekly Saturday market with hundreds of stalls. Angers has a chateau housing the largest medieval collection of tapestries in the world.