Must-see attractions in The Loire Valley

  • France, Indre et Loire, Loire Castles, Chenonceau

    Château de Chenonceau

    Touraine

    Spanning the languid Cher River atop a graceful arched bridge, Chenonceau is one of France's most elegant châteaux. It's hard not to be moved and…

  • The royal Chateau de Chambord in the evening, France. This castle is located in the Loire Valley, was built in the 16th century and is one of the most recognizable chateaux in the world.

    Château de Chambord

    The Loire Valley

    If you only have time to visit one château in the Loire, you might as well make it the grandest – and Chambord is the most lavish of them all, and the…

  • Exterior of Villandry Castle with its manicured garden.

    Château de Villandry

    Touraine

    Villandry's six glorious landscaped gardens à la française are some of France's finest, with more than 6 hectares of kitchen gardens, cascading flowers,…

  • Spiral staircase in the Francis I wing, the Royal ChÃ?¢teau de Blois, France; Château Royal de Blois

Shutterstock ID 97979516; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Château Royal de Blois

    Blois

    Seven French kings lived in Blois' royal château, whose four grand wings were built during four distinct periods in French architecture: Gothic (13th…

  • May 11, 2013: Exterior of the chateau at Azay le Rideau in the Loire.
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    Château d’Azay-le-Rideau

    Touraine

    Romantic, moat-ringed Azay-le-Rideau is celebrated for its elegant turrets, perfectly proportioned windows, delicate stonework and steep slate roofs…

  • Panoramic view of the castle, garden and town Langeais, Loire Valley, France.

    Château de Langeais

    Touraine

    The most medieval of the Loire châteaux, Langeais – built in the 1460s – looks much as it did at the tail end of the Middle Ages, with crenellated…

  • Chinon and Royal Fortress of Chinon.

    Forteresse Royale de Chinon

    Touraine

    Surrounded by massive walls, this hilltop castle – offering fabulous views across town, river and countryside – is split into three sections separated by…

  • Chateau Gaillard, Amboise, France.

    Château Gaillard

    Amboise

    The most exciting Loire château to open to visitors in years, Gaillard is the earliest expression of the Italian Renaissance in France. Begun in 1496, the…

  • Chateau du Clos Luce castle, Amboise, France.

    Le Clos Lucé

    Amboise

    It was at the invitation of François I that Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519), aged 64, took up residence in this grand manor house, built in 1471. An admirer…

  • Bourges Cathedral.

    Cathédrale St-Étienne

    The Loire Valley

    Declared a 'masterpiece of Gothic art' by Unesco, Bourges' 118m-long cathedral was built between 1195 and 1324 on the site of earlier churches and Gallo…

  • Cathédrale Sainte-Croix rises up above Rue Jeanne d'Arc in Orléans, France.

    Cathédrale Ste-Croix

    Orléans

    In a country of jaw-dropping churches, Gothic-style Cathédrale Ste-Croix still raises a gasp. Originally built in the 13th century, it underwent tinkering…

  • Chateau Angers.

    Château d’Angers

    Angers

    Looming above the river, this forbidding medieval castle – seat of power of the once-mighty counts of Anjou – is ringed by moats, 2.5m-thick walls and 17…

  • Aerial view of historic center of Loches town overlooking ancient Chateau of Anjou family with collegiate church, royal lodge and donjon.

    Cité Royale de Loches

    Touraine

    Loches’ vast hilltop citadel is the size of a small town – a few lucky people even live here! Inside you can visit the Logis Royal and the Donjon et…

  • Château Royal d’Amboise

    Amboise

    Perched atop a rocky escarpment above town, Amboise's castle was a favoured retreat for all of France's Valois and Bourbon kings. Only a few of the…

  • Musée des Beaux-Arts

    Orléans

    Orléans’ five-level fine-arts museum is a treat, with an excellent collection of Italian, Flemish and Dutch paintings (including works by Correggio,…

  • Musée Balzac

    Touraine

    You don't have to be a French-literature major to enjoy the lovely Musée Balzac, in a Renaissance manor house where Honoré de Balzac (1799–1850) was a…

  • Maison de la Magie

    Blois

    This museum of magic occupies the one-time home of watchmaker, inventor and conjurer Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin (1805–71), after whom the American magician…

  • Oratoire de Germigny-des-Prés

    The Loire Valley

    One of France’s few Carolingian-era churches, this exceptional oratory – sadly, over-restored in the mid-19th century – is renowned for its unusual…

  • Chaumont Castle in Loire Valley France - Panoramic wide view to the entrance and the garden at sunrise with trees, grass under blue sky;,,Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire,,Shutterstock ID 1467775043; your: Bridget Brown; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI Image Update

    Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire

    The Loire Valley

    Set on a strategic bluff with sweeping views along the Loire, Chaumont-sur-Loire is known for three things: the château itself, which has a medieval…

  • View of Cheverny Chateau from apprentice's garden.

    Château de Cheverny

    The Loire Valley

    Perhaps the Loire's most elegantly proportioned château, Cheverny represents the zenith of French classical architecture: a perfect blend of symmetry,…

  • Medieval Donjon Tower of the castle in Loches, France.

    Donjon et Cachots

    Touraine

    At the southern end of the Cité Royale, the rectangular, 36m-high Donjon (Tour Carrée; defensive tower) was Loches’ original medieval stronghold, built…

  •  The Chanteloup pagoda, Amboise, France.

    Pagode de Chanteloup

    Amboise

    Three kilometres south of Amboise, this seven-storey, vaguely Asian 'pagoda' (44m) was built between 1775 and 1778, when blending classical French…

  • ZooParc de Beauval

    The Loire Valley

    One of Europe's most beautiful zoos, the ZooParc de Beauval is home to an incredible 600 species, including France's only giant pandas and their baby,…

  • Château d’Ussé

    Touraine

    The creamy white towers and slate roofs of the Château d’Ussé offer sweeping views across the flat Loire countryside, the flood-prone Indre River and…

  • Domaine National de Chambord

    The Loire Valley

    The 54-sq-km hunting reserve around the Château de Chambord – the largest walled park in Europe – is reserved for the exclusive use of very high-ranking…

  • Old City

    Blois

    Blois’ medieval and Renaissance old town is well worth a stroll. The façade of Maison des Acrobates – one of Blois' few surviving 15th-century houses – is…

  • Cité Médiévale

    Touraine

    François Rabelais (c 1494–1553), whose works include the Gargantua and Pantagruel series, spent part of his childhood in Chinon; you’ll see Rabelais…

  • Château de Sully-sur-Loire

    The Loire Valley

    With its machicolated ramparts (featuring holes for pouring boiling liquid on attackers), soaring round turrets and steeply pitched roof, this fairy-tale…

  • Quartier de la Cité

    Angers

    One of the earliest examples of Angevin (Plantagenet) architecture in France, Gothic Cathédrale St-Maurice is distinguished by its striking Norman portal…

  • Musée Rabelais

    Touraine

    La Devinière, the prosperous farm where François Rabelais (1483 or 1494–1553) – doctor, Franciscan friar, theoretician, author and all-around Renaissance…

  • Cathédrale St-Maurice

    Angers

    Angers' austere, mainly 12th- to 13th-century cathedral has a striking Norman porch and nave (mid-1100s); the latter's three convex vaults, forming a…

  • Château de Montpoupon

    The Loire Valley

    Idyllically situated amid rolling countryside near Céré-la-Ronde, this turreted château, furnished by the family in the late 19th and early 20th centuries…

  • Logis Royal

    Touraine

    At the northern end of the Cité Royale stands the royal residence of Charles VII and his successors, originally built as a medieval fortress but later…

  • Abbaye de St-Benoît-sur-Loire

    The Loire Valley

    Home to about 40 Benedictine monks, this abbey – shut down during the Revolution and reopened in 1944 – is known for its Romanesque basilica, whose 11th…

  • Hôtel Groslot

    Orléans

    The Renaissance-style Hôtel Groslot was built between 1530 and 1550 as a private mansion for lawyer and bailiff Jacques Groslot; it became Orléans’ city…

  • Musée des Beaux-Arts

    Angers

    Has a superior 14th- to 20th-century collection (mainly paintings) that ranges from French masters Ingres, Fragonard and Watteau to the Florentine Lorenzo…

  • Galerie David d’Angers

    Angers

    The Angers-born sculptor Pierre-Jean David (1788–1856), aka David d’Angers, is renowned for his lifelike sculptures, which adorn public monuments such as…

  • Musée d'Histoire et d'Archéologie

    Orléans

    The centrepiece of this history museum, in the Renaissance-style Hôtel Cabu, is an extraordinary collection of Celtic and Gallo-Roman bronzes, recovered…