Day 4: Chaumont-sur-Loire - Visit Chenonceau Castle - Amboise - Tours
Today we start again the day of this trip to the Loire Valley in 9 days at 6 in the morning, taking the opportunity to work for a while, before getting on our way to visit Chenonceau Castle, when it's 8 in the morning go to the breakfast room of La Source de Bury where David is waiting for us with an impressive breakfast, which gives us strength to start today, where our first point of the day It is the visit to the incredible Chenonceau Castle, one of the essential Loire Castles.
Breakfast at La Source de Bury
The route from Chaumont to Chenonceau Castle It is 44 kilometers that we make through small roads, full of charm and surrounded by vegetation, to reach our destination when it is 10 in the morning.
Route of the day in the Loire Valley
Today's route will take us to visit Chenonceau Castle, the beautiful town of Amboise, to end the day in Tours, where we will stay.
If you are staying in Amboise and want to have a guide in Spanish while visiting one of the most essential castles of the Loire, you can book one of these excursions:
Once in the enclosure of Chenonceau Castle, we leave the car in the parking lot that is right at the entrance and we go directly to the building where the store is and the sale of tickets, to start the visit to the first of the castles of the day, of this route through the Loire Castles, How much we like it.
Recommendations to visit the Chenonceau Castle
The Chenonceau Castle is another one of the most famous castles to see in the Loire Valley and we could even say, one of the most impressive castles in the world. In addition, along with Chambord, they are the two most visited castles in the Loire Valley and one of the visits you cannot miss.
Known as the “Castle of the ladies” Because of the changes that different women made in him, this 16th-century castle, with its simple beautiful gardens facade, is a mandatory stop on any trip to the Loire Valley.
View the Chenonceau Castle
- Right at the entrance, there is ample parking, where you can leave the car for free.
- In front of the parking lot is the building where you can buy tickets for 13 euros per person that include the visit to the castle plus the visit to the gardens. If you want the audio guide you have to pay separately. You can book this ticket in advance to avoid queues.
- It is necessary to pay the entrance to be able to see the castle, since being in an enclosed area, it is impossible to see it outside without paying.
- Visiting hours: every day from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from October to March. From April to September from 9:15 to 18:30.
- If you do not want to queue to buy the ticket you can buy it directly at the vending machines at the door, where exactly the same is paid and also next to it are the paper guides with which you can go following the visit of all the rooms Inside the castle.
- At the entrance they make a small security check, but they let backpacks and even tripods in, only to use outside.
- Being one of the Castles of the Loire Most visited we recommend you come soon and if you want to take photos, visit the gardens first, which is where you have the best perspectives and then the interior.
- The complete visit, interior and gardens, lasts approximately 2: 30h without entertaining you too much.
- It is not allowed to take pictures with flash inside.
The best tours and excursions in the Loire Valley in Spanish
If you prefer to forget about preparations or have little time, you can book the following tours in SPANISH
- Excursion to the Loire Castles
- Normandy and Loire Valley in 3 or 4 days
- 2-day tour of the Loire Castles
Visit inside the Chenonceau Castle
With 19 rooms that can be visited, in addition to the gardens, after our visit, we highlight the following among the different rooms:
Esplanade of the entrance and Torre de los Marques
When the Chenonceau Castle was built, the mill and the fortress were ordered to be demolished, keeping only the tower as a tribute. This, called Torre de los Marques, was remodeled, in the Renaissance style and today is surrounded by the Esplanade, which reproduces the plan of the medieval fortress.
Esplanade of the entrance and Torre de los Marques
Chapel
From the Guard Room you enter the Chapel, through a door that is crowned by a statue of the Virgin.
Chapel of the Chenonceau Castle
Diana de Poitiers's room
They say that this was Diana de Poitiers' favorite room, the favorite of King Henry II, to whom Chenonceau donated. In her they emphasize the chimney of Jean Goujon, the bed with canopy and the two immense tapestries of Flanders of the s. XVI.
Diana de Poitiers's room
Gallery
Leaving Diana de Poitiers' room, the Gallery is reached directly through a small, narrow passage. With 60 meters long and 6 meters wide, it has 18 windows and at the ends, two chimneys. During World War I it served as a hospital when Gaston Menier, the owner of Chenonceau decided that all the rooms of the castle should be occupied as a hospital.
During World War II Cher represented a line of demarcation, which separated the occupied area, the entrance of the castle, from which not, so this gallery served so that the Resistance could pass many people to the free zone.
Chenonceau Castle Gallery
Exterior view of the Chenonceau Castle Gallery
Kitchens
In the lower area of the Chenonceau Castle, on the first two pylons on the bed of the Cher, the kitchens of the castle are located in several rooms. It highlights the dining area, the butcher shop, the pantry and the bridge, which is the area through which the kitchen is accessed.
Chenonceau Castle kitchens
Catalina e Médicis room
One of the most outstanding halls of the Chenonceau Castle is the Catalina de Medici room, with an incredible painted wooden ceiling. The tapestries, the bed and a painting by Le Corrège, on wood, which is to the right of the bed, also stand out.
Catalina e Médicis room
Médicis Gallery
On the first floor we find the Médicis Gallery, which houses an unpublished collection of paintings, tapestries, furniture and various art objects.
Médicis Gallery
Apartment of Luisa de Lorena
Currently under restoration, the Luisa de Lorena Apartment is one of the most curious of the castle. After the murder of her husband, Luisa de Lorena retires to Chenonceau to begin a time of recollection and prayer. Surrounded by very little cut, it was always dressed in white, according to the label of royal mourning, so it was nicknamed, the "White Queen".
Garden of Diana de Poitiers
Extremely beautiful, in addition to collecting some of the best perspectives of the Chenonceau Castle, this garden of two perpendicular and two diagonal paths, which end up delimiting eight large triangles decorated to perfection, are one of the most beautiful gardens in the Loire Valley.
Garden of Diana de Poitiers
Garden of Diana de Poitiers
Garden of Catherine de Medici
This garden, something more intimate than the previous one, reflects refinement and good taste. From this area you also have a unique perspective of the castle.
Garden of Catherine de Medici
Labyrinth
In a clear area of the forest of more than 70 hectares is the labyrinth, made with 2000 yew trees, by order of Catalina de Médicis.
Labyrinth
As we mentioned earlier in the recommendations, we started to visit Chenonceau Castle through its gardens, since when we arrived we saw that several organized groups agreed and we preferred to be able to enjoy the gardens and the perspectives of the castle in the quietest way possible.
Overview of the Chenonceau Castle
It's 12:30 when we finish the visit to the Chenonceau Castle and we are on our way to the next point of the day, Amboise 20 kilometers from Chenonceau and where we arrive in about 30 minutes.
We park very close to the Royal Castle of Amboise, in a free zone and being just over 1, we approach the restaurant L'Epicerie, where we ask for a couple of noon formulas, menus, which include two dishes, dessert and coffee for 16.50 euros per person.
Eating at L'Epicerie
Although it is not one of Amboise's most recommended restaurants, we have to say that we found everything great, so for our part, it is more than recommended.
We left to eat after two in the afternoon, starting now what will be our itinerary through Amboise, this elegant town on the banks of the Loire River in which the famous Leonardo Da Vinci is buried.
What to see in Amboise
The route through Amboise will take us to visit places like Rue Victor Hugo, one of the arteries of the town, the Royal Castle of Amboise, Le Clos Lucé and the viewpoint, as well as a walk through its historic center, full of charm.
Medieval center
Although we had read that in high season the town is quite crowded, in our case the truth is that we have not seen many people, quite the opposite. Although this is something widespread in all the Loire Castles that we are visiting on this route and it is that although we are in the last week of August, it is very good weather, and the forecasts were very touristy, we are visiting most of the places with a lot of tranquility and some even practically alone.
In Amboise, as we mentioned before, one of its great attractions is its medieval center, for which we recommend losing you without a map, only willing to surprise you in every corner.
Amboise
Amboise
Rue Victor Hugo
This is one of the main arteries of Amboise next to Rue Nationale, although the latter is known to house many of the local boutiques. In the first, in addition to shops you will find many of the most recommended restaurants and some terraces and coffee shops perfect to stop along the way and have a drink.
Rue Victor Hugo
Château Royal d'Amboise
With a price of 10 euros per person and a schedule from 9 to 19 in July and August and until 18 the rest of the year, this castle can be seen outside without paying admission.
You will have the best views from the other side of the Loire River, since the distance will allow you to have a much broader perspective, both of the castle and the center of Amboise.
Château Royal d'Amboise
Le Clos Lucé
This was the house in which Leonardo Da Vinci was established in 1516, invited by Francisco I. The ticket has a price of 9.50 euros per person and you can visit several rooms, among which is the room in which He died in the year 1519.
Le Clos Lucé
Amboise viewpoint
We had read that the best views of Amboise were those obtained from the viewpoint on Rue Léonard Perrault. Despite the heat that we have had, more than 35 degrees, we decided to walk, taking advantage of this to get into and walk some of the little streets farthest from the center, which allow us to see that less visited part of Amboise.
Ascent to the Amboise viewpoint
Keep in mind that access to this viewpoint is all uphill, whether you do it through the stairs on Rue Victor Hugo or up through Rue Léonard Perrault, on the way to Le Clos Lucé.
In our experience, the views do not they are so worth it as we expected, so we consider that if you have time, going up to the viewpoint can be the perfect excuse to walk through this area, rather than the viewpoint itself, although if you do not have much time, we believe that it is not worth sacrificing another visit for the views you have of Amboise.
Those obtained from the opposite side of the Loire River are much more recommended, from where you have a complete perspective of the town with the castle on the horizon.
Amboise views from the viewpoint
After this last stop at the viewpoint, we return to the center on Rue Victor Hugo, where we can not avoid making some purchases, including several packages of cookies in one of the many tasting stores, to return to the car when they are more or At least 3:30 in the afternoon, and although we had stayed for some time, the truth is that with this temperature we find it unattractive to continue walking, so we decided to end the visit to Amboise.
Our next stop is Tours, the city where we will stay tonight, at the Vendome Hotel and which is about 30 kilometers or so from Amboise.
We arrive at the hotel when it is almost 4 and after parking in the private parking and checking in we cannot resist a shower and a rest time that we have to say, they feel phenomenal. And it is that hot days like today, are not the most suitable for walking, although we also have to recognize that we prefer rainy days.
More practical information to prepare your trip to the Loire Valley
- The 10 essential Loire Castles
- The best tips for traveling to the Loire Valley
According to what we talked about with the establishment's stave, these 35 degrees are incredible, since they are not usual and therefore, there is practically no hotel or shop with air conditioning, having to throw these days of fans to spend these days .
Seeing that both the temperature and humidity remain as high as at noon, when it is 6 in the afternoon, we decided to make a small change of plans, leaving the visit of Tours for tomorrow morning, which we hope will make a pretty day more pleasant with less temperature, and dedicate this afternoon to approach the center of the city to have a drink and take it in a relaxed plan.
With this idea we go directly to the Plaza de Plumerau, one of the most famous and beautiful in the city, where we have a soda and spend a couple of hours watching life happen, something we really have to say comes very Good on travel and what we enjoy greatly.
Plumereau Square
It's almost 8 in the afternoon when we decide that the time has come to end the day, but not before looking for somewhere to have dinner. After searching online for the different options that we have nearby, we see that in all the restaurants of the center, menus are offered and being the time it is, the truth is that we do not feel like eating so much, so we decided to get away from this area, ending in the pizzeria Le Plazza, where we ordered a pasta dish, plus beef tartare, dessert, water and wine for 41 euros.
Having dinner at Le Plazza
All delicious! If you feel like leaving French and local cuisine for a day, this option is more than recommended by us, since in addition to good food, the service is excellent.
There are a few minutes to 10 at night when we return to the Vendome Hotel, very hot, although willing to rest and regain strength to continue tomorrow with the route through the Loire Castles, especially when our hostess tells us that she has got us a portable air conditioning for the room, with which we practically see an angel.
Day 5: Tours - Visit Villandry Castle - Castle d'Azay-le-Rideau
