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Châteaux of the Loire Valley
intro :01
Chenonceau 1:08
Amboise 5:00
Chambord 8:54
Cheverny 14:15
Azay 16:12
Chinon 18:29
Blois 22:11
Tours 27:17
Loire
The world's most famous collection of palaces is in the Loire Valley outside of Paris in France. It is a UNESCO World Heritage area and it has dozens of beautiful mansions that you can explore. We will bring you to the very best with some tips for your visit.
Chenonceau 1:08
Chenonceau is the most-visited château of the Loire Valley, France, and is the only one built across a river.
Chenanceau is most famous for its setting across the river. It’s as if the building formed a sort of island or ship moored in the rapidly running Cher River, which joins with the Loire River a few miles away. Our series about the châteaux of the Loire is also bringing you to Amboise, Chambord, Cheverny, Azay and Blois and a few other places, with our home base in the city of Tours.
Amboise 5:00
Amboise, in the Loire Valley, France, has two châteaux and a charming old town with souvenir shops and some excellent restaurants in a pedestrian.
Visit both the big castle and Clos Lucé, most famous as the final home of Leonardo da Vinci. You actually get to walk through Leonardo’s bedroom and his study, you can see the desk that he sat at - it’s really quite inspiring. Leonardo was already over 60 years old when he left Italy in 1516 to relocate to the château where he was supported in fine style by the king of France.
Amboise is famous for the grand château that was once the home of the French royal court. Francis the First was succeeded by his son Henry II who was succeeded by his son Francis the second, and he brought his young bride Mary Stuart, the Queen of the Scots, to the château.
Chambord 8:54
Chambord is the finest of all the châteaux in the Loire, France, and the largest.
The château to end all châteaux, a masterpiece, perhaps the greatest architectural triumph the French Renaissance ever created.
This is a dream place to visit, 156 meters long, 117 wide and 56 meters tall with 426 rooms, 77 staircases, 282 fireplaces, more than 800 sculpted columns and with massive towers at each corner. It's second in size only to the Château of Versailles, making this one of the great national monuments of the country.
The first thing you'll see inside is one of the main architectural highlights, a spectacular double spiral staircase - it's the centerpiece of the château. It forms a double helix with two intertwined flights of steps ascending three floors, without ever meeting.
Cheverny 14:15
Château Cheverny is another top tourist attraction of the Loire, renowned for magnificent interiors and its dog kennels.
In the past the château was a homelike and peaceful abode for many centuries, protected from the world beyond.
Amazingly, the château owners are descendants of the same family who originally built it in the early 17th century.
One hundred dogs live at Cheverny, so be sure to have a look at them. They can be seen all day during your visit.
Azay-le-Rideau 16:12
We’re at the Château of Azay-le-Rideau, which is one of the beautiful châteaux of the Loire Valley. There are half a dozen major castles that you want to be sure to get a look at, and certainly Azay is one of those. The setting is spectacular - the gardens around it are beautiful and there's a moat formed by a small river that surrounds most of the château, so when you visit here you want to be sure not only to see the interior but to walk around, all around the outside.
Chinon 18:29
Driving through the main shopping lane of the historic town of Chinon, in the Loire, France, gives us a quick preview of the lanes in which we'll soon be taking a little walk. It's primarily a pedestrian zone but our tour van has permission to bring us in here and then drop us off - very convenient for us
Blois 22:11
The French city of Blois in the Loire Valley has one of the largest and most interesting of the châteaux of the Loire Valley, built up in a variety of architectural styles over its 700 year period. It was home to many of the kings and queens of France. And there is also a very friendly pedestrian center to the town.
Because so many powerful kings lived here and were associated with the château, it was built up over the centuries in a variety of architectural styles. This one building exhibits the medieval and the Renaissance and then the French classic style later of François Mansart.
Tours 27:17
You’ll find the city of Tours is a very good home base for staying a few days, and from here you can easily explore the Loire Valley, and visit the many illustrious Château that are in the region. Most of the major attractions are within 30 to 40 minutes away from Tours - it's very convenient either by train or by private Tours company.