A week in Loire Valley in Sept.

No help on the house/kitchen as we stayed at Hotel Le Manior Les Minimes in Amboise….loved it and its location but will put in a good word for Amboise and using it as a base for the Loire Valley….thought it was great and loved relaxing there every night. We rented a car and visited Villandry, Chenonceau, Chambord from that area.

I have stayed at La Porte Bleue in Amboise and loved it! https://www.laportebleueamboise.fr/la-porte-bleue/
It's a beautiful little cottage right on the Loire River with a magnificent view of the chateau. Easy walk to the train station and across the bridge to the town of Amboise.

Booked out unfortunately....

Villa Concorde in Amboise haș lovely little apartments right in the heart of Amboise. Karine, the host, was fantastic. We booked through Airbnb but you can also book directly with her. It's listed in the RS book as well. No parking included, but probably by September would be easy to find parking nearby. Would highly recommend if she has availability.

If you're interested in the more western side of the Loire region, I can highly recommend Hotel Biencourt in Azay-le-Rideau. It used to be a girls' school, very charming as is the entire village. The innkeepers are the nicest people you'd ever want to meet. Great breakfast buffet.

I respect the idea of having a single home for the week, and in that regard both Amboise and Azay fit the bill. They are both convenient to château nearby, as well as the autoroute so you can access the chateau both east and west of Tours. I stayed in Amboise and it was a very good place to stay: lots of restaurants, markets, a killer patisserie and some sights in its own right.

However, with a full week at your disposal I would consider splitting your time between a town further east and further west as a home base. If everything is a day trip from a single location, you’re going to quickly find yourself in the car a lot. I think it would make sense to cut down on some of that daily driving if possible.

Will check them out - thanks. We are starting to practice staying longer in places after years of one-nighters. Something about getting to know the area for shopping,neighbours, etc. and not repacking and moving too often - often wastes half a day.

We just toured the Loire and spent a night in Amboise. Of the many towns we popped in/out of, this was a wonderful town with equally impressive castle. Simple walk or bike across the bridge to river (flat) paths. Easy to navigate from 'outskirts'. Would highly recommend this location.

We are having the same question about which village/town is best for us to stay. We are going for one month and want to rent a small house. Currently debating between one that's IN-town (Chinon) and one that's more rural, outside of Tours. Any thoughts from anyone??

Found nice apts. in both Chinon and Amboise with cooking and fair price and will split our time between them which looks like a good way to enjoy the delights of this area.......thanks for the help.