Amboise or Tours ?

I really like Amboise and have stayed there several times.

Amboise is a great, walkable historic town with a chateau of its own, lots of restaurants and a relaxed vibe. I’ve stayed there with a car rental as well. Amboise only has about 13K residents so it’s much easier than Tours to base yourself because you can easily drive out of and back into Amboise. (Tours has 140K residents). Chateau de Chenonceau is about 8 miles from Amboise and the chateaux of Chambord, Cheverny, Blois and Chaumont-sur-Loire all are closer to Amboise than to Tours.

Another vote for Amboise. I spent considerable time in Tours a number of years ago and think it is ace, but Amboise is far more charming and historic seeming.

Look at Veuzain-surLoire ( formerly Onzan), a smaller, well located town. No traffic problems. .

Amboise for sure. I loved staying there!

Thank you all for answering my question about Amboise! I'm looking for a hotel and am wondering about a hotel that comes highly recommended but says 'temporarily closed.' Does anyone have any information on Hotel Le Manoir les Minimes? Thanks!

Ok, please ignore my prior message. I just called Hotel Le Manoir les Minimes and it's under renovation until June or July 2026.

Hi Therese,
We were just in the Loire this past fall and rented in both Loches plus Tours.
The Tours house was a wonderful splurge. We'd be happy to pass along info.
In Amboise, an American ex-pat couple run a B&B that has an annex house for rent as well.
cheers
I am done. The Loire

Many of the hotels in Amboise are closed for rénovation, and will be reopening as "destination" hotels. At the moment there is very little in reasonably priced accommodation in Amboise, and that situation will only get worse.

I like Tours. I've never had a problem getting around, there is a far greater range of good restaurants available and tours itself is well worth exploring

Amboise is a lovely little historic town. We stayed at Chateau De Perreux which is actually just outside Amboise in Nazelles-Negron. As you will have a rental car you can easily visit Amboise in a 10 minute drive. This Chateau was a lovely stay, wish we had stayed longer to enjoy the property. I do see a lot of reviews on TripAdvisor that mirror my positive experience (2024) but also several that seem fairly negative of recent so I'm not sure if anyone has stayed here more recently on the forum that could weigh in on this lodging establishment.

Hello again Therese,
Got your message. Decided to reply here so that everyone may have a looksee at those two or three possible rentals as well.

1) Maison Jeanne d'Arc is the one in Loches. We used Booking.com but I see that one could also book it through Arbitel. The owner lady is very nice and probably will invite you to her nearby home for coffee. The location is both central and excellent. It probably would not take anyone even 5 minutes to stroll to the lovely nearby public jardin with views to the chateau. But we must report the following. That rental has an authentic ancient wooden spiral staircase. We both managed it but those with genuine mobility issues might think twice. The staircase has thick rope grips plus automatic lighting but I'm just sayin...

2) That Tours splurge is available on both Arbitel or as we did, VRBO. Its name is '300 m2 family home with garden and swimming pool, in the center of Tours.' The location is again right beside a substantial public jardin (Prenerbes) and the pool is one of those small lap ones. The fantastic living room is right out of Taschen or Architectural Digest. The owner couple were great to deal with: it is their actual home. I will describe these places in greater detail when we finally post our traditional TR.
3) I am embarrassed to say that the Amboise B+B run by nice American ex-pats info has somehow been misplaced, very unlike me to have lost track of that. I recall that it was in the western part of Amboise. I made a promise to the owner lady to give her property a shoutout after our negotiations ran their course (a greenhouse reno to create a laundry facility was not yet complete).

Gotta go, we're off to snowbird in Antibes for first time.

I am done. The end.

Thanks to each of you for your comments and ideas. Thanks, @gregglamarsh for responding with details about the places you've stayed.

Happy travels to all!

Therese, it just occurred to me to further comment on the foodic situation. For us, it was no contest: Tours would be the better choice for self-caterers.
Not only is Tours' permanent indoor Les Halles a very good place to shop, but the twice-weekly Farmers market right beside it serves as a welcome bonus. That Les Halles has not one, but two VG Italian delis in addition to all the regular suspects. It also has a pair of highly-respected wine shops. Wise travelers seek out the kitty corner to Les Halles, cos there one finds the slick-and-modern pastry shop called Nicolas Leger (recco'd by our landlords). Their Paris Brest pastry is worth crossing an ocean for.

Further bits:
Those in search of vitamin C (by that I mean chocolate) could visit Le Chocolatiere, a more old-school shop west of that Place Plum/Les Halles area. Satisfaction guaranteed, great quality and variety--their cakes are legendary.

Et finalement, je propose: early breakfast at Le Vieux Murier, the cafe with perhaps the best views at Place Plumereau.
Bliss.
Bonus bits:
If you stroll Park Prenerbes, maybe check out the adjacent 'Petit Marche', a smallish health food cafe with outstanding sandwiches and much more.
Le Salon Bleu was for us, the most chilled-and-authentic local cafe away from tourist hordes. It was sympa and unpretentious, perfect for meeting locals or just sipping a glass of Vouvray.

I am done. The end (as if---editors).

I,too, suggest Tours. Maybe because I went to school there during both my bachelors and MA, but is is a perfectly located city that the locals call it a city "À la taille humaine" meaning that it has big-city amenities but it's also quaint.

I recently stayed at the historic Oceania Hotel which was a great location that offers parking. We took chateau tours via car from there for a few days and it was the perfect hone base.

Absolutely Amboise - such a beautiful town with lots to see and do and a fabulous market along the river (check which morning - I think it was Saturday). We particularly loved the walk out to the Leonardo Da Vinci Museum and the Museum and its gardens... really recommend it. We stayed in an airbnb and cooked for ourselves a lot. Parking in the public carpark nearby was easy.