Days in the Loire Valley

Wwe did three fuull days and two nights on Loire Valley and were able to see alot, are you renting a car?

Yes, we will have a car. We are tentatively planning on staying near Onzain at Domain des Hautes de Loire. I've read that its not great scenic driving ala Tuscany so that its site specific. Any recommendations? Thanks - David

We rented our car in st. Pierre de corps and stopped along the way to our B & B- stopping in Villandry to see the gardens ( beautiful) then onto Chinon and finally to our home base near Chenonceaux. We then spent 3 nights and had 2 more full days to see the sights. We felt the time allotment was just right. We saw the sites as we headed East and then into Germany. We loved our B & B Le Clos de la Chesneraie.

We really enjoyed the area. Have a great trip!

I think , at least from experience, the main attractions of the LV are the Chateaus, some are obvious, you just need to do a little reading to pick your favorites.they are all magnificent, I stayed overnight in Orleans, and was very surprised as to how under rated it is,, if you are nearby, you have to visit,

Ambois is interesting,,RS recomends it, and nearby Chenonceaux is a story book Chateau, you'll never forget.

We stayed 2 nights in Amboise and would go back there in a heartbeat. We arrived in the late afternoon after driving from Normandy, roamed Amboise that afternoon, drove to Chambord along the river the next morning and after a lovely time there, stopped at Cheverny on the way back, in time to see the feeding of the hounds. The next morning we visited Chenonceau early and the crowds were not bad, and then we were off to Provence. While I would love to return to the Loire Valley, I felt it was a good enough time to experience it.

We spent five nights in the Loire Valley and stayed in Vouvray at a B&B and toured four of the Chateau and the towns of Loches which is Medevil,Amboise with Chateau and Learnado's last home and restaurant La Fourchette,excellent family style and Chinon has a Fortress and wine scene.If you like military history there is a great museum in Saumur which covers tanks and other mechanized equipment including a German Tiger tank and many American,British and Russian tanks,worth a visit.
Mike

We spent a week in the Loire and it was a couple of days longer than we needed, though still fun. Given your time frame, I'd suggest four nights (three full days) there, in a central location like Amboise, and two in Paris. This assumes that you'll return to Paris in the future (not on a budget, whoopee!) and spend more time there, but not return to the Loire unless it really knocks your socks off. The chateaux are lovely and interesting but after four or five we were ready for something else.

Thank you all for your advice. Very helpful!