Choosing chateaus to visit in Loire Valley

Chambord and Chenonceaux

Having been to all 6 chateaux Rick recommends...

Chenonceau and Chambord are must sees in my book. Chenonceau is arguably the most beautiful chateau in the valley and has some amazing gardens to boot. Chambord has a less impressive interior but they’ve done a lot to make it interesting (definitely get the audioguide). Chambord is also the largest chateau in the valley and you should see it just for the sheer spectacle. Definitely go to the roof!

My personal favorite is Azay Le Rideau. It’s a little fairy tale like chateau on a river. There were some interesting medieval fantasy type exhibits within when I visited. Because it’s small, it doesn’t take too long to go through either. Be sure to go up in the attic! The town that abuts it is also cute and good for an afternoon lunch stop. It’s the background of my phone, I loved being there that much.

Cheverny is a lot of fun. It is a bit more modern (modern being like 1700s) but was amazingly decked out for Easter and also had these really cool LEGO exhibits based on Aesop’s fables when we were there. I’m not sure what it looks like on a regular basis but the dogs are fun to see too. There are some nice gardens and decent cafe in the Orangerie as well.

Villandry is wonderful if you love gardens. The castle itself is just ok. Some rooms are nicely done. But my dad and I spent an entire morning walking in the gardens. It was also a much quieter place overall and was very peaceful.

Chamont Sur Loire is another one that had better gardens. The castle itself is mediocre (more so than Villandry) but we were there during the international garden festival. There were some really cool modern gardens and art exhibits scattered throughout the grounds. I actually wish we’d gotten more time there from that perspective and in retrospect, we could have totally skipped the castle for more time in the gardens. The best thing about the castle itself was view of the Loire River.

I’ve heard very good things about Chinon and the. Clos Luce in Amboise. It is is where Da Vinci spent his final years and is a bit different from other chateuax. We simply ran out of time!

So in conclusion... I would still definitely include Chenonceau (get there early!!!!) and Chambord. I’d personally try hard to see Cheverny and Azay Le Rideau. The other two... how much do you like plants? I’m sure there will be some varied opinions here.

Our limit was about two chateaux a day, but you may have the energy for more. With a base in Amboise, I'd suggest Chenonceaux, Chambord, Amboise itself, Blois, and Cheverny. I haven't been to Chaumont but I believe it's nearby.

If you want to take a day to visit those west of Tours I'd suggest Villandry and Azay-le-Rideau. Chinon is very historic but mostly in ruins. It will take awhile to drive over to the other side of Tours and return.

With the time you have I'd limit my visits to those east of Tours, unless some of the western ones really appeal to you. Google some pictures and/or do some guidebook research.

All of the chateaux have wonderful features to recommend them and it's hard to pick favorites but I think my three favorites were Chenonceau, Villandry, and Azay-le-Rideau. In my opinion Chenonceau is the most interesting and unique of the chateaux - absolutely the most beautiful setting spanning the river Cher and the most elegant interior with fantastic art work. Villandry had the most beautiful gardens I have ever seen and in June they will be spectacular, you could spend hours just walking around the gardens and viewing them from the belvedere. Azay-le-Rideau is also in a beautiful setting on an island in the middle of a river and I loved the town of Azay-le-Rideau too. We also toured Blois, Amboise, Clos Luce, Cheverny and Chambord (for some reason that I forget, we weren't able to tour the inside, but the building itself and the lovely grounds are worth seeing in themselves). This was over two separate trips to France - I think I would definitely have been burnt out on chateaux with more than 3 or 4 at a time.

I agree with much of what has been said. Chenonceau is my favorite and it too has beautiful gardens. Chambord is impressive just because it's huge. Villandry has the most beautiful gardens of most anywhere. Clos Luce is so different because of the DaVinci connection. Many inventions on display in the chateau and in the large garden. Chaumont (very close to Amboise) overlooks the Loire River in a pretty setting and has an interesting tie in to Chenonceau. Azay le Rideau was pretty as was the town, it was under some pretty major construction when we were there a couple years ago so that was disappointing.

Chenonceau is the chateau, Chenonceaux is the town... : )

Chenonceau is my all time favorite. Been many times, and spent a whole day there once. My second favorite is Chambord.
But i love all chateaux and they are all worth seeing imo.

Thank you all for the thoughtful and detailed responses listing the chateaus you like and your reasoning. This will definitely help me in making my choices.

I too have been to all of the chateaux mentioned. The nice thing is that you can't go wrong with any of them, but like others here, Chenonceau and Chambord were my favorites.

Logistically, if you’re staying in Amboise you’ll have spare time to pop into Clos Loce and Amboise chateau, they really don’t take much time to see and are kind of meh. Chenonceaux and Villandry were are absolute favorites, and Chenonceaux is easily seen from Amboise. We did Chenonceaux in the morning and Chambord in the afternoon, and I will tell you it made for a long day. It was worth it, but tiring with a lot of driving though towns and what not. Villandry and Azay made for a better, more enjoyable day. Getting to these via the autoroute was super easy, and much less stressful. We didn’t buy any tickets in advance. I don’t know what we missed in savings, but we didn’t wait in any ticket lines either.

We really enjoyed Clos Lucé, a small chateau in Amboise, where Leonardo da Vinci lived. Thought it was great.

Chenonceau is, as others have said, the must-do. No question.

I have to say if you’re staying in Amboise, its chateau is not so bad, and I really like how it’s sited there above the river. Leonardo’s small chateau Clos Lucé would be a special treat this year with everything surrounding the 500th anniversary of his death.

I especially like Villandry for its gardens (have never even bought a ticket for the interior), and I agree that Azay led Rideau is a delight.

Chambord is huge and further off. It could be good if you’re driving from Amboise back to Paris. I’ve always gone and marveled at its size, but have never been in (to my husband’s shock).

Enjoy your visit!

I approached it a little differently. I decided first to visit no more than five chateaux, based on comments that it's easy to get burned out. I then decided I'd either go with chateaux in the east or west so I could use one convenient base, rather than drive long distances or use two bases.

I ended up choosing west and picked sights that would give me some variety. Part of my choice was because Azay was in scaffolding.

I chose (not all chateaux): Fontevraud Abbey, Chinon, gardens only at Villandry, Chenonceau, Amboise and Clos Luce. I came in from Brittany, traded my car for a bicycle in Chinon and rode the rest before taking a train back into Paris. I used Amboise as my base but also spent a night in Chinon.