Older couple has 2 weeks in Mesland - Loir et Cher, central France, 2nd half of August.
Interested in recommendations on
walks, light hiking (6 miles round trip)
day tours of vineyards and wine tasting experiences
local farmers' markets
Not keen on places or activities for families with kids.
Thanks in advance! If you need to know more to respond, pls LMK.
Hello. Where in the Loire Valley? The most touristy part is 350 km long, and there are hikes all over, from Sancerre in the east to Savennières in the west, passing through Amboise, Bourgueil, Chinon, Saumur, etc.
Have you checked any guidebooks for recs? RS gives some good suggestions. You may wish to narrow down some details. Are you renting a car? Central France covers a huge area (e.g. Burgundy, the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes, anywhere south of Paris up to Provence, besides the Loire Valley) , or do you only mean the Loire Valley for the full two weeks? Answers on this forum are all from real people, not any AI responses, so appreciate more than an abbreviated list that works for a Google search.
You can also enter "Loire Valley hikes" or "Loire Valley vineyards", etc in the search bar, then filter for forum, then one year or less. You can find lots of info there from which to structure and plan your trip.
Hi Judy
Thanks for your reply. We have a car and have booked a house in Mesland for the 2 weeks. Here is a map link
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Cj618XQbbTGxS9su7. We hope to limit daily driving to about 3 hours total....so that may give you an idea of how far we can travel from Mesland
Good suggestions - I will use the search bar
Thanks
Carol
cabraddick,
I see that Mesland is only about 30-35 minutes to Tours. Tours is a city well worth exploring itself, and is in the center of the popular chateaux to visit. You will find proponents of each of the chateaux, but Chenonceau is by far the most recommended, and for good reason. If you could only see one chateau, it must be Chenonceau. IMO, others to see are Azay-le-Rideau and Chambord, for different reasons. A forum search will give you lots of valuable opinions, as some chateaux have magnificent gardens, others have excellent locations, etc. When last there, we went to Chenonceau in the morning (easy to wander for 2 hours, part of which is relaxing in the garden). We picnicked in a grassy area near the parking lot (picnic tables there), and then drove to Chambord to see the chateau there. IMO I would do two, or no more than three chateaux per day. Some are small and don't need as much time as the two I last visited. I would intersperse chateaux-visiting days with other activities so as not to have chateaux overload.
The tourist bureau in Tours or in other towns and cities of the area should have lists of vineyards to visit. Caveat...French wineries aren't usually drive-up, as in the US. Most require reservations and may have limited days and hours. Often it is best to go with a tour company/group. This way you can indulge in some tasting. French blood alcohol limits for driving are much stricter than in the US and it's not worth a citation. Of course, if you taste and spit, that is a good option too.
Mushroom caves are another place for a visit. I know there is one near Saumur, but there are others in the area, and will be a unique experience. Troglodyte caves and recreations of them would be another interesting activity. I don't hike so have no recs there, but hiking and cycling are popular in the area, so perhaps others will give you ideas.
Best of luck on your trip. Enjoy!
One other suggestions....We always get a Michelin paper map of an area to see the overall picture before our trip and to plot out our drives. Michelin #318 or #517 cover your area, if you are interested. I find them online at Amazon, but there are other sources. The website viamichelin.com is helpful in planning drives also. Enter the start and the finish and get suggestions for (sometimes) more than one route (e.g. fastest, most scenic, toll avoidance, etc.) and the drive times as well. (I do add some time to theirs because they don't factor in gas/food/comfort stops. But your drives will probably all be short ones, so that won't apply.) You may have other sources for planning, but we have driven all over France and have been happy with our method (as two older people, currently 82 and 83). I trace all our drives on the paper map and keep it as a souvenir of that trip, an aide-memoire, if you will.
Amusez-vous bien!
Re wineries, Judy has good comments, especially about the need to reserve in advance.
You may wish to look at Vouvray. Just 5 to 10 miles east of Tours, on the north side of the Loire (with an “e”; there is also the Loir, a smaller river a little to the north from Tours, a tributary to the Loire). Typically, Chenin Blanc grapes. dry and off dry wines, unlike many sweeter US Chenin Blancs.
Take a look at https://www.ruedesvignerons.com/en/appellations/vouvray
And
There are other wines - including reds - elsewhere in the Loire Valley.
Rick Steves’ guidebook for France and this website has a lot more on larger and more famous chateaux in the region. See https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/france/loire
We spent a week biking from Blois to Saumur in 2023 and came across markets in the late mornings in several towns along the way, incl. a nice market in Vernou-sur-Brenne (near Vouvray). If you are up for cycling, instead of hiking, you can bike to chateaux in the region.
Hi Cabra,
You will be in a great location. Below is our related TR from this past fall, the title of which is 'Douceur'. It is both loooooooooong and photo-dense but contains some useful info for those who may be Loire-bound. Over on Fodors, I go by the alter-ego 'zebec'.
Good Luck!
I am done. The end.
https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/douceur-a-loire-valley-tr-1735303/
