Loire Valley

Tours is the only choice if you're relying on public transport - anywhere else and you will be traveling through Tours to get to where you going on most most days.

If you're driving then anywhere between Tours and Amboise places you centrally, but Tours will give you more options for accommodation and restaurants, Amboise is a small town with very few non-touristic restaurants, whereas Tours has over a hundred restaurants which you will be able to walk to/from

It depends what you want to see. I would read about the castles and decide which most appeals and then place yourself central to those. Tours is central, but relatively big. We enjoyed Amboise.

If you don´t have a car, Tours is the choice. Stay specifically in the charming area known as Old Tours. Place Plumereau is the center of Old Tours and has restaurants, cafés museums, and nearby hotels. The Office de Tourisme, from where many tours depart, is but a short walk away as is the train station Tours Centre.

We had a car but we really liked Amboise. This hotel was amazing!

http://www.manoirlesminimes.com/en/

Yes, not having a car in the Loire Valley does limit your choices.

If you only have "a couple of days" you will be able to visit no more than 4 or 5 of the chateaux, if that. Are there certain ones you are most keen to see? How spread out are they? If they are centered in the area around Amboise, then Amboise would make a good base. If you want to see more to the west, then Tours (in the old city, as recommended by a previous comment).

To get to the chateaux you'll either need to rent a car or else sign up for bus/van day tours. There are many available.

You will want a car here, can’t imagine trying to do this via public transportation. I felt Amboise was a good base. You’re very close to Chenonceaux, Chambourd is a bit far. There’s some other chateau in Amboise and around that aren’t so intense. Villandry and Azay-le-Rideau are easy to reach via the autoroute.

Tours has its advantages I’m sure, but you’d also be navigating your way in and out of a big city everyday. I prefer staying in a smaller, more relaxing small town. Days touring the chateau can be tiring, it’s nice to decompress in a quiet town at the end.

I would actually rather drive in Tours (a small city) than Amboise (a medium sized town full of buses and tourists who don't know the road rules and one of the most complicated road systems known to mankind, plus a bridge that is shut for the next 10 months).

Driving in Amboise is reminds me of the Niels Bohr quote on quantum physics "Anyone who is not shocked by quantum theory has not understood it". As a local I avoid it if I can.

We took an all-day tour out of Tours (http://www.accodispo-tours.com/) in October of 2017 and loved it. Worth every penny and every minute. You get to see 4 castles (I think there are maybe 6 tour options to choose from) and it's a small group - - there were 8 of us. You see the castles at your own pace; the driver tells you what time to meet back and we had zero problems with people being timely.

We are heading back in May and are going to spend a couple of days in Tours. We won't have a car but are staying right by the train station. We plan on going back to Amboise, as the next day tour we take from Acco Dispo, won't go there but we found it charming on our last visit and would like to see a bit more of it.

Good luck!

I dropped my rental car in Chinon and traded it for a bicycle.

I was happy with Amboise as a base to see Chenonceaux, Chateau Amboise and Clos Luce. It's small enough to be walkable but still has plenty of restaurant options.

I also stayed in Chinon to see both the Fortress and the Fontevraud Abbey (with gardens at Villandry between Chinon and Amboise).

If you're most interested in Chateaux further east, Blois might be a good choice, but I haven't stayed there.

all 800 chateau is an aceheivement - but if you didn't see the only original interior in the Loire Valley (Cheverny) and its leather wallpaper and original furnishings you really missed out

Nice to hear Andrew. I visited 3 and 2 of them are on your list. Loches and Langeias.

The interoir of Azay le Rideau was recently refurbed (18 months ago), and has some of the furniture that came out of the house in the 1930s. Chenonceau is pretty, but it has to be remembered everythig came out of auction houses in the 40s - correct period, but set dressing