My husband & I will be heading down to the Loire Valley by train from Normandy (in the evening). We will be staying one night and plan to spend the following day visiting Chambord and Chenonceau before heading up to Paris that evening. We don't mind renting a car, but would like to avoid so if we can. Which part of town would be ideal to stay overnight to get the most out of our trip? If we had to choose between the two chateaux for timing, we would like to see Chambord. What is an average time to plan on each castle? We were looking at staying in either Amboise or Blois overnight. Any suggestions in hotels or transportation tips? We will be heading up to Paris by train after our long day of touring the chateaux. Thanks for the help! Laura
Posted by
Folsom, California, USA
322 posts
Hello, My husband, two daughters, and I stayed at the Auberge de Launay in Amboise 3 summers ago. It was lovely and I would recommend it, although we had a car and it was not right downtown Amboise. Not sure about public transit in that area. We saw Chenonceau and Chateau du Clos Luce (da Vinci's home) where ther grounds are full of replicas of his scientific projects (simply amazing). We spent the entire day to see both of these, but we took our time and enjoyed them. The grounds around Chenonceau deserve as much time as the chateau. Either way, you can't go wrong and won't regret a minute of it. Enjoy, Kaye
Folsom, CA
Posted by
Los Angeles, California
1986 posts
There are a few other posts with similar queations. One of my most delightful hotel experiences was the hotel Bon Laboreur about 100 yards from Chananceau gates. Wonderful hotel with a renowned restaurant. when next i am in Loire i would plan on staying there. Else look for chateau/hotels ( sorry we stayed in some but I dont have names), with their own grounds. Something different