Day 1 – Saturday (06/27/2015)
We arrived in Amboise, in the Loire Valley region, at the end of the day and went straight to our hotel, which was outside the city center. We stayed at The Bonn Stage, for 70 euros a day (without breakfast) and we think it offers good value for money,
especially if you are not going in the summer and do not need air conditioning, which does not exist (unfortunately, this was not the case for us. We scorched in the room without any ventilation!) The room is very tidy, as is the hotel, but to go to Amboise, you need to go by car. No problem for us, but here's a tip.
We took advantage of the hotel restaurant's good reviews and we were tired from the road, so we had dinner there (52 euros, without wine). They found us a table outside and we chose the menu that included starter + main course + dessert for each of us. Everything was great, but the sun was literally overhead, so we couldn't enjoy dinner at 9 pm. It was practically lunch. 🙂
Day 2 – Sunday (28/06/2015)
We had breakfast at the hotel (6.50 euros each) and took advantage of the fact that it was the city's main market day and went there. We parked the car in a nearby parking lot, Celo got the machine sorted (we later found out that we didn't have to pay anything, because it was Sunday) and there we went to taste the best cheeses, wines, sausages, olives and strawberries. The market has everything (even clothes) and it's free, so you can spend hours walking around there without spending a dime, but I admit it's quite difficult, because the things look wonderful and they really are. We bought a little of everything I listed above and then did our own shopping. picnic outside. Perfect program! Perfect lunch! It wasn't cheap, but we thought it was worth it for the experience. PS: Some people say that the Amboise market is the best in the country. Is that true? 🙂
We quickly stopped by the city's tourist office and bought tickets for all the castles that we hadn't been able to buy online (Chambord, Chenonceau, Cheverny, Villandry and Le Clos Lucé). I recommend stopping by because the attendants are really sweet and you'll also avoid the queues at the castles!
Then we went to the Amboise Castle, which is right in the center of the city of the same name. We walked through some delightful streets and were enchanted by the city (staying there must be really cool too, because you can do everything on foot). We had already bought the tickets in advance (11 euros per person), so we just had to show the paper and go in.
The entrance isn't very interesting, but it's when you see the castle itself that your jaw drops. It's just so beautiful, guys!
We went straight to the chapel, where Leonardo da Vinci is buried.
Afterwards we enjoyed the view of the castle and the city. Look how beautiful it is:
When we got tired of the view and the sun on our heads, we went into the castle to do the tour for it. I confess that I expected more from the decoration, but since it is a 15th century castle, there is not much to expect from it, right? It is beautiful on the outside and not so beautiful on the inside, but I think it was worth the visit. The view, the gardens and even the interior are interesting. If it were possible to just stay in the gardens and see the view of the city, I think I would recommend it, but since it is not possible, I advise paying the 11 euros and seeing everything.
We continue to the Villandry Castle, which is almost an hour's drive from Amboise. We bought tickets just for the gardens (6.50 euros per person) and it was worth it! By far the most beautiful gardens we saw in the entire Loire Valley. It was absolutely gorgeous! We spent hours walking around, taking photos and relaxing on the many benches. It was so sunny!!! It would probably be better to visit during a cooler season than summer, but if you can only go in summer, go and buy lots of bottles of water. You'll be fine!
On the way back to Amboise, we stopped at the winery Plous et Fils (since 1508) on the street of our hotel, because we were afraid of the roadblocks we saw on the roads. It is quite interesting, since the wine cellar is in a rock and the temperature there is always 13º. We did the tour free with the owner of the winery and then we tasted some of his products. We found everything delicious and even bought a bottle, but I can tell you right now that we are not experts...
Then we went to the city center to look for restaurants for dinner. I think it was around 8 pm and seriously, the city looked like a ghost town, with so many shops/restaurants closed. As always, we looked on TripAdvisor for the best restaurants, but many were closed and the only way was to go into any open one we could find. We found the The Patio open and after reading the TripAdvisor review (it’s in the Michelin guide too!), we went in feeling confident. I thought the service was terrible, mainly because they looked us up and down and because we didn’t have a reservation, but the food wasn’t bad at all. It was good, but expensive for what we got, in my opinion. All in all, it wasn’t a very interesting experience, but that might have something to do with the fact that we had high expectations…
Day 3 – Monday (29/06/2015)
We didn't have breakfast at the hotel and went straight to the Chambord Castle (11 euros per person + 4 euros for parking), the largest in the region. We drove for almost 1 hour and took advantage of the castle's restaurants to have breakfast with a view of it. The castle is really impressive for its size, but in my humble opinion, its garden leaves something to be desired with its boring features. I don't know if it's because we visited Villandry the day before, but I was expecting much more from the garden at Chambord, which is one of the most visited castles in the region, if not the most visited. Anyway.
We did the tour by him and we were really impressed by the Da Vinci staircase, which I think is the main attraction of the castle. It is very interesting because it has two staircases inside one, and they never meet at any point. It is a bit crazy to explain, but it is really cool. The views from the castle balconies are also very interesting, but that is all. The castle's decoration leaves something to be desired, as do the gardens, so the only thing left is the view.
From there we drove for less than half an hour to the Cheverny Castle (10 euros per person). We parked the car in the castle's free parking lot and went looking for the restaurants that were well recommended on TripAdvisor. Guess what? Since it was almost 3pm, we couldn't find any open, so we had to have lunch at the only one available, right next to the castle. We were served by a Chinese woman and the food wasn't that great, but at least we managed to have lunch. Phew! Here's a tip: Arrive early to get lunch at the city's good restaurants!
We did the tour We walked around the castle and really liked what we saw. The rooms are well decorated and I loved knowing that the family that owns the castle still lives there, in one of the wings that is not open to the public. I don't know why, but I was glad that they still live there. There is a certain glamour and tradition to it. 🙂
We then walked through the gardens and went to the place where they feed the dogs. I think this is the main attraction of the castle and for those who are interested, it happens every day at 5 pm. The cool thing is that you can watch it and you don't have to pay anything extra to see it. Basically, the dog sitter goes into the area where the dogs are, makes a fuss, takes the dogs out, washes the area, throws food on the floor and then lets the dogs out of there. It's a lot of activity, but very interesting.
We left the castle a little tired and decided to stop for dinner in the town of Blois, which is very close by. We parked the car and went back to TripAdvisor to find well-rated restaurants. I don't think it was even 8pm, but again, we couldn't find the best restaurants that were open, because many were closed for the holiday period. Disgusting!!! We were very frustrated with this gastronomic experience. We ended up going to an open oriental restaurant (Osaka) and quite full (maybe because it was the only one open?) and we ordered Japanese food, for a change. Nothing special.
We left there while it was still daylight and decided to climb the hill to see the Blois Castle, which was already closed to visitors. We could have waited 2 hours to watch the light and sound show, which was scheduled to take place around 11 pm, but we thought it best to go back to the hotel, since the castle didn't seem like much to us and the next day would be very busy.
On the way back to the hotel, we came across several balloons flying over the Loire Valley. How cool, huh? We've already flown in a balloon in Australia and I confess that it wasn't my favorite experience, but I recommend it to anyone who's never done something like that in their life. I think they're pretty safe there in France and the view must be incredible, with all the castles, wineries and the Loire River running through everything. And besides, it's in France, right guys? <3
Some companies that do this and charge around 200 euros per person:
www.aerocom.fr and Balloon Pleasure
Day 4 – Tuesday (06/30/2015)
We checked out of our hotel and headed to Amboise to visit the The CLos Lucé (12 euros per person). We had breakfast at a bakery in the city, which was wonderful by the way, and then walked under the blazing sun to the place where Leonardo da Vinci spent the last years of his life. It's a long walk, but the whole thing is worth it. The genius's main inventions are scattered throughout the gardens, as well as his house, which still has the furniture from the time he lived there. Very interesting.
We drove for less than 1 hour to the last castle in the region, which by the way was my favorite, the Chenonceau Castle (12.50 euros per person). In addition to having a beautiful garden and a river running underneath it, its interior is very well decorated. It's a shame that there were so many tourist groups there...it could have been the best experience of the trip. We took advantage of the fact that it was almost 2 pm and that we were going to drive for 4 hours and have lunch right there, in a restaurant like self service. Not at all glamorous, I know, but it was out of desperation. “You can’t have everything in life,” as Celo says. 🙂
Towards Sarlat!
WhatWant to know more details about our 9-day trip through the interior of France (Loire Valley, Périgord, Quercy and Bordeaux)? Just click on the links below:
