Caves · Indre-et-Loire
1 Grottes de Savonnières
A natural curiosity, pointed out by Bernard Palissy in 1547.
View full page →What to see in Indre-et-Loire in 3 days
Indre-et-Loire is the heart of the Loire castles: Chenonceau, Azay-le-Rideau, Villandry, Amboise, Loches and Chinon. You will also find gardens, troglodyte cellars and vineyards.
This itinerary spreads the best-rated sites in the catalogue over three days.
Our day-by-day itinerary
The map shows the numbered stops in visiting order, with one colour per day. The line follows the roads where available; otherwise it joins the stops as the crow flies. Distances and times are approximate (by car, without traffic).
Day 1 — Grottes de Savonnières to Château d'Amboise
This day brings together 5 sites close to each other: caves, museums and towns and cities. It passes through Tours. Allow half an hour to an hour and a half per site, plus travel time.
Driving for the day: about 70.0 km, or 1 h 28 behind the wheel in total (excluding visits).
↓ 15.8 km · about 22 min by car to the next stop
Museums · Indre-et-Loire
2 Centre de création contemporaine Olivier Debré
The main art centre in the Centre-Val de Loire region, the Contemporary Creation Centre of Tours now incorporates a historic collection of the painter Olivier Debré.
View full page →↓ 1.2 km · about 4 min by car to the next stop
Towns & cities · Tours
3 Tours
Capital of Touraine at the confluence of the Loire and the Cher, whose medieval quarter enlivens Place Plumereau, ringed with half-timbered houses.
View full page →↓ 25.8 km · about 30 min by car to the next stop
Natural wonders · Indre-et-Loire
4 Les Rochers de Courçay
On the banks of the Indre, you will discover the admirable immaculate rocks of Courçay and the pure waters of the Doué. You can also reach the Doué resurgence, which scatters its limpid waters into a basin.
View full page →↓ 27.2 km · about 32 min by car to the next stop
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
5 Château d'Amboise
The Château d'Amboise rises above the Loire. One of the most visited monuments in France, on a par with the castles of Chambord, Blois, Chenonceau and Azay-le-Rideau.
View full page →Day 2 — Château de Loches to Château de Chenonceau
This day brings together 3 sites close to each other: castles and villages. Allow half an hour to an hour and a half per site, plus travel time.
Driving for the day: about 50.0 km, or 1 h 07 behind the wheel in total (excluding visits).
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
6 Château de Loches
The Château de Loches is one of the most representative cases of the evolution of feudal architecture.
View full page →↓ 19.5 km · about 22 min by car to the next stop
Villages · Indre-et-Loire
7 Montrésor
Standing on the banks of the Indrois, Montrésor seems to have stayed apart from all modernisation.
View full page →↓ 30.6 km · about 45 min by car to the next stop
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
8 Château de Chenonceau
In the heart of the Loire valley, Chenonceau is the most visited private castle in the world. The present castle was built from 1513 to 1521 by Thomas Bohier, receiver of finances under Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francis I.
View full page →Day 3 — Candes-Saint-Martin to Crissay-sur-Manse
This day brings together 4 sites close to each other: villages and castles. It passes through Chinon. Allow half an hour to an hour and a half per site, plus travel time.
Driving for the day: about 55.3 km, or 1 h 18 behind the wheel in total (excluding visits).
Villages · Indre-et-Loire
9 Candes-Saint-Martin
In Gaulish "candate" means confluence, and it is at the meeting place of the Vienne and the Loire that the village settled.
View full page →↓ 17.3 km · about 21 min by car to the next stop
Villages · Chinon
10 Chinon
A medieval town on the banks of the Vienne, dominated by the imposing royal fortress where Joan of Arc recognised Charles VII, surrounded by a renowned vineyard.
View full page →↓ 12.4 km · about 21 min by car to the next stop
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
11 Château d'Ussé
The Château d'Ussé overlooks the Indre. It is built halfway up the slope, on the south side of the valley.
View full page →↓ 25.6 km · about 36 min by car to the next stop
Villages · Indre-et-Loire
12 Crissay-sur-Manse
Located in the heart of Touraine, in the picturesque Manse valley, the village of Crissay is full of charm.
View full page →When to go
Spring and autumn are ideal: gardens in flower, soft light. Summer is very busy, especially at the best-known castles. Winter is quiet, but some sites are closed.
Getting around
A car is practical for linking the castles. Tours is served by train, and cycling is pleasant along the Loire. In summer, start early to avoid the crowds.
Our tips
- Book tickets in advance for the best-known castles.
- Alternate castles with relaxing time in the gardens.
- Start early in summer.
- Taste Touraine wines, rillettes and goat's cheese.
If you have more time
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
Château de Villandry
Villandry, completed around 1536, is the last of the great Loire castles built in the Renaissance in the Loire Valley. Villandry was built by a finance minister of Francis I, Jean le Breton.
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
Château d'Azay-le-Rideau
Located in Touraine, it belongs to the prestigious line of Loire Valley châteaux.
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
Château du Clos Lucé
The château du Clos Lucé, formerly called the manor of Cloux or the Clos, is a residence in the town centre of Amboise in the heart of the Loire Valley.
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
Château de Langeais
In Touraine, on the banks of the Loire, the château de Langeais dates from the late Middle Ages with its wall-walk, drawbridge and imposing towers.
Castles · Indre-et-Loire
La forteresse de Chinon
Overlooking the town, the fortress built by the count of Blois, Theobald I, evokes the time when the histories of France and England were intimately intertwined: the Court of Henry II Plantagenet and Eleanor of Aquitaine settled there in the twelfth century.
Zoos & wildlife parks · Indre-et-Loire
Réserve de Beaumarchais
Themed wildlife park: "Big game raised in France". Aboard a safari train you will discover all this big game raised in semi-freedom: the stag and its hinds, wild boar, fallow deer, ostriches, bison.
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