Couple’s Guide to the Enchanting Loire Valley, France

This post may contain affiliate links, which means that we may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. More information can be found under the site's privacy policy.

Here is our couple’s guide to Loire Valley, France. This region of France is filled with chateaux, vineyards, cathedrals, and beautiful French countryside landscapes. Does it really get anymore romantic than that?

Getting To Loire Valley:

You can take a direct 1 hour 15 min TGV train in from Paris. You will start at Paris Montparnasse and it will cost between €40-50 euros. The train leaves every 4 hours. If you have a car, it’s about a 2 hour drive. We live in France and it’s a short distance so we usually drive to Loire Valley.

When To Visit:

I think spring or summer are the best times of the year to visit the Loire Valley because many of the chateaux have immaculate gardens that you don’t want to miss! Also the summer is when they have the cathedral light shows, which I have listed the dates for 2020 below.

Where To Stay in Loire Valley:

I’m going to recommend a few different towns to stay in so that you can decide what’s best for your trip. A lot of it depends on if you have a car or not.

Tip: Make sure to stay in a hotel or airbnb with air conditioning if you are visiting during the summer months. A lot of places in France do not have air conditioning, including our place in Paris.

Don’t forget your travel insurance! We recommend WorldNomads. Make sure to have coverage that includes medical expenses, trip cancellations, and coverage for your belongings from theft or damage. If needed, you may also want to include car rental insurance as well.

Town of Tours, France:

When I researched this area, I found that the town of Tours would be the easiest town to stay in where we wouldn’t need to drive. You can stay right by the train station if you want to make it as your base town and explore the other towns in the valley.

The town of Tours is where we made our base during our first visit and we didn’t move the car for several days. There are a lot of restaurants and bars to choose from, which is great if you are a vegan, vegetarian, or have a type of restricted diet. If you choose to stay in Tours, don’t miss the Illusions of the Cathedral light show that happens seasonally. It was the highlight of our trip!

2020 Cathedral Light Show Dates:

• July every evening 10:30 PM and 11:15 PM
• September, 1^st – 18^th 10:00 PM and 10:30 PM
• Then Fridays and Saturdays at 9:15 PM and 10:00 PM until Oct.3^rd

Town of Azay Le Rideau, France:

This is an incredible small town in Loire Valley. We have actually stayed in this town as well and it has a beautiful chateau that you can walk to from Le Grand Monarque, our preferred hotel. The Chateau D’Azay le Rideau is stunning and conveniently located by a phenomenal French restaurant called La Credence. Make sure to RSVP this restaurant ahead of time because it’s really popular. There is a wine tasting shop across the street from the restaurant if you arrive early. 😉

Chateau De L’Aulee is a winery with a vineyard that is only 1 mile from the hotel. The people are really friendly here and you can relax by the vines with your tasting.

Town of Amboise, France:

I believe Amboise is one of the most romantic and charming towns of the region. It was the most quaint, relaxing, and picturesque of the towns that we visited. It would be our location of choice for our next visit. Amboise is much smaller than Tours, but offers plenty to see and do any time of the year. It’s also right by the river and there are nice walking trails easily accessed from the town.

Town of Chinon, France:

This town has the Fortress Royale de Chinon which is a really large castle. It sits at the top of the village and there is a lift that you can take to the top or you can climb the stairs. This area is well known for there white wines, so it’s also the perfect place to do a wine tasting. Chinon, France is on the river so you will see many people kayaking and walking the paths by the water.

Town of Vouvray, France:

Vouvray was really charming, but a bit too small for my taste. P.S. If you stay in Vouvray, you will need a vehicle. There are several wineries here and it’s definitely the most quiet and serene of the towns that we visited.

Town of Blois, France:

Fairy-Tale Chateaux

Couple’s Guide to Loire Valley

More Chateaux:

Our base site was Tours, France, so I’ve listed travel time to each chateau from the train station in Tours, France.

Chateau d’Azay le Rideau is one of the most popular locations to visit in the Valley. It’s a 30 minute train ride from Tours. We actually visited this Chateau on a separate trip through Loire Valley. The gardens are free to visit and the entrance is 11.50.

Tip: If you visit close to closing time at 7:00 PM, you can snag a photo without people around.

Chateau de Villandry is known for having beautiful gardens and a cool moat! You can take a bus to Villandry on Wednesdays and Saturdays from Tours.

Chateau Royal of Blois is 45 minutes from Tours. Blois was the town mentioned above with the cool street art. 😉

Chateau Royal d’Amboise is a chateau that we only viewed from the outside. It has views of the river and little shops and restaurants all around it. It ended up being my favorite town of all in the Loire Valley. Amboise is a 30 minute train ride from Tours.

Clos Luce is a 30 minute train ride from Tours. After the train ride, it’s about a 20 minute walk to the chateau. It’s also located in Amboise.

Wineries Tour:

If you are staying in Tours near the train station without a car, you can walk across the street to the Tours Tourist Information Office. It’s the meet up location for most of the local wine tours. We ended up being the only two during the peak season of August, so it was perfect.

There are several private tours to Loire from Paris available as well with Viator.com. They have everything from chateaux tours to hot air balloon rides. Let me know in the comments below if you go on a balloon ride. That is a big bucket list item for me!

Looking for more! Here are a few of the luxury packages:

1. VIP Experiences of Loire Valley

2.Two Day Trip to Loire Valley, France

I hope you enjoyed this Couple’s Guide to Loire Valley, France. If you would like more information about visiting France you may be interested in checking out one of my other blogs; Paris, Lyon, Chablis and Auxerre, or Strasbourg.

A bientot!

Sharing is caring! Pin the image below to save it for later 🙂