Villages in the Loire Valley

[CaptainKirk]

Planning to drive from Paris down to Tour/Chinon area in the Loire Valley but wanted to stay over for a couple of nights on the way down.
Bit of a long shot but has anyone on here got any recommendations of nice little villages to try in that area?

[whentheballmoves]

Not a village, but Saumur is nice, and the villages nearby.
Last school I worked at stopped at a campsite called Chantepie in Talmont/St Hilaire or similar. Lovely strolls to be had along the river...

[CaptainKirk]

Thanks for the tip - will look into that one for starters.

[Wokingclaret]

Take the shuttle craft

[minnieclaret]

Vouvray. About 7miles East of Tours on the North bank of the Loire.

[Lancasterclaret]

Probably far too far away, but a trip to Oradour-sur-Glane would be an eye opener.

[Cajun]

Bauge and Le Vieil Bauge (between the cities of Anger and Tour) are lovely town and village, have family live there; also La Fleche is a bustling market town well worth a visit. And as said above Saumur is very good.

[Midmoorclaret]

Probably far too far away, but a trip to Oradour-sur-Glane would be an eye opener.

Went there in 2003 and agree Lancaster it is an eye opener. Very sad to see what the Germans did there following 'D' day.

[Ayamonte]

If you can manage it check this place out. We did a 3 week trip through France from Calais many years ago and eventually stayed for two weeks in the Dordoigne. We booked Chateau de Rochecotte in Langeais online direct before we started our holiday....we came across it just by chance. It was a lot cheaper then...about 80 euros for a room. It is stunningly magnificent. We took a flyer on the return trip and called on spec and got a room for 60 euros as we said that was all we had in our budget. We got an incredible room for the night full of period furniture. It's worth checking this link

http://www.chateau-de-rochecotte.fr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

We did not want to leave!!

You are in the heart of the Loire Valley here and it is breathtaking and a great wine producing area. Degustation was our most used French word on our holiday. Just call into any vineyard and they will give you a personalised tour and tasting.....expect to buy a couple of bottles though for the service.

If you want another wonderful overnight stay on the way back we have stayed at this chateau/hotel a couple of times. It's handy for Calais and a great way to finish off the French experience before the journey home....link....

http://www.clery.najeti.fr/hotel/hotel-boulogne.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[nil_desperandum]

Just to mention that Tours isn't really very far from Paris in terms of distances in France?
Probably less than 3 hours depending on which part of Paris you are departing from. You could easily go direct to Tours and then explore further to the south or West.
I only mention this, because a lot of the places suggested on this thread are not really en-route from Paris. Saumur, Bauge and La Fleche (e.g.) are all more to the west (or indeed North-West) in the direction of Angers. All 3 are well worth a visit though.
Or after staying in Tours area you could plough on down to Limoges and have a day at Oradour as a couple of others have mentioned. (Not for everyone though).It would be about two and half hours down to Oradour from Chinon I reckon.

[Guich]

Just an hour south west of Tours you're into Poitou Charentes which has some beautiful villages in Deux Sevres along the River Thouet. St Loup and Airvault (birthplace of Voltaire) are well worth a visit.

[bfcmik]

The road on the south side of the Loire from Tours to Blois and Orleans is a delight of little villages, caves used as wine cellars, famous and not so famous Chateaux and some nice views of the river.

To get to Tours from Calais just get on the motorway to Boulogne then head for Rouen before following directions for Tours. About half is toll road but the driving is easy. Should take 4-6 hours to get there plus any stops you make.

[CaptainKirk]

Blimey!!!
I have been out all day and have just seen the replies - much appreciated!
I know it is not that far but the idea was to see other areas en route and the accommodation in Chinon will not be available for a couple of days after arrival in Paris.
This is growing by the minute and I can see one or two trips needed for all this.
Thanks again.

[minnieclaret]

if you are at the Saumur end Puy de Fou is a great day out. It's a doable trek. series of live action shows but great entertainment.
If you are at Tours you could drop down to Futuroscope. series of film and tv shows but that doesn't do it justice. 3D, moving seats, underfloor screens, etc.,
Google them.

[lakesider]

Just got back from a road trip around Normandy and the Loire. Went around Le Mans on the way down and travelled down a lovely (and fast!) D road to a place called Chartre sur La Loir (not the Loire!). Spent some time at the Hotel de France which is well worth a pit stop. Owned by a Brit petrolhead and where a lot of the Le Mans teams and cars stay during the races. We were on our way to Amboise which is definitely worth a stop over. We also did Saumur. There are some lovely villages on the way from Amboise to Saumur (Candes St Martin is particularly beautiful). Visit some of the vineyards obviously. We went around Bourgeil and Vouvray before going back up to Honfleur.