By TGV, Tours is only 55 minutes from Paris and has an international airport. By road, Poitiers and Orléans are 1 hour away. In Indre et Loire, in the Centre Region, its location at the heart of the motorway network forms a crossroads in five directions which allows you to reach the major French cities.

Tours in the heart of the Loire Valley castle country

The most emblematic castles of the Loire are those built from the Renaissance onwards. It is impossible to list them all as there are so many of them, particularly in Touraine. Among the must-sees, your visit to the castles of the Loire from our hotels in Tours will take you through: - Villandry: built by Jean Le Breton, Minister of Finance for François 1er, it is renowned for its elegance and its six Renaissance gardens (vegetable garden, water feature, medicinal plants, labyrinth, etc.).

- Chenonceau: very beautiful collections of paintings by great masters and tapestries from Flanders from the 16th century. Floral rooms with bouquets made in the château's floral workshop. Remarkable park and gardens.

- Chambord: to be discovered on the water's edge, this masterpiece of the French Renaissance is said to be the castle of all excesses. Exceptional double-revolution staircase, royal apartments of François 1er and Louis XIV, coffered vaulted ceiling, collections of furniture and works of art, hunting museum... The Chambord park is home to 650 plant species as well as preserved fauna in an area of ​​5440 hectares, surrounded by a 32 km wall which makes it the largest enclosed forest park in Europe. Program of equestrian shows, sound and light shows, concerts...

- Azay-le-Rideau: a National Monument site, the castle built under François 1er on an island in the Indre is a jewel of French Renaissance architecture surrounded by a superb English-style park.

- Cheverny: the family estate, open to the public since 1922, is a very lively historical site with its botanical park, its kennels, a Tintin exhibition "in the heart of the Château de Moulinsart" over 700 m2...

Medieval fortresses: often destroyed to build new castles during the Renaissance, some have remained standing in the landscapes of Touraine. This is how the castle of Montbazon, known as the Black Falcon, is today one of the oldest monuments in France. You can also stop at the castle of Luynes, witness to the Hundred Years' War.

In Indre-et-Loire, our two hotels in Tours Parçay-Meslay and Chambray-Lès-Tours in Touraine open the doors to the land of the Loire châteaux.

Tours and the wines of Touraine

The Maison des vins de Loire in Tours offers tasting tours designed to discover the Loire appellations Vouvray, Montlouis, Amboise, Azay-le-Rideau for whites. Chinon, Bourgeuil and Saint-Nicolas and Touraine wines. It is open from Monday to Saturday except in January.

The Touraine Wine Museum in Tours is located under the beautiful 13th century vaults of the old Saint-Julien cellars. History of vines and wine in the region, collections of wine tasters, copper stills, brotherhood costumes, winegrowers' tools...

Parcay-Meslay: the Grange de Meslay, Musical Festivals of Touraine

Just 10 minutes from Tours city centre, the town of Parcay-Meslay is located at the heart of a road junction: interchange of the A10 and A28 motorways, national roads N10 and N152. It is also home to Tours airport. It offers both the gentleness of a large country town that has retained a rural economy and the dynamism of small towns close to urban centres with its seven recent activity zones.

La Grange de Meslay in Parcay-Meslay near Tours: this fortified farm built in 1220 was an outbuilding of the Marmoutier Abbey. An exemplary monument of 13th century civil architecture, it was built as a church with five naves and four rows of pillars.

Imposing and with balanced proportions, it is known today throughout the world thanks to the "Fêtes musicales de Touraine". This great classical music festival was created in 1963 by the Ukrainian pianist Sviatoslav Richter. Seduced by the site and its acoustics, the virtuoso who has performed on the greatest stages in the world has made the rendezvous at the Grange de Meslay a must for music lovers. The internationally renowned festival welcomes exceptional musicians every year for six days at the end of June.

Festivals, parties, events...

A small selection, among the many events, to follow as the news progresses with your hotels in Tours.

September - Vines, Wines and Hikes in the Loire Valley in Tours: for 2 days, just before the grape harvest, the winegrowers of the Loire Valley invite you to follow the route of their estates with, in the middle of the vines, gourmet breaks, a treasure hunt, music...

Mid-May to mid-September - the "Guinguette en bord de Loire" sets the pace for the summer season with open-air cinema, shows, concerts, etc.

End of May - beginning of June - The Joué years in Joué-les-Tours: a festival (2 days) to the rhythm of shows with around sixty street arts companies. Music, circus, dance, pyrotechnics, theater, magic, gigantic machinery... A creative, funny, offbeat event for all generations.

End of September - Les Folies Foraines in Joué-les-Tours: marquees, trailers, caravans, fairground stands, treats... The spirit of the funfair.

Book your cheap hotel in Tours Nord directly!
Book your cheap hotel in Tours Sud Chambray Les Tours directly!