6 Best Sights in The Loire Valley, France

The most beautiful castle in France is first glimpsed as you approach the Château d'Ussé, and an astonishing array of blue-slate roofs, dormer windows, delicate towers, and Gothic turrets greets you against the flank of the Forest of Chinon. Literature describes this château, overlooking the banks of the River Indre, as the original "Sleeping Beauty" castle; Charles Perrault, author of this beloved 17th-century tale, spent time here as a guest of the Count of Saumur, and legend has it that Ussé inspired him to write the famous story. Although parts of the castle are from the 1400s, most of it was completed two centuries later. By the 17th century, the region was so secure that one fortified wing of the castle was demolished to allow for grand vistas over the valley and the castle gardens, newly designed in the style Le Nôtre had made so fashionable at Versailles.

Only Disney could have outdone this white tufa marvel: the château is a flamboyant mix of Gothic and Renaissance styles—romantic and built for fun, not for fighting. Its history supports this playful image: it endured no bloodbaths—no political conquests or conflicts—while a tablet in the chapel indicates that even the French Revolution passed it by. Inside, a tour leads you through several sumptuous period salons, a 19th-century French fashion exhibit, and the Salle de Roi bedchamber built for a visit by King Louis XV (the red-silk, canopied four-poster bed is the stuff of dreams). At the end of the house tour, you can go up the fun spiral staircases to the chemin de ronde of the lofty towers; there are pleasant views of the Indre River from the battlements, and you can also find rooms filled with waxwork effigies detailing the fable of Sleeping Beauty herself. (Kids will love this.)

Before you leave, visit the exquisite Gothic-becomes-Renaissance chapel in the garden, built for Charles d'Espinay and his wife in 1523–35. Note the door decorated with pleasingly sinister skull-and-crossbones carvings. Just a few steps from the chapel are two towering cedars of Lebanon—a gift from the genius-poet of Romanticism, Viscount René de Chateaubriand, to the lady of the house, the duchess of Duras. When her famous amour died in 1848, she stopped all the clocks in the house (à la "Sleeping Beauty") so as "never to hear struck the hours you will not come again." The castle then was inherited by her relations, the comte and comtesse de la Rochejaquelin, one of the most dashing couples of the 19th century. Today, Ussé belongs to their descendant, the duc de Blacas, who is as soigné as his castle. If you do meet him, proffer thanks, as every night his family floodlights the entire château, a vision that is one of the Loire Valley's dreamiest sights. Long regarded as a symbol of la vieille France, Ussé can't be topped for fairy-tale splendor, so make this a must-do.

As you travel the gigantic, tree-shaded roadways that converge on Chambord, you first spot the château's incredible towers—19th-century novelist Henry James said they were "more like the spires of a city than the salient points of a single building"—rising above the forest. When the entire palace breaks into view, it is an unforgettable sight.

With a 420-foot-long facade, 440 rooms, 365 chimneys, and a wall that extends 32 km (20 miles) to enclose a 13,000-acre forest, the Château de Chambord is one of the greatest buildings in France. Under François I, building began in 1519, a job that took 12 years and required 1,800 workers. His original grandiose idea was to divert the Loire to form a moat, but someone (perhaps his adviser, Leonardo da Vinci, who some feel may have provided the inspiration behind the entire complex) persuaded him to make do with the River Cosson. François I used the château only for short stays; yet 12,000 horses were required to transport his luggage, servants, and entourage when he came. Later kings also used Chambord as an occasional retreat, and Louis XIV, the Sun King, had Molière perform here. In the 18th century Louis XV gave the château to the Maréchal de Saxe as a reward for his victory over the English and Dutch at Fontenoy (southern Belgium) in 1745. When not indulging in wine, women, and song, the marshal planted himself on the roof to oversee the exercises of his personal regiment of 1,000 cavalry. Now, after long neglect—all the original furnishings vanished during the French Revolution—Chambord belongs to the state.

There's plenty to see inside. You can wander freely through the vast rooms, filled with exhibits (including a hunting museum)—not all concerned with Chambord, but interesting nonetheless—and lots of Ancien Régime furnishings. The enormous double-helix staircase (probably envisioned by Leonardo, who had a thing about spirals) looks like a single staircase, but an entire regiment could march up one spiral while a second came down the other, and never the twain would meet. The real high point here in more ways than one is the spectacular chimneyscape—the roof terrace whose forest of Italianate towers, turrets, cupolas, gables, and chimneys has been compared to everything from the minarets of Constantinople to a bizarre chessboard. During the year there's a packed calendar of activities on tap, including 90-minute tours of the park in a 4x4 vehicle (€20). A soaring three-story-tall hall has been fitted out to offer lunches and dinners.

This prestigious national equestrian academy trains France’s future riding stars. Unique in Europe, the Cadre Noir de Saumur has 400 horses, extensive stables, five Olympic-size riding rings, and miles of specially laid tracks. Try for a morning tour, which gives you a chance to admire the horses in training. A gala equestrian performance is put on for enthusiastic crowds during special weekends in April, May, July, September, and October; reservations are a must.

Built in the 1460s, bearing a massive portcullis and gate, and never altered, the Château de Langeais has an interior noted for its superb collection of medieval and Renaissance furnishings: its assorted fireplaces, tapestries, chests, and beds would make Guinevere and Lancelot feel right at home. Fifteen-minute waxworks and video shows tell the story of the secret dawn wedding of King Charles VIII with Anne of Brittany in the room where it took place in 1491. Outside, gardens nestle behind sturdy walls and battlements; kids will make a beeline for the playgrounds and tree house. The town itself has other sights, including a Renaissance church tower, but chances are you won't want to move from the delightful outdoor cafés that face the castle entrance. Do follow the road a bit to the right (when looking at the entrance) to discover the charming historic houses grouped around a waterfall and canal.

If you want to see where "the 20th century was born"—as the curators here like to proclaim—head to the Clos Lucé, about 600 yards up Rue Victor-Hugo from the château. Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) spent the last four years of his life in this handsome Renaissance manor, tinkering away at inventions, amusing his patron, King François I, and gazing out over a garden that was planted in the most fashionable Italian manner. The garden was completely restored in 2008 to contain plants and trees found in his sketches, as well as a dozen full-size renderings of machines he designed. The Halle Interactive contains working models of some of Leonardo's extraordinary inventions, all built by IBM engineers using the artist's detailed notebooks (by this time Leonardo had put away his paint box because of arthritis). Mechanisms on display include three-speed gearboxes, a military tank, a clockwork car, and a flying machine complete with designs for parachutes. Originally called Cloux, the property was given to Anne of Brittany by Charles VIII, who built a chapel for her that is still here. Some of the house's furnishings are authentically 16th century—indeed, thanks to the artist's presence, Clos Lucé was one of the first places where the Italian Renaissance made inroads in France: Leonardo's Mona Lisa and Virgin of the Rocks, both of which once graced the walls here, were bought by the king, who then moved them to the Louvre. You can now see these and 15 other da Vinci masterpieces projected in full living color in the on-site immersive museum; it also features 3D re-creations of the master's unrealized plans for palaces and other constructions, video games, and a host of fun educational games for kids.

Just 3 km (2 miles) south of Amboise on the road to Chenonceaux, the Pagode de Chanteloup is a remarkable sight—a 140-foot, seven-story, Chinese-style lakeside pagoda built for the duke of Choiseul in 1775. Children will enjoy puffing their way to the top for the vertigo-inducing views, but some adults will find the climb—and the 400-yard walk from the parking lot—a little arduous. You can take a 3D virtual tour of the former chateau that once stood on the grounds, in its only remaining pavilion, for an idea of its pre-destruction magnificence (it was demolished in 1823 for unknown reasons), then rent a little rowboat (€6 per hour) to float across the adjoining lake. It's worth a quick stop if you're in the area, especially for architecture buffs, and the views from the top are lovely.