Chateaux in Loire Valley
 

I am going to spend several days in the Loire Valley in a rental car to visit chateaux. I have read numerous posts and other articles on the various Chateaux, and I am having a hard time narrowing down my choices. I hope to actually visit as many as time allows, but to do it right I know I have to exclude several.

Can anyone help by denoting which chateaux, if any, you can see from the road or highway without actually paying the entrance fee and driving into a parking lot before you see the chateau. If I can see several from the road (and it is not Chenonceau or one of the others that I have on the "for sure" list), I might decide to skip that chereau and just do a "windshield tour" without getting out of the car.

Therefore, of the following, are any visible from the road?

1. Chambord
2. Villandry
3. Ambroise
4. Cheverny
5. Beauregard
6. Blois
7. Montrichard
8. Claumont
9. Any other?

While I am asking, is Chenonceau visible from the road or highway?

Moreover, other than getting there early, any other suggestions about how to budget your time so you can see as many as possible? I just don't want to speed thought the ones I really want to visit in order to go through some on the "maybe" list.

Thanks in advance.

They are not visible from the highways. Except for a very few - Fortress at amboise and chateau at Blois most are deep in the countryside - on very small local roads with perhaps a tiny hamlet at the gates.

Realistically you can see 2 per day if you get an early start and keep moving. We were there 6 nights and saw 5 chateaux and the Abbey at Fonrevaux.

So you will need to choose carefully - and decide if you want to focus on those in the best setting, with the most inside or those with the best gardens - like Villandry.

I wish I remember more of our visit. One of them (either Chambord or Chenonceaux) we just ate a picnic outside and walked around a bit. I will say that the abbey at Fontreveux was my favorite - the history of it was so moving and awe-inspiring. Enjoy your visit

You can walk along a path on the other side of the river from Chenonceau and see the gallery which spans the river. You can drive right by the chateaux of Montpoupon and Usse. Montsoreau's chateau can be seen from the road. Montresor's chateau can be seen from the stream below.

I'm intrigued by your question because I'm not sure why would you want to see them from the road. I understand that seeing them from the road would mean avoiding the admission fees, but my impression has always been that one visits the Loire chateaux so one can appreciate their gardens and/or interiors. As one example, I believe that Villandry is best known for its gardens (which can't be seen from the road). As another example, i found the interiors of Chenonceau remarkable -- and as a rule, I'm not that fond of interior settings. So maybe you can see some parts of some chateaux from the road, but I encourage you to ask yourself whether that's really what makes sense for you. Good luck!

Chaumont and Amboise are visible from roads.

If Chambord isn't on your "for sure" list, what is? Plus, the walk along the rooftop is a great experience.

You can see Amboise from the road. You cannot see daVinci's tomb or the carriageway exit from the road.

Chateau Blois is in the city itself. It's not a rural palace set off from the thoroughfares. It is most notable for its three separate architectural styles and its royal apartments, neither of which are apparent from the road.

Chaumont is probably visible from the riverside because it's on a hill overlooking the Loire. When we visited, it was raining so we didn't trek down to the river to look up (although we trekked up from the main road to the chateau itself but that was not a great stop).

Beauregard has little tourist value from the outside. The reason to visit is the portrait hall, which is inside.

Azay-le-Rideau is in a fine setting that is perfect for a walk-by (and a picnic).

Fontevraud Abbey is great, but the value is in the interiors.

Cheverny is in the middle of a town and you can enter the grounds for pictures without clambering throughout the chateau (which itself wasn't that spectacular). It's best known for its feeding frenzy for the hunting dogs and as the inspiration for Marlinspike Hall in the Tintin series (go pick up the preposterously racist Tintin in the Congo just for posterity).

The attraction of Villandry is the gardens. The building itself is meh due to its ownership history.

There are many other châteaux in the Loire not on your list that are quite impressive from the outside and can be seen as a drive-by. Some other impressive château you can drive by would be the châteaux of Valençay, Langeais, Le Coudray-Montpensier, Montreuil-Bellay, Brissac and many others. If you like medieval castle ruins and want to combine that with visits to charming towns then you can go to Chinon and Loches. Use google images to see photos of these châteaux. You can use google street view to see if they are visible from the road, though that's not a guarantee they aren't visible from elsewhere.

I'll suggest that you can find many other châteaux to incorporate into your drives if you have a Michelin map. The Michelin map has icons that show touristically/historically interesting places to visit and they have châteaux icons. One icon is quite obvious and that is the icon for châteaux designated as historic monuments. The less obvious icon is for châteaux not designated as historic monuments and it looks like a little white rectangle, barely visible unless you look carefully. Once you have your map you'll see that châteaux are everywhere and probably 80% of them are completely unheard of. Many are private and not open to the public but can often be viewed from the road.

Three chateaux in a day is certainly doable... especially if they are very different. On our most recent trip we were at Chambord, Amboise (plus Clos Lucé) and Chenonceau and did not feel over rushed or 'chateaued out'.

As for Cheverny, the attraction of a horde of barking, yapping hungry dogs is totally lost on me.

The chapel at Château Amboise, in which Leonardo is said to be entombed, is indeed visible from street below. Most of Château Amboise was destroyed during the Revolution and what remains, in relation to what is otherwise nearby available to see, is unremarkable and a simple drive of this château is all that is sufficient.

I have visited all of the châteaux mentioned by the OP numerous times and would simply prioritize as follows:

West of Tours:
Azay le Ridear
Villandry

East of Tours:
Chambord, Chenonceau, Cheverny, Château Blois

Thus, an easy itinerary would be one day west of Tours and 2 days east of Tours. You could also include a drive by of Ussé, Amboise, or Chaumont but overall, the above is a good 3 days of exploration.

1. Chambord - see easily be seen from the road ir parking lots without going in but this is the most monumnetal of all Loire castles - it has more chimneys than many countries do!

2. Villandry - well the gardens are the attractions here so no
3. Ambroise- yes
4. Cheverny - yes IME - but the Soup de Chiens - feeding of the hunting dogs is fantastic.
5. Beauregard - not sure never seen it nor really heard of it much
6. Blois - yes
7. Montrichard - yes
8. Claumont - Chaumont yes but the stables there and park are a mian aspect
9. Any other?

Usses - the Sleeping Beauty castle a young Disney modeled his Disneyland castles in part after - set way back from the road.

Chinon - right in a large city so yes.

I've visited the Loire Castles with my French in-laws and by myself for years

My rankings

1- Azay-le-Rideau
2-Chambord
3- Chenonceau
4- Amboise
5- Usses
6- Loches
7- Chinon
8- Villandry
9- Chaumont
10 - Blois
11- Saumur

<i>Most of Château Amboise was destroyed during the Revolution and what remains, in relation to what is otherwise nearby available to see, is unremarkable and a simple drive of this château is all that is sufficient.</i>

Uh, no. Evidently someone hasn't been down the carriageway exit.

I'd put it after Chenonceau and Chambord and up with Blois and Cheverny's exterior (which is cool, the interior is fine but not remarkable). Azay, Chenonceau and Chambord are in the best settings.

Yes a tour of the Amboise castle is as fascinating as any other chateau - well after Chambord - don't miss the unique Double Helix (? term) staircase there that was way ahead of its time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j166VdqWLYY>

Who Let the Dawgs Out"?

One reason for timing a visit to Cheverny - easily twinned with a visit to nearby Chambord is to see the famous Soupe des Chiens - feeding of the hungry hunting hounds - see video above.

I really enjoyed Chenonceau and Blois. I only visited a few, I don't find chateaux really that interesting to see a whole lot of them.

You can see Azay le Rideau by walking a short distance from the central parking lot.

And most certainly Angers, which has beautiful gardens in the former moat.

The Sound-and-Light show at Azay is one of the best around - me and my then young son just loved it - brings the stones of the chateau to life - ditto for Amboise and other Loire chateaus with their son=et-lumiere shows (sp?) - offered all summer, often also in English or providing headphones for translations.

<i>Uh, no. Evidently someone hasn't been down the carriageway exit.</i>

As you quote me BR and include this bizarre statement, I can assure you that, on more than one occasion, I have walked down the carriageway exit at Château Amboise. It's an interesting feature but it does not launch the overall importance of what remains of Amboise into the architectural significance of such achievements as the contrasting courtyard façades of Blois or the double helix staircase of Chambord. 80% of what Château Amboise was has been dismantled and the stone sold for other construction. Amboise of today is simply not as comparatively important as it could have been had it been preserved as were other locations nearby. For example Chenonceau was spared destruction by the Revolutionary Guard by the maneuvers of its well liked owner Madame Louise Dupin.

While Cheverny's exterior is interesting, the real draw here is that Cheverny is one of the few fully furnished châteaux in the Loire Valley. There are few places with as much to appreciate on the inside as what Cheverny offers.

The hounds are nothing more than a gimmick for the tourists. Of far greater interest are the landscaping efforts of recent years and social reforms that were implemented to effect their completion. The owner of Cheverny, who still lives in the château, takes pride in his community and his outreach programs are a testament to his social commitment. The story is remarkable but all anyone writes about here are the hounds.

There are two ways one can approach the Loire Valley experience. One as only a casual visitor who takes a quick tour making an attempt see as many properties as possible, as quickly as possible. Or as someone who spends time in reading and understanding the underpinnings of each location he visits and does so in advance of his visit. Those who make the effort to familiarize themselves with some of history of the Loire Valley before they actually visit there, will have a much richer and much more rewarding overall experience.