Sandy

We are planning our itinerary for the Loire Valley and I would like some imput, please.<BR>We will be taking the train from CDG to Tours on a Saturday. When we arrive about noon, we'll rent a car, do some sightseeing, then check-in to our chateau. We plan to stay in the Loire Valley Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - seeing chateaux, doing some wine tasting, visiting the Plumereau District in Tours and relaxing a bit on the grounds of the chateau. We will be staying in 2 different cheateauz. On Thursday, we plan to turn in our rental car in the early afternoon and take the train back to CDG. My question... can we comfortably cut out one full day in the Loire Valley? It may help to know that after our stay in the Loire Valley, we will be taking the EuroStar to Dover, where we pick up a 2 week cruise. Time isn't a problem, both my husband and I are retired. Thanks for any and all suggestions on the length of our L.V. stay.

Bob C

On our trip to the Loire Valley, we were seeing 2 to 3 places a day. Let's say you want to relax each afternoon at your chateau, then see two places a day.<BR>That means you see 8 chateaux. Also figure in time lost in changing hotels. If you find you are only interested in seeing say 5 chateaux then you could drop a day. There is some much to see in any area of France that you could spend your four days and five nights seeing the great chateaux with no problem.

Christina

I think you could comfortably cut out a day, but I don't find it that interesting to visit so many chateaux day after day, several a day. Some of them aren't really that interesting to me as there isn't much in them, but doing so much of the same thing isn't appealing to me. I wouldn't be interested in touring several cathedrals every day for many days continuously, either, even though I like seeing them as part of a broader itinerary. I'm sure someone with a real hobby involving French chateau history and architecture would feel differently.

Wayne

It's really difficult to answer your question because I don't know your interests. It's certainly possible to cut out any number of days from a Loire itinerary, depending on your preferences. If I assume that you are interested in seeing as many chateaux as possible, whether magnificent or more ordinary, then I would say you could use all the time you have allotted, and more. And besides, you just said you are retired and time is not a problem; so why are you concerned about reducing your Loire explorations by one day?

Jim

I agree with Christina. We visited Cheverny first and it spoiled us for most of the others. I'm sorry to say Chambord (except for its staircase) is best viewed from a distance. Enjoy the countryside and restaurants. You can't go wrong anyplace in France.

Lexma90

As you can tell by the variety of responses, you could drop a day or not, and in both cases, have an enjoyable stay. A lot depends on how busy you want to be, and how much you like visiting chateaux. It does sound like you'll be doing other things in addition to chateau-hopping.<BR><BR>Here's our schedule for a 10-day trip we took; the first half we spent in Paris.<BR><BR>Thurs: We drove from Paris to the Louvre mid-day, arriving in Blois in time for a late lunch; we decided not to visit the chateau there. We took a meandering drive to our lodging, Chateau de Pray (outside of Amboise).<BR><BR>Fri: We visited Chenenceaux, passed Fougeres-sur-Bievre (which was closed for the lunch hour), then visited, in the afternoon, Chambord and Chaumont.<BR><BR>Sat: We made a quick trip to Blere and picked up food for a picnic lunch. We visited Chateaux Azay le Rideau, where we ate a picnic lunch, then Langais. It was raining lightly, so we drove around without getting out of the car, and looked at Usse (we're not that interested in gardens) and Villandry.<BR><BR>Sun: We went back to Fougeres, then drove around a bit more, viewing Chateau Guy-Pean, with lunch at a cave resturant in Montrichard. In Amboise that afternoon, we decided to skip the Chateau d'Amboise, but did visit the Chateau du Clos Luce, and spent a while people-watching at a cafe in Amboise.<BR><BR>We like to take scenic drives on small side roads, and had time before dinner each night for relaxing and drinks at the hotel. We didn't feel chateau'd-out, and we visited a variety of chateaux, from the grander, more stately places to the smaller, more lived-in ones. I think we prefered the latter.

Sandy

Thank you for the responses. With more information now, we'll better be able to decide what to do. Sandy