PalenQ

https://www.google.com/search?q=loir...w=1745&bih=863

Lots of such houses in Loire but usually not a square-ful but Place Plumerau in Tours may be the best you'll find- click on the pictures to see where they are.

pariswat

I have a soft spot for Loches, and only to see the fathers.

kerouac

I like Blois, which also has a château in the center of town.

PalenQ

I have a soft spot for Loches, and only to see the fathers.>

and a chateau fort - really fortified castle not a pleasure dome like most of others - inside is a replica of the Hanging Cages of Louis XIV (?) in the donjon where enemies of the king were literally hung out to dry for ages in cages not big enough to stand up in.

Azay-le-Rideau on the outside is my favorite chateau:

https://www.google.com/search?q=azay...w=1745&bih=863

AJPeabody

You will only be able to shoot one site at sunset on a given day.

PalenQ

Amboise is cool too for seeing the Loire at its most serene as the mainly dry at many times river snakes thru tiny rivulets of water admist a vast sandy riverbed.

Sunset would be best for a chaeau facing what way?

tailsock

"Azay-le-Rideau on the outside is my favorite chateau"

I looked this one up today and agree it's fantastic. I saw that it's close to Tours so this would make an easy addition to my chateau-fest

tailsock

I saw some wonderful old buildings on Rue Michel Debre in Amboise. It's also very close to Tours.

fuzzbucket

You can configure your shot at any way or time during sunset.

PalenQ

If there is a sunset in this often cloudy rainy region.

FrenchMystiqueTours

Loches was already mentioned and to that I'll add Chinon. These two towns both have medieval château ruins and beautiful old town centers. The ruin in Chinon was the favorite of Henry II, who was married to Eleanor of Aquitaine and his most famous son was Richard the Lionheart. The three of them are buried (or at least parts of their bodies) at the Abbey of Fontevraud, not too far from Chinon. Check their tourist office websites to learn more about these towns:

http://www.azay-chinon-loirevalley.com/

http://www.loches-valdeloire.com/#

http://www.fontevraud.fr/en/

You have to pay to park at the official parking lot at Chambord and it costs 6 euros. If you can find parking on the nearby routes D112 or D33 then you could park free and walk to the château but I don't know if there is a place to park on these roads. For only 6 euros just park in the parking lot.

If driving and you have a Michelin map then there are loads of beautiful châteaux in the region that most people have never heard of or visited and the Michelin map will show their locations.

PalenQ

Richelieu is way different from any other Loire Chateau Country town -OP don't have time with just a day but those planning longer sojourns...

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ire-valley.cfm

Chinon's chateau is full of history but short on good look photo ops for OP- basically a ruin with a few vestiges left. Chinon the town to me is the nicest in the area.

PalenQ

If driving and you have a Michelin map then there are loads of beautiful châteaux in the region that most people have never heard of or visited and the Michelin map will show their locations.>

Great Michelin 1:200000 maps available everywhere and stick to D (departemental roads) which are away from large urban areas wonderful well-paved back roads little traveled - N or National roads can be full of trucks and traffic.