bigtyke

ID you are considering going to Chartres (and I very highly recommend it), then you might very well consider getting the car there. The worst traffic jam I (actually my father was driving) was on the N10 trying to get out of Paris.

The region between Chartres and the Loire is very nice. I cycled it years ago and enjoyed it very much

Renee

Since I am staying in the 15th, which train station will take me to the Loire Valley and conversely, which train stop do I get off when I arrive?

jor

sounds great!

wren

Anyone ever heard of a little bed and breakfast named "le moulins du Fief gentil in Blere? A Karen Brown suggesion that seems reasonable and looks lovely. close to amboise.

indytravel

Renee,

The TGV service St Pierre des Corps (the Tours suburb) is from Montparnasse.

Paris Austerlitz serves the Loire valley with slower regional trains. These will make several stops on their way through. Including, but not limited to, Orleans, Blois, Amboise & Tours.

Use www.sncf.com to find out train info for France. There's a little British flag in the upper left-hand corner. Click it and you'll be working in English. Type in your start as Paris and where you want to go. If you pick a date within 60 days you can get to the point where it will show you prices. I do this to estimate train costs. The price or schedule won't vary much between your test dates and your real travel dates.

You can look at the schedule more than 60 days out, you just won't get pricing info. This can come in handy if you're traveling on a day like a Tuesday that happens to be a holiday and is running a holiday schedule.

Renee

Thanks, Indy! You're the best!

indytravel

Topping for Joyce 'cause this has a lot of current info.

wren

You convinced us!! Thanks..we have changed our plans and we will now pick up a car in Chartres instead of driving out from Paris...it does sound more relaxing. 2-3 days in Loire, then to burgundy, for a few. then we are wondering what to do with the next 2 days before we return to Paris.??

indytravel

Troyes would be on the way back to Paris from the Burgundy area. I spent a pleasant 3 nights there in April last year. It has a very pretty old town center. If you wished you could ditch the rental car there and take the train back to Paris. It's not quite a two hour train ride into the Gare de L'Est where you could catch a cab to your Paris hotel.

Here's a link to a thread where Troyes was discussed:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...2&tid=34380401

Lynn_Gibson

Wren - I stayed at Le Moulins du Fief Gentile in Blere last May for two nights (would have stayed longer, except that they were booked) and it was WONDERFUL. It is very well located, being close to Amboise, in the little town of Blere. The B&B itself is utterly charming, the rooms were the biggest that we experienced anywhere in France, bathrooms fantastic and the price was very reasonable. Roger and Ann are lovely people - be sure and have dinner with them if Ann cooks any of the evenings that you stay there.

wren

Lynn,

Thanks for responding to this thread...I almost missed it until today!! I was getting concerned that the b&b was not well located...but now I am going to go by what you said and stay there this July. Thanks so much.

StCirq

I thought I had posted this several days ago, but apparently it didn't "take." If you find yourself in or near Bléré, do not miss the opportunity to eat a Le Cheval Blanc, one of my very favorite restaurants in all of France.

Bonne route!

Moirahd

I live in the Loire Valley and would highly recommend the following: not sure when you are going
and whether you will be travelling by car (a must).
Accommodation: Chateau de Brou, their website is (www.chateau-de-brou.fr) it is a wonderful chateau and has main fine bedrooms. They also have a wonderful Tour called Charles Tour, its like your own mini castle very romantic, downstairs, has a large fireplace, music, downstairs wc, upstairs huge bedroom with a unique bathroom. It is 14th century. In the main chateau there are rooms like the Richeliu suite, Henry IV with a 4 poster bed.
Tours is very modern but the old part of town is very nice and there are plenty of restaurants around the square. (Apart from that I would avoid Tours).

If you stay at the chateau, take the wine trail through cravant les cocteaux. Go to Crissay Sur Manse, a tiny village that has a vineyard and a shop that makes beeswax candles, nougat, preserves. Vanniere is where all the baskets are hand-made and there are a couple of places that are open to the public. Azay le rideau has a wonderful petit chateau on the water and is a delightful little town with a market on a friday and saturday. Chinon has a dramatic view with the castle high on the hilltop. Further afield but only a hour away is Samur - see if you can get to see the horses, similar to those in Vienna. There are many restaurants in the Loire Valley including michelin gastronomic. One of the best guide books in the Eyewitness Loire Valley book. There are many chateau so my recommendation would be to see only a couple of them Chenonceau for example. Amboise is a lovely place to go as is Loches. All of these places are within easy travelling of the chateau. The managers Agnes and David are wonderful and very helpful.