5 Best Sights in Orleans, The Loire Valley

Just across the square from the cathedral is the Hôtel Groslot, a Renaissance-era extravaganza bristling with caryatids, strap work, and Flemish columns. Inside are regal salons redolent of the city's history (this used to be the Town Hall); they're done up in the most sumptuous 19th-century Gothic Troubadour style and perhaps haunted by King François II, who died here in 1560 by the side of his bride, Mary, Queen of Scots.

A riot of pinnacles and gargoyles embellished with 18th-century wedding-cake towers, the Cathédrale Ste-Croix is both Gothic and pseudo-Gothic. After most of it was destroyed in the 16th century during the Wars of Religion, Henry IV and his successors rebuilt the cathedral. Novelist Marcel Proust (1871–1922) called it France's ugliest church, but most find it impressive. Inside are dramatic stained glass and 18th-century wood carvings, plus the modern Chapelle de Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc Chapel), with a memorial honoring those who died in World War I.

During the 10-day Siege of Orléans in 1429, 17-year-old Joan of Arc stayed on the site of the Maison de Jeanne d'Arc. This faithful reconstruction of the house she knew contains exhibits about her life and costumes and weapons of her time. Several dioramas modeled by Lucien Harmey recount the main episodes in Joan's saintly saga, from the audience at Chinon to the coronation at Reims, her capture at Compiègne, and her burning at the stake at Rouen.

Take the elevator to the top of this five-story building across from the cathedral, then make your way down to see works by such artists as Tintoretto, Velázquez, Watteau, Boucher, Rodin, and Gauguin. The museum's richest collection is its 17th-century French paintings, prints, and drawings, reputedly second only to the Louvre.

Housed in the Hôtel Cabu, a Renaissance mansion restored after World War II, this history and archaeology museum contains works of both "fine" and "popular" art connected with the town's past, including a remarkable collection of pagan bronzes depicting animals and dancers. These were hidden from zealous Christian missionaries in the 4th century and discovered in a sandpit near St-Benoît in 1861. One exhibit is dedicated to the life of Joan of Arc.