Le Tour 2005 - A Virtual Cultural Trip

Well, I think, such a tour around the castles - and there are still some to come! - is tireing.

(It's not really bedtime here, though )

So let's look for comfortable room in a nice hotel.

Hotel? Did I really write 'hotel' when talking here about 'castles'?

What we need is a room in a turret, a ghost in the wardrobe and a vineyard on our doorstep that is «un château avec un établissement hôtelier» = a castle-hotel = a night at the castle.



Brimful of chateaux and wine, the Loire is the place for history addicts and gastronomes. But while it's easy to find the nine different types of wine, including Vouvray and Chinon, that are marked on a route by the tourist board, the large choice of chateau hotels can be confusing.

I've picked out a handful of those, which are considered to be the region's best. (All have pools in the summer and heating in the winter, though many close from November to February.)

Remember, however, that the French word for "purse" is «porte-monnaie », from porter to carry (and not 'spend'!) + monnaie coined money

Château de Marçay

Address
37500 Marçay-Chinon
Centre
Phone: 33 (02) 47 93 03 47
Fax: 33 (02) 47 93 45 33

Four-star.




Once a defensive fortress, this chateau is now high enough in the comfort zone for the likes of Prince Charles. It was also a favourite of former French president François Mitterrand. The food is superb, though you won't get much change from 80 € for three courses, and that doesn't include a bottle of the local Chinon wine to wash it down. The modern bathrooms are particularly impressive in rooms 22 and 25, where they are built into the timbered turrets.

The 40 rooms have beams and chimney places, but some are a bit spartan and are not that well insulated against noise. Though the small doubles with shower are attractively priced, don't bother staying in them; they are so small, you'll feel like a serf shut away behind their doors. Plump for the top floor (with lift) with its sloping ceilings for the most character. Rooms in the chateau are better than those in an adjoining wing and the more recently built pavilion; those with a view of the park are quieter than the rooms that are overlooking the pretty courtyard.


Chateaux to visit nearby: Chinon, Ussé, Azay-le-Rideau.

Château de Marçay website

Domaine de la Tortinière

Address :
Route de Ballan Miré
Les Gués de Veigné
37250 MONTBAZON
Tél. : 33 (02) 47 34 35 00
Fax : 33 (02) 47 65 95 70

Three stars.





Domaine de la Tortinière, built in 1861, has a most impressive exterior, an inviting interior, and charming hosts Xavier and his wife Anne.
This graceful nineteenth-century chateau is a member of the Silence Hotel marketing group, with an emphasis on a quiet setting and a warm welcome. Both are evident here, in the middle of 30 acres of grounds, where each of the very comfortable rooms has a complimentary decanter of a local pre-dinner drink.
Decorated in chintzy English style, the 11 chateau rooms are spread over three floors connected by a leaning staircase rather than a lift.
Though only three-star, the chateau is more comfortable than some of its four-star counterparts. Room number 12 stands out, with its small bedroom in the turret and a much larger sitting room.
There are another 18 rooms in a tastefully decorated modern pavilion not far from the chateau, where the huge number 31 has a wood floor and a beautiful view from its private terrace. Number 34, though much smaller, is particularly good value.
The bar and sitting room in the chateau are decorated in panelled wood with ornate ceilings and overlook the terrace and gardens.
As well as French politicians, actors Gérard Depardieu and Audrey Hepburn have stayed here.


Chateaux to visit nearby: Villandry, Azay-le-Rideau.



Domaine de la Tortinière website

Château de Chissay

Address
41400 Chissay en Touraine
Centre
Phone: +33 (02) 54 32 32 01
Fax: +33 (02) 54 32 43 80

Four stars.



The tower, containing a small old chapel, dates back to the Middle Ages in this old fortified castle. Chissay has a colourful history, with guests including Charles VII, Louis XI and even Charles de Gaulle. Its 32 rooms are all decorated differently - some are very sombre but others, such as number 34, has bags of character with asloping roof and beams, plus a Jacuzzi. Number 1 has a quaint painted arched ceiling with beams and a four-poster bed. The three floors are connected by a lift; only those on the second and third floors have beams. There is also one troglodyte room dug out from solid rock, which is particularly popular with British clients.

Rooms overlooking the courtyard are less expensive than those overlooking the park or valley. The chateau stands in 25 acres of grounds.

Chateaux to visit nearby: Chenonceaux, Cheverny, Chambord, Chaumont and Blois.

Château de Chissay website

Château de Noizay

Address
Route de Chançay
37210 Noizay
Centre
Phone: +33 (02 )47 52 11 01
Fax: +33 (02) 47 52 04 64

Four stars



The elegant façade of this sixteenth-century chateau gives you a taste of what lies inside - an impressive sloping wooden staircase with accompanying suit of armour, tapestries and stag head, and rooms with four-poster beds, old oak furniture and leather chairs. With Vouvray's vineyards not far from the front door, it all makes for a very pleasant stay.

During the French Wars of Religion, the Protestants conspired to abduct the young Francis II, held by the Catholic Duke of Guise. Noizay was used as the conspirators' headquarters as it was close to Amboise, where the royal court had moved. The conspirators were betrayed, Noizay was besieged and the unlucky Protestants were hanged from the balcony at Amboise.

It's worth paying top whack for the best rooms - number 5 is one of the nicest. There is no lift to the 14 rooms in the chateau, but five rooms are in an outside pavilion.

Chateaux to visit nearby: Amboise.

Château de Noizay website

Château de la Bourdaisière

25 rue de La Bourdaisière
37270 Montlouis-sur-Loire
Centre
Phone: +33 (02) 47 45 16 31
Fax: +33 (02) 47 45 09 11





Built by Francis I for his mistress, Marie Gaudin, the chateau was also the birthplace of Henry IV's favourite Gabrielle d'Estrées. Set in nearly 140 acres of grounds, it is famous for its kitchen garden, which, as well as those tomatoes, has 35 sorts of mint. You can try and spot the differences in a tasting workshop. If you're really into tomatoes, the best time to visit is in the summer season; there's a tomato festival mid-September.

The chateau is owned by the Prince de Broglie, who sometimes greets guests. The 14 rooms in the main building and six in an outer pavilion are decorated in period style and have open beams and fireplaces, although in some places the carpet looks a bit worn. The Henry IV room, with its canopied bed, huge fireplace, big wooden floor bathroom and original ceiling, is top of the range. The sitting room is particularly welcoming with its huge open fireplace, classical music and scattered reference books.

Chateaux to visit nearby: Amboise, Chenonceaux.


Château de la Bourdaisière website

Château de Pray

Address
Route de Chargé
37400 Amboise
Centre
Phone: +33 (02) 47 57 23 67
Fax: +33 (02) 47 57 32 50





You almost bump into the suit of armour in the hall of this medieval castle, which comes with a complimentary ghost, Arthur. The restaurant boasts a timbered ceiling, coats of arms and swords on the chimney and there's a panelled tea room. Not surprisingly, Americans flock here; 80 per cent of the guests are from North America. Once an important stronghold, this turreted building became a place of residence during the Renaissance and in 1631 came into the possession of the commissioner of artillery to the Queen of England.

The icing on the cake in this small chateau, with just 15 rooms in the main building (no lift) and four in the Renaissance pavilion, is that it offers great value for money. Number 9, one of its least expensive rooms.The rooms are all tastefully decorated with period furniture and the more expensive have four-poster beds.


Chateaux to visit nearby: Amboise.


Château de Pray website

So far I like Chateau de Chissay best - the pool design amuses me. Well, any are fine, really.

Tis a problem to pick one. Which do you like best, Walter?

To be honest: I didn't even notice it, but you are right

(Looking through offline books and references, I was trying to find some reliable critics online referring to some dozens of castle-hotels instead. :wink: )

Well, those hotels are a bit out of the reach of what my bank clerk advises me.

But the Château de Pray would be one, I could imagine to stay for a couple of nights.

Hmm, I also like Tortiniere and du Pray, for charm.

I finally found a close up photo of the pool, and like it less closer up.. from the overhead shot, it looks like the most elegant of the pool designs, with a bit of the look of a parterre scalloping of the edges. That is true, but the planting is a bit ratty...

Amboise:

town, Indre-et-Loire département, Centre-Val-de-Loire région, central France, on both banks of the Loire River, east of Tours. It is the site of a late Gothic château (with Renaissance additions), one of a great company of castles in the rich, rolling Loire country.

The town was first mentioned in 504 as Ambatia, when on the isle of Saint-Jean (now Île d'Or), Clovis, king of the Franks, met Alaric II, king of the Visigoths, to make a short-lived pact. In the 11th century Fulk III Nerra, count of Anjou, took the town from the count of Blois and built a high, square stone keep, from which the present château emerged.

Thrusting up from a rock above the river, the château has a three-story facade flanked by two enormous squat towers. It was a favourite residence of French monarchs from the mid-15th century to the 17th century. Charles VIII, who was born and died there, brought artists from Italy to embellish the château.

Huguenot efforts to remove Francis II from the influence of the House of Guise were exposed in 1560 as the Conspiracy of Amboise, and subsequently Protestant corpses hung from the balcony of the king's house, a Gothic portion of the château. Nevertheless, the Édict d'Amboise (1563) granted freedom of worship to Protestant nobility and gentry. From the time of Henry IV, the château was often used as a prison, and Abdelkader, the Algerian national leader, was confined there (1848-52). In 1872, after private owners had razed portions of the château, the National Assembly voted its return to the Orléans family.

In the town itself the 16th-century town hall is a museum. The Porte de l'Horloge is a 15th-century gateway with a carillon.

To the southeast is Le Clos-Lucé, formerly the castle of Cloux, where Leonardo da Vinci died; it is now a museum.
Immediately south is the seven-tiered Pagoda of Chanteloup, a piece of 18th-century chinoiserie.
The local economy is diversified. Industrial development has extended there from Paris and includes the manufacture of precision instruments, pharmaceuticals, and vehicle components. Amboise is also the centre of the local winemaking industry and is an important tourist destination.

Clos Luce



Clos Luce is in Amboise near Chateau d'Amboise and it is where da Vinci lived out the remaining three years of his life. His bed upon which he died is on display. The 15th century manor was given to Leonardo da Vinci by François I. The painter, engineer and inventor moved there in 1516 to work on the reconstruction of the Château d'Amboise and perhaps at Chambord. His last project was the digging canals connecting the different chateaux in the Loire by placing dams and locks on the river. Not only was this man an artist and inventor, but a great engineer.


St. Hubert Chapel


This little gothic chapel is situated inside the area of the king castle in Amboise. In the chapel is the last resting place of Leonardo da Vinci. Originally Leonardo was buried in the heart of the king castle in the cloister of San Fiorentino. After destruction of the church and parts of the castle the mortal remains of Leonardo da Vinci were transferred to the Chapel of St. Hubert.

The Pagoda of Chanteloup, high and located in a park of 14 hectares 44 meters was built in 1775 by the architect Camus. It is the Duke of Choiseul: minister of Louis XV, disgraced and exiled with Chanteloup, which decided construction of it. His top, one can enjoy an exceptional panorama on the Loire Valley and the forest of Amboise. It is, with its water part, the only vestige of the large castle, destroyed by the " Black Band " in 1823, whose splendour is evoked through an exposure taking place in the House of the caretaker.

Château d' Azay-le-Rideau




Château d'Azay-le-Rideau has all the best aspects of Loire castles; beautiful architecture, resplendent interior and lovely gardens. There is a terrace and promenade around the foot of the castle with an old chapel and outbuildings to explore


Erected on an Indre island in 1518 by Gilles Berthelot, financier of François I, Azay-le-Rideau is a jewel of Renaissance art in Loire country. Its architecture which ideally combines French tradition and Italian influence has come down to us unaltered. The sumptuously furnished interior apartments house a collection of French and Flemish 16 and 17C tapestries. The romantic gardens provide beautiful views of the castle and of the Indre banks.

Azay-le-Rideau, town and château, Indre-et-Loire département, Centre région, central France. The town lies along the Indre River a few miles upstream from its confluence with the Loire River, about 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Tours. Originally the site of a Roman villa, the town was known in the 12th century as Azayum. When the French dauphin (later Charles VII) was insulted by the Burgundian guard as he passed through the town in 1418, he had the captain and his 350 soldiers executed and the town put to the torch. For the next 100 years it was thus known as Azay-le-Brûlé ("Azay the Burnt"). The town is built at the foot of a hill by the river and is a maze of narrow, twisting streets.
Azay-le-Rideau is best known for a splendid château that is one of the finest examples of French architecture in the 16th century. The château was built (1518-29) by Gilles Berthelot, whose wife, Philippa, directed the work. Partly constructed on piles, it projects out into the Indre River. The château is surrounded by a wooded park and is an elegant Renaissance building, two stories high, with turrets and sharply pointed roofs. State-owned since 1905, it is now furnished as a Renaissance museum.










The gardens surrounding the chateau are filled with trees from exotic places; cedar from the Atlas, Cypress from America, sequoia, and ginkgo from Asia. The gardens are very serene with ponds and lush vegetation, so nice and cool on a hot summer day.

Château du Rivau

37120 Lémeré



Fortified in 1445 by the des Beauvau family, this castle has preserved its defensive paraphernalia. It is surrounded by 15 and 16C buildings among which a Renaissance fountain. Visited by Joan of Arc and immortalized by Rabelais, it houses 16C frescoes and a collection of attires. The twelve gardens devoted to medieval poetics such as Gargantua's kitchen garden or the loving wood are positively enchanting. Activities: riddle course, Fairies and imps fair (July) and pumpkin festival (September).

The gardens :
On 12 acres, the sensitively re-created garden, are inspired by 15th and 16th-century illuminated manuscripts. Traditional combined with modern techniques provide a joyful experience of Nature and a treat for all the senses.



The checkerboard of the secret garden is resplendent in May-June with a collection of apothecary roses. Climbing old roses shelter the tunnel arbour.
The delightful border of perennials has dazzingly brilliant colours in June-July.
The flowery meadow flourishes in July with the nostalgic charm of field poppies and cornflowers.
The knot garden is scented with santolina and lavender, during August.
The huge vegetables of Gargantua' potager are ready to be eaten in August.
The box walk allows visitors to embrace the terraced view over the whole site.
The orchard of Paradise shows its collection of ancient fruit trees.
The enchanted forest with its various trees, and the Cassinina brings shady retreats and benches to sit and contemplate during the hot days of summer.
A display of old vines enlights the September days.
Fall blazes up in the woods at Le Rivau.



Rustic wooden arbours, collection of hollyhocks, peonies, Irises combine with the giant sculptures imagined by Basserode in the running forest.
But reality blends with the imagination here, at Le Rivau. The plants are perennials, shrubs and trees, but also vegetables and agricultural species. Le Rivau is dedicated to preservation of indigenous and historical plants, protection of local fauna, and saving of the rural environment.

Château du Rivau website