Paris to the Loire Valley

As planned, we walked about 10 minutes from the Best Western hotel to the Gare du Nord train station to pick up the rental car from Alamo at 11am.  Upon arriving, the staff told us they have bad news for us.  The truck that was supposed to bring the cars from the airport to the train station broke down.  We have to wait for another 2 hours.  Someone was going to drive our car to the train station.  For all the inconvenience the manager gave us a 20% discount on the rental rate plus allowing us to return the car a little later than the 2pm.

We took the elevator down 7 floors below the train station to pick up the car.  It was an interesting experience as you spiral upwards to the street level.  The GPS activated and off we go, trying to get out of Paris.  There was traffic jam on the highway so it took us about an hour to get out of Paris traffic.  Once we got on the the A10 highway it was smooth sailing.  It look about 3 hours to drive to Tours in the Loire Valley.  This area is referred to as the Cradle of the French and Garden of France because of its abundance of vineyards, farms and fruit orchards.  The central part of the Loire Valley is designed  UNESCO World Heritage Site.

I booked a room at the L' ADRESSE Boutique Hotel.  Following the GPS we couldn't find the hotel.  I had to pull to a parking spot and called the hotel.  The owner told me to park at an underground garage in the Place des Halles shopping center.  I drove around but couldn't find the entrance to the garage.  I stopped and asked another motorist and he told me that this is the building and the entrance is just around the corner as I turn left.  Finally I found the entrance and parked 2 levels down.  Now we have to find the hotel.

Sometimes it's not easy to follow Google Map.  The hotel looks like it's only a few minutes away but trying to find the right street to get there is not easy.  Finally, we walked into a pedestrian mall and start to look for rue de la rôtisserie.  Eventually, we found the hotel right in the middle of all these restaurants.  It must have been a special night for Tours because the whole place was packed with people eating and drinking.  It looked like everyone in Tours was in this area.

L' ADRESSE Boutique Hotel

Chinese restaurant next to the hotel

We had a few good conversations with the owner of the Chinese restaurant next to the hotel in Mandarin and Cantonese.  We ate there once.  It is a popular restaurant.  There are many ethnic restaurants in in the neighborhood.

Narrow Street where hotel is located

Art statue in the pedestrian mall

Farmers' Market

Empty tables during the day but very busy at night

On the first day we planned to visit two famous chateaus:  Château de Chambord  and Château Chenonceau.  There are many Châteaus in the Loire Valley but these are the two most famous.

What is a château?  According to Wikipedia:

 

A château (French pronunciation: ​[ʃɑˈto]; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions.

Nowadays a château may be any stately residence built in a French style; the term is additionally often used for a winegrower's estate, especially in the Bordeaux region of France.[1]

Read more about châteaus here

Château de Chambord

The first château we visited was the Château de Chambord.  We drove about an hour from Tours, through the beautiful Loire Valley countryside.  Having a GPS to guide you and take you to unexpected roads is a joy.  Instead of taking the main highways, we drove to narrow country roads where we are next to French farms and rivers.  Château de Chambord was built in the 14th century by the King of France.  It is the largest and most recognizable château.  Even though it was a weekday and not the tourist season, there were many visitors.  Below are some different views of the château:

Kitchen

Hallway

Outside view

Rear View

A Living Room

The second château we visited was the Château de Chenonceau.  It took a little over an hour to drive from the first to the second château.  This is another well-know château in the Loire Valley that spans the Cher river, near the village of Chenonceau.  It was also build in the 14th century by French royalty and went through several ownerships. It is the most visited château in the Loire Valley.

Château de Chenonceau

Kitchen Knives

Water Jug

A Royal Bed

Another Royal Bed

On our last day in Tours we walked around and explore the city.  The city has a youthful feel to it.  That's because it's a college town, with about 30,000 students at the University of Tours.  It sits next to the Loire River.  

Tours Cathedral

An Alley

A Typical Building

Loire River

Basketball is popular here too

Street Dining is popular here

A Religious Procession

Although off the beaten tourist path, the Loire Valley is a beautiful area.  It is difficult to get to without a car because everything is so spread out.  However, if you can rent a car, it's worth the visit.