The Loire Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Central France, is soaked in history and beauty. It is also one of the most well known areas of wine production in the world. Are you sold yet?
While planning my trip to France, I knew I wanted to visit the Loire Valley, because I love history, wine, and the work of Leonardo Da vinci, who may not originally be from France, but did spend the last 3 years of his life in the Loire Valley, and is buried there. So, I planned a day trip with Paris Tours — City Wonders. After a 3 hour drive from Paris, we arrived, and I have to say, as much as I loved Paris (more about that in a future blog) our time spent in the valley was the highlight of our trip to France.
You can feel the history as you are driving through the villages, sipping local wines, and strolling through castles. Our tour guides for the day were so informative, and learning the history of the region while actually exploring it was the best way to experience it.
We stopped at 3 locations throughout our day, with the first, being Chateau de Chambord, which was constructed by King Francis I.
While planning my trip to France, I knew I wanted to visit the Loire Valley, because I love history, wine, and the work of Leonardo Da vinci, who may not originally be from France, but did spend the last 3 years of his life in the Loire Valley, and is buried there. So, I planned a day trip with Paris Tours — City Wonders. After a 3 hour drive from Paris, we arrived, and I have to say, as much as I loved Paris (more about that in a future blog) our time spent in the valley was the highlight of our trip to France.
You can feel the history as you are driving through the villages, sipping local wines, and strolling through castles. Our tour guides for the day were so informative, and learning the history of the region while actually exploring it was the best way to experience it.
We stopped at 3 locations throughout our day, with the first, being Chateau de Chambord, which was constructed by King Francis I.
Chateau de Chambord is a gorgeous Chateau, with French Renaissance architecture. It is the largest Chateau in the Loire Valley, and it's original purpose was a hunting lode for King Francis, although we learned he didn't actually spend much time here. Construction started in 1519, and in 1972 during the French Revolution, many of the belongings on the inside were removed and sold, and it was left abandoned for some time. It is now a popular tourist attraction with well kept grounds, a gift shop, and restaurants along the exterior. Inside the Chateau, it is quite bare. Even the wood from the floors was sold during the Revolution. The most interesting part for me, was the double helix staircase, which is rumored to have been designed by none other than Leonardo Da Vinci.
Our second stop, was at the much smaller Chateau of Nitray. We were served a delicious lunch here which was of course accompanied with a wine pairing for each course. Chateau of Nitray is family owned, and the family personally prepared our lunch, and while our group ate at a large, wooden table, the family ate in a smaller room behind us. The food was fresh and absolutely delicious, with fresh bread, 2 options of cheese (also fresh and local), salads, chicken, potatoes, and roasted tomatoes, followed by apple pie (much different than what we are used to in North America) for dessert. We purchased some of their sweeter wine to bring back to Canada with us, for the extremely affordable price of only 4 euros per bottle. This wine can only be purchased at their winery, nowhere else in France, or the world, sells it.
The family who owns the Chateau made us feel very welcome and at home during our short time with them. They live in the Chateau and you can sense the great amount of pride they take in it, as well as their wonderful wines.
Sitting at the large lunch table, surrounded by people from all over the world (we had people in our group from America, Canada, England, Australia and Asia, just to name a few) while drinking wine, eating delicious food and sharing stories, all while sitting in the French countryside was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget.
The family who owns the Chateau made us feel very welcome and at home during our short time with them. They live in the Chateau and you can sense the great amount of pride they take in it, as well as their wonderful wines.
Sitting at the large lunch table, surrounded by people from all over the world (we had people in our group from America, Canada, England, Australia and Asia, just to name a few) while drinking wine, eating delicious food and sharing stories, all while sitting in the French countryside was a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget.
Our third, and final stop of our day was at Chateau de Chenonceau. This Chateau is surrounded by the most gorgeous property, full of bright gardens, smaller guest buildings, and paths lined with trees, and spanning across the River Cher.
The Chateau was build in 1514, and today, other than the Palace of Versailles, it is the most visited Chateau in all of France and it isn't hard to understand why. Being here was like going back in time, and the history around the Chateau was the most interesting part of our day, our guides did a fantastic job of explaining it all to our group. From learning about this Chateau being a gift from a King, to his mistress, to the fact it was bombed, twice, during world war 2, and only the windows were destroyed. Every part of this place had a different story to tell.
There was a wine tasting area as well, where we sampled different wines from the region. There were wines available for purchase, ranging in price and age. There is also a restaurant on site, where all of the ingredients come from the gardens located on the grounds of the Chateau. We didn't try it, but heard great things from our guides.
The Chateau was build in 1514, and today, other than the Palace of Versailles, it is the most visited Chateau in all of France and it isn't hard to understand why. Being here was like going back in time, and the history around the Chateau was the most interesting part of our day, our guides did a fantastic job of explaining it all to our group. From learning about this Chateau being a gift from a King, to his mistress, to the fact it was bombed, twice, during world war 2, and only the windows were destroyed. Every part of this place had a different story to tell.
There was a wine tasting area as well, where we sampled different wines from the region. There were wines available for purchase, ranging in price and age. There is also a restaurant on site, where all of the ingredients come from the gardens located on the grounds of the Chateau. We didn't try it, but heard great things from our guides.
To close this entry, I will leave you with this. If you ever have the chance to visit the the Loire Vaelly and see all of its beauty for yourself- don't hesitate. Do it. I almost didn't, because the thought of a 3 hour drive (one way) from Paris just was not appealing, even though I knew I really wanted to go. Combine that, with drinking a little too much rose the night before.. it almost didn't happen. However, I am so glad it did. Our group was great, so many different people from all over the world, and our guides, Violet and Tina, made the experience so much better than I ever expected it could be.
As previously mentioned, this really was the highlight of our time in France, and something I won't ever forget.
So, if you are planning a trip to France, include this in your itinerary. I promise you won't regret it.
As previously mentioned, this really was the highlight of our time in France, and something I won't ever forget.
So, if you are planning a trip to France, include this in your itinerary. I promise you won't regret it.