Nestled in the heart of the Loire Valley, the city of Tours is surrounded by numerous châteaux.
Whether you're a fan of medieval architecture,royal history or simply in search of beauty and wonder, you're sure to find what you're looking for.
In this article, we share our selection of the best castle near Tours to help you plan your stay.
This guide is completely independent, based on our experiences. We visited the region anonymously, making our own choices and paying our bills in full.
The best castles around Tours: selection
The Loire Valley is packed with châteaux. The list can be very long.
Tours is one of the best destinations for visiting the chateaux of the Loire Valley.
We have:
- selected our favorites and best-known
- listed in order of distance from town
- limited to less than 1 hour's drive from the city
If you don't have much time, we recommend:
- Château de Chenonceau - Book your ticket
- Château de Villandry and its gardens - Book your ticket
Near Tours, you'll find most of the Loire Valley's finest châteaux.
Note on the Château de Tours
There is a castle in the town, but it's only a piece of castle with a museum inside. The photography museum with the Jeu de Paume is interesting, but it's not what travelers to the Loire have in mind.
WHERE TO STAY IN Tours
In the city center
Enjoy the city, its restaurants and beautiful architecture.
- Hotel Ferdinand - check prices, pictures and availability
- Hôtel du Cygne - check prices, pictures and availability
- Hotel L'Adresse - check prices, pictures and availability
Near the station and around the city center
An early train? Or just a little more peace and quiet? Here are our recommendations:
- Hotel Les Trésorières - 5 stars - check prices, pictures and availability
- Aparthotel Central Parc Tours - check prices, pictures and availability
- Hotel Oceania L'Univers Tours - check prices, pictures and availability
In the countryside around
Looking for a bit of peace and quiet, without straying too far from the city of Tours? Here's our suggestion:
- Hotel Domaine de la Tortinière - 20 min away - check prices, pictures and availability
- Hotel Troglododo - unusual 25min away - check prices, pictures and availability
1. Château de Villandry (30 min east)
Villandry impressed us for its breathtaking gardens and their permanent dialogue with the rooms of the castle. The gardens were redesigned in the 20th century according to the rules of the Renaissance and adopt a tiered structure that corresponds to that of the castle. Just gorgeous!
- Near the city of: Tours
- Style: Renaissance
- Of interest for: interior architecture and gardens
- Open to visitors: December and February to mid-November
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
2. Château d'Azay-le-Rideau (30 min west)
The castle of Azay-le-Rideau is for us one of the most poetic of the Loire Valley. Its typically renaissance architecture is magnified by its romantic park and the quietness that emanates from the place.
- Near the city of: Tours
- Style : Renaissance
- Of interest for: outdoor architecture and gardens
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Accommodation available: No
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
3. Château de Langeais (30min west)
Facing outwards, Château de Langeais is a typically defensive medieval castle. On the other side (facing the gardens), it is a typical renaissance royal dwelling. You will enjoy beautiful views of the (very) photogenic castle from the park and you can watch areenactment of the wedding of Anne of Brittany and Charles VIII inside. Royal, right?
- Nearest city: Tours
- Style: medieval and renaissance
- Interesting for: exterior architecture, re-enactment of the royal wedding in Wax dolls
- Open to visitors all year round
- Suitable for children: particularly suitable for children
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
OUR TIPS FOR RENTING A CAR IN Loire
- Compare prices on our preferred platform: DiscoverCars - one of the best rated sites.
- Choose a fairly compact car (many villages have narrowed the road).
- Think aboutfull insurance (parking in big cities is really tight).
- There is a lot of demand, book it early.
4. Montbazon fortress, for children (30min south)
Overlooking the valley of the Indre, it remains of this castral site, a medieval keep of 26 to 28 meters height on 3 levels, as well as a house of the XVth century and fortifications. The site has decided to commit itself to the preservation of medieval know-how and offers workshops, visits and animations to discover the art of ironwork, leatherwork, or even catapult shooting! Really fun...
One of the best castles to visit with children(see our list).
- Nearest city: Tours
- Style: Medieval and Renaissance
- Interesting for: animations
- Opening period: weekends and holidays in April, May, June and September and every day in July and August
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here.
- More photos and tips in our article (coming soon).
5. Château du Clos Lucé (40 min east)
This small castle, located in the town of Amboise, was the last residence of Leonardo da Vinci. It was King Francis I who decided to place this manor at the disposal of the Italian Master who lived there for three years until his death on May 2, 1519. The interior of the castle plunges you into the world of Leonardo da Vinci and the park presents his brilliant inventions and artistic inspiration.
- Nearest city: Amboise
- Style: 15th century
- Suitable for: interiors and gardens
- Open to visitors all year round
- Suitable for children: particularly suitable for children
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
A LITTLE MORE patience
All the photos, maps, information, good addresses to make your stay in the Loire Valley a success, will soon be gathered in a single ebook!
If you wish to be informed of the publication of our guide on the Loire, register:
8. Royal Château of Amboise (40 min east)
With the royal castle of Amboise, you dive into the daily life of the kings of France in the second half of the 15th century and it is really exciting! But if the castle attracts so many visitors today, it is because it is said to house thetomb of the Italian genius and artist, Leonardo da Vinci. We investigated...
- Near the town of: Amboise
- Style: Renaissance
- Interesting for: architecture, Leonardo da Vinci's tomb and gardens overlooking the Loire River
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
7. Château de Chenonceau (45 min east)
For us, the most beautiful castle of the Loire Valley. The Château de Chenonceaux majestically spans the Cher, its magnificent Renaissance architecture reflected in the river. The gardens and interior are also exceptional and we came away intoxicated by so much beauty.
- Close to the town of Amboise
- Style: Renaissance
- Of interest for: exterior and interior architecture, furniture and gardens
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: no
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
8. Château d'Ussé (45 min west)
The castle of Ussé is one of the most enchanting in the Loire Valley and is suitable for children. We liked its architecture that fits so well with the landscape facing the Indre River, and its tiered gardens designed by Le Nôtre. The visit of the interiors, ends with a collection of wax dolls, which plunges us into the famous tales of Charles Perraut who was inspired by Ussé to write "Sleeping Beauty".
- A favorite of Manu's
- Near the city of: Tours
- Style: Renaissance
- Interesting for: exterior architecture, wax doll re-enactments and gardens
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: particularly suitable for children
- Accommodation available: No
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
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9. Château de Saumur (1h west)
The castle of Saumur majestically overlooks the city and the river. From the top of the belvedere, the view is just incredible, certainly one of the finest of the Loire. Thetormented history of the castle is an indispensable testimony of the life in Anjou during nearly a millennium.
- Near the town of: Saumur
- Style: mosaics from the 10th to 16th centuries
- Of interest for: exterior and interior architecture, views and museum of decorative arts
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Accommodation available: No
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
10. Château du Rivau (55 to the west)
The castle of Rivau is a magical castle that tells us about the life of these agricultural regions in the Middle Ages. We loved it! The owners take us back and forth between renaissance and contemporary art, but also between nature and architecture. This is the other (very) strong point of the castle, its 15 remarkable gardens with a resolutely dreamlike universe.
- Claire and Emmanuel's favourites
- Nearest city: Tours
- Style: 17th century
- Interesting for: architecture, interiors and parkland
- Open to visitors: April 1 to November 13
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: yes
- read our complete article (photos and advices) on thevisit of the castle of Rivau.
- read our complete article (photos and reviews) on the hotel du Château du Rivau
11. Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire (55 min, east)
If this medieval castle is today a must-see in the Loire Valley, it is for its gardens! The estate has become the French, if not international, reference for contemporary gardens. It offers 13 permanent gardens that preserve the horticultural heritage and 24 ephemeral gardens created around an annual theme. It is in this enchanting setting that the Chaumont-sur-Loire castle stands.
- Nearest city: Blois
- Style: medieval
- Interesting for: gardens
- Open to visitors all year round - garden festival from late April to early November
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: yes
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
11. Château de Blois (1h west)
Certainly one of the richest castles of the Loire. The different buildings cover six centuries of architecture and the furniture on display plunges you into the great hours of the Renaissance in breathtaking settings. If that's not enough for you (let's face it...), the castle is home to the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Blois.
- Nearest city: Blois
- Style: 13th to 17th century
- Of interest for: exterior and interior architecture, furniture, museum
- Open to visitors all year round
- Child-friendly: activities designed to appeal to children
- Possibility of accommodation: yes
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article (coming soon).
Château de Chambord 1h10 to the west
Certainly, the most impressive castle of the Loire. Its massive architecture did not leave us indifferent. The embodiment of the know-how of this crazy and creative period that was the Renaissance, thedouble helix staircase of Leonardo da Vinci, which combines technical excellence and ornament.
- Near the town of: Blois
- Style: Renaissance
- Interesting for: exterior and interior architecture
- Open to visitors all year round
- Suitable for children: particularly suitable for children
- Possibility of accommodation: yes
- See the timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article
And if you can't decide between Chenonceau and Chambord, read our comparison.
Château de Cheverny 1h05 to the west
The castle of Cheverny was built in the 17th century, but it became part of the history of the Loire castles when Hergé was inspired to make the famous castle of Moulinsart in which Tintin is held prisoner, before becoming the property of the volcanic Captain Haddock. In addition to a museum dedicated to these paper characters, Claire was delighted by the château's vast park, which can be visited by electric buggy and boat, and its remarkable trees.
- Nearest city: Tours
- Style: 17th century
- Interesting for: Tintin Park and Museum
- Open to visitors all year round
- Suitable for children: particularly suitable for children
- Possibility of accommodation: yes
- Timetable on the official website here
- More photos and tips in our article (coming soon).
DISCOVER Tours
- Things to do in Tours
- Where to sleep in Tours: best hotels
- Where to eat in Tours: best restaurants - coming soon
- Rent a car in Tours
- Best castles around Tours
- Visit the Tours Museum of Fine Arts - coming soon
- Visit the Basilica of Saint Martin in Tours - coming soon
- Visit the Botanical Garden of Tours - coming soon
- Visit Saint-Gatien Cathedral
- Visit the Companionship Museum - coming soon
Other castles near Tours
- Chinon fortress (50min east)
- Château de Montsoreau (55min west)
- Château du Lude (1h north-west)
- Montresor village and castle (1h south-east)
- Château de Gizeux (50min west)
- Village and Château de Lavardin (55min north)
- Château de l'Islette (30min west)
- Domaine de Candé (30min south)
- Royal City of Loches (50min south of Tours)
- ...
PLAN YOUR TRIP IN
Loire Valley
The castles of the Loire Valley
Other places to explore
Practice
