The Loire Valley is full of historic towns, castles and monuments dating back to the Gallo-Roman period, but not only! Discover here some of the activities to do less than one hour from The Clos de la Rousselière.
CHÂTEAU DE CHENONCEAU
Chenonceau was built, fitted out and transformed by women who were very different in their temperament. It was built by Katherine Briçonnet in 1513, enriched by Diane de Poitiers and enlarged under Catherine de Médicis. It became a place of meditation with “the white queen”, Louise de Lorraine, then it was saved by Louise Dupin during the French Revolution and finally, transformed by Madame Pelouze.
Due to the large number of female personalities who have been in charge of it, it is nicknamed “the castle of the Ladies”.
5 minutes
Due to the large number of female personalities who have been in charge of it, it is nicknamed “the castle of the Ladies”.
5 minutes
BEAUVAL ZOO
The Zoo and the equatorial dome are home to 800 species, some of which are unique in France, such as giant pandas and Tasmanian devils.
In 2020, Beauval is opening a giant greenhouse 38 meters high offering a walk in the heart of lush vegetation and 200 species.
30 minutes
Google rating 4,7 / 5
VILLE D’AMBOISE
Located on the banks of the Loire, the city owes its fame to the castle of Amboise which dominates it, to the clock tower, to the Saint-Denis church, to the castle of Clos Lucé where Leonardo da Vinci died. , the royal domain of Château-Gaillard built by Charles VIII in 1496 (including the gardens laid out by Pacello da Mercogliano) and the pagoda of Chanteloup. His name is also attached to the bloody “conspiracy of Amboise” of March 1560.
20 minutes
CHÂTEAU DU CLOS LUCÉ
The residence of Clos Lucé, formerly called the manor of Cloux, is a residence located in France, in the heart of the Loire Valley, in the city center of Amboise. Originally designed in 1471 as a former stronghold under the Château d’Amboise, it passed through several hands before being bought by Charles VIII and becoming a summer residence for the kings of France. He will keep this function until 1516 when François I puts it at the disposal of Leonardo da Vinci, who will live there for three years, until his death on May 2, 1519.
As the house of Leonardo da Vinci, it is classified as a historic monument by the 1862 list.
As the house of Leonardo da Vinci, it is classified as a historic monument by the 1862 list.
20 minutes
CHAUMONT SUR LOIRE
The Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire is located in the Loire Valley, on the banks of the Loire, between Amboise and Blois, in France. It is the subject of classifications as historical monuments by the list of 1840, as well as in 1937 and 1955.
Every year, it hosts the International Garden Festival in its gardens.
Every year, it hosts the International Garden Festival in its gardens.
30 minutes
CHÂTEAU GAILLARD
The Château-Gaillard estate was a “laboratory” of the French Renaissance: the first garden of acclimatization in France with the creation of the first French royal orangery, the first garden of the French Renaissance created by Dom Pacello da Mercogliano with the creation of the first axial landscape perspective and the first parterres “à la française”, the first French transposition of Italian Renaissance architecture embodied by the Medici villas in Florence.
20 minutes
VILLE DE MONTRICHARD
Municipality in the east of Touraine in the department of Loir-et-Cher, on the banks of the Cher between Tours and Vierzon. The landscapes are mixed: vineyards, woods, livestock and cereals. Flat Cher valley to the south, limestone hillside (tuff) to the north, with troglodyte dwellings specific to the Centre-Val de Loire region, wine cellars and mushroom farms.
15 minutes
CHÂTEAU DE CHAMBORD
Built in the heart of the largest enclosed forest park in Europe (approximately 50 km2 surrounded by a 32 km long wall), it is the largest of the Loire castles. It benefits from a pleasure garden and a hunting park classified as historical monuments. Chambord is the only royal domain still intact since its creation.
60 minutes
GRAND AQUARIUM DE TOURAINE
Located near the Loire, it is the largest freshwater aquarium in Europe (5,000 m2) and is made up of 70 pools including a 30-meter-long freshwater tunnel housing species from this river but also oceans around the world. A total of 12,000 fish are staged in two million liters of water.
25 minutes
MUSÉE MATRA
Opened in May 2000 in an old factory located in the heart of Romorantin, this municipal museum is dedicated to the memory of the company Matra automobiles, a company closely linked to this city, which was an innovation laboratory during the 1960s. to 2000 both by its presence in competition (Formula 1, Formula 2, Formula 3 but also Sport-prototypes and endurance (in particular 24 hours of Le Mans), but also explorer of new automotive concepts on behalf of major French manufacturers such as Simca-Talbot , PSA, Renault with atypical vehicles such as the Matra 530, Bagheera, Murena and Rancho, or the Renault Espace
45 minutes
Note Google 4,7
VILLE DE TOURS
Former Caesarodunum city of the Turones, founded by Augustus, capital of the IIIrd Lyonnaise with one of the largest amphitheaters of the Roman Empire. National sanctuary with Saint Martin, Gregory of Tours and Alcuin under the Merovingians and the Carolingians, with the adoption by the Capetians of the local currency, the Tournament pound, which would become the currency of the kingdom. Capital of the county of Tours which will become Touraine, the garden of France4. First city of the silk industry, wanted by Louis XI, royal capital under the Valois with its castles of the Loire and city of art with the School of Tours. Capital of loyalty for Henri III and Henri IV during the wars of Religion and city of fallback in June 1940 which will be worth to him to be partly destroyed.
The White and Blue city is a city of art and history with its remarkable Vieux-Tours heritage site. The garden city concentrates a green heritage and an urban landscape strongly influenced by its natural space6. The historic city that is nicknamed Le Petit Paris7 and its region by its history and its culture, have always been a birthplace or home to many personalities, international sports meetings, a university town with more than 30,000 students in 2019. Culinary city with its specialties rillettes, rillons, Touraine vineyards, its AOC Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine cheeses and its nougats.
The White and Blue city is a city of art and history with its remarkable Vieux-Tours heritage site. The garden city concentrates a green heritage and an urban landscape strongly influenced by its natural space6. The historic city that is nicknamed Le Petit Paris7 and its region by its history and its culture, have always been a birthplace or home to many personalities, international sports meetings, a university town with more than 30,000 students in 2019. Culinary city with its specialties rillettes, rillons, Touraine vineyards, its AOC Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine cheeses and its nougats.
40 minutes
CHÂTEAU DE VILLANDRY
The last of the great palaces that were built on the banks of the Loire in the 16th century, the Château de Villandry, brings a final touch to the research of the First French Renaissance2 while announcing the achievements of Ancy-le-Franc (Burgundy) and Ecouen (Ile-de-France).
The current gardens of the Château de Villandry are the result of a patient reconstruction carried out in 1906 by Doctor Joachim Carvallo from old plates and texts by the architect Jacques Androuet du Cerceau, dealing then with a typical Renaissance garden. of the sixteenth century.
This estate now occupies an area of more than six hectares arranged on four levels of terraces3.
The whole of the castle and its gardens was registered on April 12, 1927 on the list of historical monuments before being definitively classified on September 4, 19344. The estate is now part of the UNESCO world heritage.
The current gardens of the Château de Villandry are the result of a patient reconstruction carried out in 1906 by Doctor Joachim Carvallo from old plates and texts by the architect Jacques Androuet du Cerceau, dealing then with a typical Renaissance garden. of the sixteenth century.
This estate now occupies an area of more than six hectares arranged on four levels of terraces3.
The whole of the castle and its gardens was registered on April 12, 1927 on the list of historical monuments before being definitively classified on September 4, 19344. The estate is now part of the UNESCO world heritage.
40 minutes
CITÉ ROYALE DE LOCHES
The castle of Loches is a former fortified castle, from the first third of the 11th century, which stands in the Loire Valley, in the French town of Loches in the department of Indre-et-Loire, in the Center-Val de Loire region , in the heart of the royal city built on a rocky outcrop surrounded by a wall. This city includes, in addition to the dungeon, the royal residence and the Saint-Ours collegiate church.
The castle is partially protected as historical monuments.
The castle is partially protected as historical monuments.
25 minutes
PARC DES MINI CHÂTEAUX
This park offers more than 44 miniature reproductions of the high places of its region and in particular the prestigious castles of the Loire. All on a plot of more than 2 hectares, landscaped with some 2,000 bonsais, for a course of 1.5 kilometers.
The models presented are on a 1/25th scale.
The models presented are on a 1/25th scale.
15 minutes
VILLE DE BLOIS
Historically, the city was the capital of the county of Blois, created in 956, maintained by the eponymous house until its integration into the royal domain in 1397. During the Renaissance, King Louis XII established his court there and made it his royal residence. . The city has preserved an important cultural heritage, including its castle, the Saint-Louis cathedral, the Saint-Nicolas church and the Jacques-Gabriel bridge.
40 minutes
VILLE DE CHINON
Placed on the course of the Vienne, in a strategic position on the borders of Touraine, Anjou and Poitou, endowed with a rocky outcrop fortified since Antiquity, the city, with its imposing fortress, has long played a key defensive role. Chinon is one of the favorite strongholds of the Plantagenets. Jean sans Terre lost it to Philippe Auguste, who added him to the domains of the Crown of France. Seat of the court under Charles VII, place of his meeting with Joan of Arc, the city will leave the royal bosom only to pass into the hands of Cardinal de Richelieu and his family, who keep it until the Revolution.
60 minutes