Chenonceau Touring -
The Beautiful French Castle Spanning the Cher River

Château Chenonceau Touring - This beautiful ornate castle is only 13 kms or 20 mins from Ambroise by car. The trip from Blois centre would take under an hour, or, a little over 1 ½ hours drive from Paris, using the autoroute.



This Renaissance château encompasses pretty much all the imagery that the word "Château" would conjure: ornate architecture with spires and turrets, fairytale round tower, romantic balconies, tapestries, art works, period furnishings, a forest, a river, an alleyway of trees, structured topiary flower beds, garden maze and even a farm. The only thing it lacks is a true moat, but the river Cher naturally serves this purpose, as the château is actually built over its width. This château is one of our top three favourites (the other two being Château de Villandry and Château de Blois) . You can easily spend a day here and not be disappointed that you didn't go anywhere else.


The Chateau's romantic impression is further highlighted by the fact that in French history, it was a favourite residence of a few famous mistresses and wives, such as Henry the II's companion, Diane of Poitiers and later his wife, Catherine de Medici. Prior to this François I possessed it for a time and often took his mistress here when he enjoyed the sport of hunting in the adjoining forest. Also Louise of Lorraine mourned the loss of her husband Henry III here. At an added cost to your entry fee, you can see portrayals of all the famous women of Chenonceau, in full period costume, at the wax museum (Musée de Cires).




The beautiful topiary gardens (of which there are two) were each designed by Diane of Poitiers and Catherine de Medici and accordigly named. There are beds of roses & collections of rare plants.





Inside the Château there are numerous prints and paintings. Attention to detail is evident from the use of live flower arrangements, which adorn mantelpieces and tables throughout.


Chenonceau touring TIP:
For The Kids...
Near the maze (labyrinthe) there is a great little play area for kids. To encourage their creativity (something the French do very well), there are makeshift huts around the trees, to help let little imaginations run wild.


This Château is open all year round. Opening hours vary depending on the time of year and are a little complicated, but if you arrive by 9:30 in winter, and 9am in all other seasons you'll be fine. Closing hours vary greatly: from 5pm in Jan to 10pm in July/Aug. Tarifs for château entry plus brochure only are 10,50 € for adults and 8 € for children - 7 to 18 years.

For more information on restaurant, exhibitions, etc., visit the official website (in English).


Chenonceau touring TIP:
For those with time on their hands and visiting during July and August, there is the option of vising the grounds at night, when the gardens, tower and Chateau are lit up and music (by Corelli) is piped through speakers around the gardens.


Visit Château de Bois...

Visit Château de Chambord...

Visit Château de Cheverny...

Visit Château de Versailles...

Visit Château de Villandry...


Return from Chenonceau touring to Homepage