Places to Visit

ANGERS
Approximately 35minutes away, Angers is a lively city whose medieval chateau houses the famous and stunning Tapestry of the Apocolypse. There are also numerous museum and its cathedral to visit.

Angers has an excellent variety of shops, restaurants and Bars.

BEACH
La Baule on the Loire Atlantique, approximately 2 hours away, is a pleasant day out

CHÂTEAUX

Château d’Azay-le-Rideau
The charm of this 16th century chateau is that it is surrounded by water on four sides in the middle of the Indre River. There are also two watermills on islands in the river as it flows through the village of Azay-le-Rideau.

Château Brissac
Brissac is just outside Angers and is one of the larger royal castles of France. It is today the residence of the 13th Duke of Brissac. It has its original 15th century fortress, two medieval towers and the ancient wine cellar, as well as an exceptional 19th century theatre, ornate golden ceilings, the Flemish and Gobelin tapestries and a magnificent park – all make a fascinating visit!

Château de Chenonceau
This magnificent château has a long and dramatic entrance, flanked on either side by formal gardens. There is also a waxworks museum, a maze to explore and woods along the river. You can hire boats and go rowing along the Cher River. In the evening there is a Sound and Light show.

Château d’Ussé
Long before the Sleeping Beauty castle at Disneyland, there was the Château d’Ussé. The author of Sleeping Beauty, Charles Perrault, was inspired by this Château as the setting for the story. Inside the castle, as you wander through one tower, there are waxwork tableaux from the fairy tale.

Château de Villandry
This château is famous for it’s Renaissance gardens. Wander around the amazing water garden, ornamental flower garden and most amazing vegetable gardens.

CHOLET
Approx 35mins drive away, Cholet is more of an industrial town, although offers a number of factory outlets, especially children’s wear: Jean Bourget, IKKS, Cattimini, DKNY, ELLE, Naf Naf, Timberland, Kickers & Levi’s.

DOUÉ LA FONTAINE
The zoo, approximately 5mins drive from us, is well worth a visit. The Zoo was originally created out of old stone quarries and underground caves and is now home to a variety of exotic animals including big cats, penguins, reptiles and vultures.

Doué la Fontaine holds its famous Rose Festival in July.

FUTUROSCOPE
Take a fantastic journey into space and enjoy a voyage of Fantasy, Discovery, Pleasure and Excitement!! Futuroscope is a great family day out with a huge range of activities. Futuroscope is about 1½ hours away just outside Poitiers.

MONTREUIL-BELLAY
Montreuil-Bellay is one of the most beautiful architectural and historic areas in the Loire Valley, principally covering the period from the beginning of the medieval era to the Renaissance. There are tours in English around its restored Chateaux throughout the day. The village has a number of shops and restaurants.

PUY DE FOU
Approx 1hr 15mins, this is a Medieval theme park, with live jousting, battles and Falconry. It’s a great day out for the family, with a wonderful night show starting at 10:30pm until 12:30am. Well worth a visit!

ROCHEMENIER TROGOLODYTE VILLAGE
Rochemenier offers the most complete troglodyte site (Cave dwelling village) in the Loire Valley. You can visit two ancient farms with dwellings and “out buildings” cut into the rock, containing several hundred agricultural implements and pieces of furniture, a farm yard with animals, an underground chapel and a modernised troglodyte house showing how it is still possible, today to use this kind of dwelling. Open 1st April to 1st November, 9:30am to 7:00pm. Rochemenier is approx 15mins from Doué la Fontaine going out towards Angers.

SAUMUR
Approximately 20mins drive away, Saumur has a variety of shops and restaurants.

Saumur is known for its school of Cavalry, where you can take a tour of the school and stables. There are also performances by the famous “Cadre Noir”. (Website www.cadrenoir.fr www.cadrenoir.fr for further details) You can take a ride in a horse-drawn carriage along the river for fun. It is also a historical city with its Fairytale Chateau posed above the Loire. The Chateau has a dungeon, and watchtower and houses the Musée de la Figurine-Jouet – a collection of very old toys and figurines of soldiers, kings of France, clowns.

For a cool visit on hot days, there is famous Musée de Chamipgnons (mushroom museum) where you can find out how mushrooms are grown underground and also excellent sparkling wine houses.

Saumur has old ties with the military, going back to the 18th century when the cavalry school was founded. The Musée des Blindes, in Saumur is dedicated to the history of tank warfare with a variety of displays of tanks and army memorabilia.

Saumur hosts a number of special festivals during July/August. Further details can be obtained from the Tourist office in Saumur.