Walking in the Loire Valley

See more Walking. See best of Loire Valley in France.

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The area to the west of Tours boasts several of the Loire valley's most famous - and most romantic ...

7 days, from $1142 (Package trip). Inntravel »

Architecture, natural beauty, excellent cuisine, comfortable places to sleep and good weather. The Loire is an obvious choice for walkers, the routes are along pretty country roads and easy paved tracks, it’s quite flat, the villages and hamlets were built to be walked between and as well as the river, fields and wineries then there are the splendid chateaux. I travelled in part along the route of the GR46, GR41 and GR3. I began in Amboise, I was interested in seeing Le Clos Luce, and from there visited Chenonceau across beautiful countryside littered with wildflowers at the right time of year to Reignac and Montbazon near the gardens of Villandry before reaching Azay-le-Rideau, possibly one if the most lovely towns in the Loire with an amazing chateau. Through the forest of Chinon is medieval Chinon town which not too surprisingly for the region also has a lovely chateau and a Joan of Arc Museum. An alternative itinerary I have completed on a pervious visit to the Loire began in Blois and after a visit to the chateau proceeded along the river through the forest to Bracieux and via Cheverny to Chitenay then back down into the Cher valley as in the above. There are so many walking possibilities that it is quite time consuming to research all your options, to help you out there are numerous guides and companies offering self guided holidays with booked accommodation, useful to people for whom the planning of it isn’t quite as enjoyable as the doing of it.

5 / 5 Review by expert member Larry Piper