Day 7: Chinon - Abbey of Fontevraud - Candes-St.Martin - Montsoreau - Turquant - Saumur Castle - Visit Angers Castle
Today begins a little later, when it is approximately 7:30 in the morning and is that as we said yesterday at dinner, after a day of the most complete in which I play visit the Castle of Ussé, in addition to the beautiful town of Chinon, today we put the batteries back with a tighter day, in which it touches visit Angers Castle.
As we also commented this trip to the Loire Valley in 9 days, some days can be reduced, especially if we take into account that we are making the visits with tranquility and most of the days we end the day in the middle of the afternoon. This is why the same route, if you don't have so many days, you could do it without problem in 6-7 days.
We started the day picking up the bags at the Hotel Saint Jacques and although we have the possibility to have breakfast here, as yesterday we saw that in Chinon there were enough coffee shops, we decided to go to one of them to load energy, stopping before in the river area, from where We enjoy incredible views of the town, at this time shrouded in mist.
Chinon first thing in the morning
Chinon
In the end, after crossing the river, we found a market where we had coffee and some pastries for 3 euros per person, which we are sure will keep our stomach until noon.
It's 10 in the morning and with only 15 degrees, 10 less than the previous days, when we set off to Saumur Castle, which was the next point we planned for today on the Route through the Loire Castles , but after a few minutes, we see that on the way we will pass through an area that attracts a lot of attention and that includes several villages and an abbey, which having a fairly open day in terms of visits like today, we do not hesitate to add, making a small change in the itinerary.
Route of the day in the Loire Valley
Today's route will take us to know places like the Abbey of Fontevraud, Candes-St.Martin, Montsoreau, Turquant, the Saumur Castle to finally visit the Angers Castle, town where we will stay.
So with this addition to the route of the day, before leaving for Saumur Castle, we changed the destination of the GPS, heading to the Abbey of Fontevraud, 19 kilometers from Chinon and about 15 minutes away. As we mentioned earlier, today we have taken it with more peace of mind, despite having added some extra visits at the last minute, so we arrived at the Abbey of Fontevraud when it is 11 am, something that makes us consider making a quick visit only outside and so you can also enjoy the small town, really charming.
Fontevraud Abbey
The Abbey of Fontevraud was considered, in the 12th century, as one of the largest ecclesiastical complexes in Europe and stands out above all, for its church and for the tombs that are inside, those of Henry II, his wife Leonos de Aquitaine, his son, Ricardo Corazon de León and Isabel de Angoulême.
Fontevraud Abbey
After these minutes of visit, we get lost in the main street of the town, charming, in addition to stopping to have a coffee in one of its squares, in which it is appreciated to enjoy the sunny day and is that with the drop in temperatures, in These moments are 16 degrees, any sunbeam is a blessing. It seems incredible how time has changed in two days!
Fontevraud
Completing our stay at the Abbey of Fontevraud, we follow today's route heading to Candes-St.Martin, 5 kilometers from where we are, where we arrived past 12 noon and where we left the car parked in the church area , for free.
Candes-St.Martin
Considered as one of the most beautiful villages in France, Candes-St.Martin, we have to say that after being here, it is one of the most special places on this trip to the Loire Valley. Despite being very small, probably for this reason, we have fallen in love as soon as we arrived, immediately deciding that the time had come, this would be another place where we would not mind staying a few months.
In this town, its church stands out, from the 11th-13th centuries, in which the place where San Martín died in 397 is remembered.
Church of Candes-St.Martin
In addition to getting lost in its beautiful streets, charming and which you could be walking for hours, one of the things we recommend you not to miss is to get close to the walk along the river, where you can enjoy a stop and charge energy in one of the most beautiful places in the country.
Candes-St.Martin Street
Candes-St.Martin
It's 13:30 when we make our way to Montresaud, 1.3 kilometers from Candes-St.Martin, which is another of the stops we wanted to make, even if only a few minutes, to enjoy these lovely towns that are splashing this area of the Loire Valley.
Montsoreau
In Montsoreau stands out its imposing castle, which can be seen in the upper area of the town, looking at the Loire River and from where you have incredible views of both the river and everything around it, in addition to the population at your feet.
In our case and after the extra visits that we have added to the day, we prefer not to enter, because from what we are seeing, in the end the day will be tighter than we thought, so we decided, after this stop, to continue the route we had and skip the visit to the Castle of Montsoreau.
Loire River as it passes through Montsoreau
From here we continue to the next stop that is Turquant, just a few minutes from Montsoreau, which is a small town where you can see in an extraordinary way, like the old troglodyte houses, have adapted to the new times.
Turquant Street
The best tours and excursions in the Loire Valley in Spanish
If you prefer to forget about preparations or have little time, you can book the following tours in SPANISH
- Excursion to the Loire Castles
- Normandy and Loire Valley in 3 or 4 days
- 2-day tour of the Loire Castles
Although it is a very small area and it does not hurt to miss the few small streets that are parallel to the main street, which runs parallel to the road, we recommend you not to miss this one, since it will show you many of the examples of troglodyte houses, perfectly adapted from the ones we talked about previously.
Turquant
After giving yours for the area, amazed by these adapted homes, which is the first time we see, we decided to eat at Le Bistroglo, an area restaurant, located in a troglodyte house, where we ordered a summer menu, plus one complete with water and coffees for 47 euros.
Le bistroglo
We have to confess that we are not at all convinced, since the opinions on the internet are not entirely favorable, but we have to say that after the experience, our opinion has changed and we can only recommend it since both the menu and the Deal have been excellent.
Eating at Le Bistroglo
After lunch and when it's more than 2:30 in the afternoon, we set off to Saumur, the next stop of this trip to the Loire Valley, crossing small villages and landscapes full of charm in which the truth, makes you want to stand in each of them or stay for days to enjoy the area with more tranquility, something that we are sure, we will do in the future.
We arrived at 3 in the afternoon and parked right in front of the Saumur Castle, enabled as parking for cars.
Although the idea is not to enter this castle, since today we have to visit Angers Castle, and this is not one of the most important, so we decided to see it only from the outside, although they are restoring it, so the relief dazzles a little and we do not devote too much time to the photos, traveling only around the perimeter that surrounds it.
If you want to enter inside you can book the ticket here in advance.
Saumur Castle
Although you do not have the idea to visit it, as it has happened to us, we recommend that you make a stop, since the truth is that the exterior is very beautiful and also, the historic center of Saumur, which we have to say is accurate and for which it is worth spending a few hours walking and enjoying the atmosphere.
Saumur Castle
In addition, the views of Saumur from the upper area are very worthwhile, since it is a perspective that you will not be able to see from any other area of the town.
Saumur from Saumur Castle
After being here for a while, we leave for him historical center of Samur, where we can park on the main street and where we spend almost an hour going through all the shopping streets until we reach the Place Saint Pierre, one of the most beautiful we have seen in this route through the Loire Valley.
Saumur
Saumur
Place Saint Pierre
From here and when it is just after 4 pm, we decide that the time has come to get on the way to the next point of our journey through the Loire Valley, which will take us to visit Angers Castle.
But before and how could it be otherwise, we approach the river area, from where you can enjoy unique views, with Saumur Castle on the top, which we advise you not to miss as we believe, are the best Saumur views.
Saumur
And so, after this stop, we headed to Angers, the town where we will stay tonight, located about 60 kilometers from Saumur and where we arrived at 5 in the afternoon, having the luck to find parking right in the area from the castle, in the blue zone, where we pay 2 euros for 2 hours.
We still get the attention that although, as we said the other day, we are in the high season, at all times we have found parking, both in the Loire Castles that we have visited, as in the towns, no matter how tourist they have been, something that sincerely surprised us and a lot, since we had the idea that we would find everything much more crowded.
The first thing we do, after parking the car, is to go to the top, to visit Angers Castle, which will be the last castle we will visit and first of all, we enjoy its exterior, really impressive.
Angers Castle
Recommendations to visit Angers Castle
- The price of the visit to Angers Castle It is eight euros per person and the audio guide three euros more per person.
- The visiting hours are from 09:30 to 18:30 from May to August and until 17:30 from September to April.
- With the entrance they give you a small triptych, where you have a small explanation of each of the points that can be visit at Angers Castle.
- The guided tour, in case you want to do it, is an hour and a quarter or with the audio guide approximately an hour and a half.
- There is no security control at the entrance.
- The most interesting point of Angers Castle is the Tapestry of the Apocalypse, one of the medieval masterpieces.
- Although there is a paid parking right in front of the castle, you can park in battery on one of the sides, paying the blue zone.
- The views of the city of Angers from the castle area are spectacular, so even if you do not want to visit it, it is well worth coming to the area, since to the right of the entrance there is a free viewpoint, from where you can enjoy the views.
- After visit Angers Castle, we have to say that we believe that this visit is justified if you are interested in seeing the Tapestry of the Apocalypse, since the castle itself, with seeing it from the outside, we believe is enough and the views of Angers, can be obtained from the own viewpoint, without paying the entrance fee.
Views from Angers Castle
Visit to Angers Castle
This incredible and imposing castle, owned by the Counts and Dukes of Anjou, is one of the visits, at least externally, that you cannot miss in the lively city of Angers.
The Manor Residence
During the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, several buildings that surrounded the courtyard, formed a private space, separated from the fortress, which housed the living rooms as such and the administrative space of the castle.
The Castillete
This building is characterized by corner turrets, which are topped by spiers and serve as an entrance to the courtyard.
Manor Residence Visit Angers Castle
The Manor Courtyard
Surrounded by the buildings built by the counts and dukes of Anjou, it is one of the quietest areas of Angers Castle.
Manor Courtyard Visit Angers Castle
The Royal Residence
In this building, with two rooms, we can also find the Chapel, with a single nave, built by order of Luis II and his wife.
Angers Castle
The wall
Another of the most important parts of the visit to the Castle of Angers is the part of the wall, which highlights the Mill tower, the Camino de Ronda, the gardens, the Puerta de los Campos, the governor's residence and the gallery leading to the room that houses the Tapestry of the Apocalypse.
In addition, from this area you have incredible views of the city of Angers.
Angers from Angers Castle
More practical information to prepare your trip to the Loire Valley
- The 10 essential Loire Castles
- The best tips for traveling to the Loire Valley
Tapestry of the Apocalypse
This amazing medieval piece, composed of a series of tapestries 104 meters long, is located in an L-shaped room, where you just enter, you will understand the importance of the piece.
Commissioned by Luis I, Duke of Anjou, recounts the day of the Last Judgment, through different scenes, represented in the different tapestries that make up the masterpiece.
Tapestry of the Apocalypse
After visit Angers Castle and when it's about 6 in the afternoon, we decided to stay in the historic center of the city to visit it, since we also have our accommodation tonight, the Ace Hôtel Angers on the outskirts, practically 5 kilometers from the city and doing so , we will not have to go back to the city to visit.
Angers Street
What to see in Angers
Although Angers has several points to visit, such as the Cathedral of St. Maurice, the Maison d'Adam or the Montée St. Maurice, a staircase that leads to the Maine River, we recommend getting lost in the streets of the historic center without a map or a fixed course , to discover in each corner more and more charming and surprising places, something that Angers is full of.
Historical Center
Narrow streets surrounded by stone houses, in which without highlighting anything special, the whole set makes you feel like you are in a story or have gone back several years in history. As we mentioned before, the best way to get to know it is to get lost in its streets, taking a quiet walk and letting yourself be surprised at every step.
Historical Center
Angers Historic Center
St. Maurice Cathedral
Known for some incredible domed vaults, the Angers Cathedral is one of the places you cannot miss in the city.
St. Maurice Cathedral
Place Ste-Croix. Maison d'Adam
Just behind St. Maurice Cathedral we find the Place Ste-Croix, one of the most beautiful squares in the city, where there is the Maison d'Adam, one of the best preserved medieval houses in Angers.
Place Ste-Croix. Maison d'Adam
And so, after enjoying Angers and its historic center, we enjoy the atmosphere taking something at the Place Ste-Croix, after dinner go straight to Ace Hôtel Angers, where we end the day today, which we have enjoyed of the visit to some of the most charming places in the country.
Day 8: Angers - Visit the Royal Citadel of Loches - What to see in Montrésor - Bourges
