Pick up from your location in Paris and drive towards the Loire Valley. Your private guide answers your questions during the 2.5 hours drive. The trip starts with Château Royal d’Amboise. Amboise was a preferred site of the kings of France when they radically transformed their country during the Renaissance. For more than two centuries, the history of the Château d’Amboise was intimately interlinked with the epic narrative of French history. Kings Charles VIII and François I, the genius Leonardo da Vinci (buried in the château chapel), Queens Anne of Brittany and Catherine de’ Medici and, finally, the last “king of the French”, Louis-Philippe, were familiar faces in the castle. A place of residence for French kings from the 15th to the 19th centuries, its destiny is inextricably linked to the history of France. Numerous literary figures and artists were invited here, like Leonardo da Vinci whose tomb is preserved at the château.

Our next stop is Château de Chenonceau. Drawing inspiration from a Venetian Palace, Catherine de Medici endowed Chenonceau with a special and unique architecture in the world. Widely known as the “château des Dames” or “Ladies’ Château”, this Renaissance masterpiece is also unusually rich from a historical standpoint. While visiting Chenonceau, you will discover sumptuous historic gardens, a new contemporary garden, a labyrinth and a flower garden. It is one of the most majestic of the Loire châteaux, it wonderfully embodies the elegance of the 16th century Renaissance châteaux built in the Loire valley. With its exceptional architecture, the Château de Chenonceau is a major landmark in Touraine and one of the most visited sites in France. Thanks to positive reviews, it also attracts visitors from all over the world to the small village of Chenonceaux. 

Our last stop is Château de Chambord. Situated in the heart of Sologne, the Château de Chambord has been dazzling its visitors for five hundred years. A genuine architectural marvel, Chambord is emblematic of the French Renaissance throughout the world. As an affirmation of royal power and evocation of the ideal city, the monument remains an enigma that has yet to divulge all its secrets. An utterly unique, magical atmosphere engulfs the arriving visitor who has traversed the forest and come face to face with architecture imagined by François I and inhabited by the spirit of Leonardo da Vinci. Chambord is the largest château in the Loire Valley; it was built to serve as a hunting lodge for Francis I, who maintained his royal residences at the Château de Blois and Amboise. The original design of the Château de Chambord is attributed to Italian architect Domenico da Cortona; Leonardo da Vinci may also have been involved in or influenced the design.