5 Favorite Chateaux in the Loire Valley, Episode 299

<p>On today's episode, Annie Sargent brings you a trip report with Rick McGuirk about his 5 favorite chateaux in the Loire Valley. There are so many chateaux along the Loire Valley that it’s hard to choose which ones to go to and which ones to skip. You could spend a couple of months there if you wanted to see them all. So, just in case you don't have that kind of time, let's see which ones are must-sees.</p> <p>Rick and his wife have visited France many times, but this was their first time exploring the Loire Valley. They don't speak French beyond "bonjour", "au revoir" and "une carafe d'eau" but that wasn't a problem. So long as you know <a href= "https://joinusinfrance.com/episode/are-french-people-rude-episode-9/"> the magic word in French</a>, you'll be OK!</p> <h2>5 Favorite Chateaux in the Loire Valley</h2> <p>On this trip they stayed in Paris for 5 days then took the TGV  from Montparnasse to  Gare de Saint-Pierre-des-Corps in Tour where they picked up a rental car. It is wise to <a href= "https://www.rentalcars.com/CountryLandingPage.do?countryCode=fr&affiliateCode=joinusin081&preflang=en"> reserve your rental car</a> from home, especially if you'd like to drive an automatic!</p> <p>Distances between the chateaux are usually 30 to 45 minute drive and those drives are scenic and enjoyable.</p> <h3>Rick's top 5</h3> <ol> <li>Chambord</li> <li>Cheverny</li> <li>Chemonceau</li> <li>Amboise</li> <li>Vilandry</li> </ol> <h4>Take-Away from this Episode</h4> <p>You could visit the 5 favorite chateaux in the Loire Valley in 2 days, but 3 would be better. They saw 10 places in 4 days as listed below, and it would have been better to cut a couple of them off. Maybe I should have asked him for a top 6 list so that he could have included Azay-le-Rideau which I've enjoyed personally.</p> <p>If you need to choose between staying in Chinon or staying in Amboise, Amboise is probably a better choice because it is a bigger cleaner town and there are more dining and shopping choices.</p> <p>Keep in mind that the Loire Valle