Loire Valley Map: Châteaux, Towns and Where Every Tour Starts

The valley is long, and the tours start in a dozen different places. A day that looks close on the card can begin an hour from your hotel. Choosing between Loire Valley guided tours? Find the start before you book.

The valley from Sully-sur-Loire to Chalonnes

The UNESCO-listed stretch of the Loire Valley runs for about 280 km along the middle Loire, from Sully-sur-Loire, east of Orléans, to Chalonnes, west of Angers. You will not see all of it. Most visits fit between Blois in the east and Saumur in the west, with Tours and Amboise in the middle.

Think of it in three parts. East of Amboise are Chambord, Chaumont-sur-Loire and Blois. In the middle are Tours, Amboise, Vouvray and Château de Chenonceau on the Cher. West of Tours are Villandry, Azay-le-Rideau, Chinon on the Vienne and Saumur. Picking one part for each day cuts the driving.

The châteaux on the map

Not every château stands on the Loire itself. Several sit on its tributaries, which matters when you try to link them by train.

For prices and opening hours at each one, read Loire Valley châteaux.

Every tour's starting point

Check the "Where it starts" column against where you sleep. Private days and several Paris days collect you from your hotel; everything else expects you at an address.

The Tours and Amboise meeting points

Most shared days from inside the valley meet in one of two places. In Tours, it is the tourist office at 78-82 rue Bernard Palissy; some wine tours name the corner with Boulevard Heurteloup. In Amboise, it is the tourist office on Quai du Général de Gaulle, where pickups usually come half an hour after the Tours start.

The Segway ride and the balloon flight start elsewhere in town. The Segway ride leaves from a shop at 8 Quai du Général de Gaulle, opposite the tourist office. The balloon flight meets at the campsite office on the Île d'Or, the island in the Loire, and can pick you up within 15 km of Amboise.

Starting points you need a car or taxi for

A handful of days begin at a place with no station and no pickup. The Vouvray cellar walk starts at a vineyard on the route de la Brenne in Chançay. The picnic in the vines is at Château du Petit Thouars in Saint-Germain-sur-Vienne, where you drive in and park. The Cher e-bike ride leaves from the lock house at Les Mazelles in Thésée.

The Chenonceau balloon flight meets at a car park on Rue de Verdun in Saint-Georges-sur-Cher. The private Chenonceau and wine day starts in Chabris, and its listing gives no street address, so confirm yours when you book. See how to get to the Loire Valley for trains and taxis.

Distances between the châteaux

Only figures that the châteaux publish themselves appear below. For anything else, check your map app on the day.

Wine areas on the map

The wine follows the same east-to-west line. Vouvray begins at the eastern edge of Tours, on the right bank of the Loire. Chinon spreads over 26 communes on both banks of the Vienne. Bourgueil sits on the right bank of the Loire across from Chinon, and sparkling Saumur comes from two hillsides south of the river at Saumur.

So a Vouvray tasting fits a morning from Tours, while Chinon and Bourgueil are a full day west. Grapes and styles are on Loire Valley wine tasting.

Map questions