The tours departs from the front of the Tourist office 200 yards across the railroad station for a Sightseeing tour of Villandry and Azay-le-Rideau, two of the jewels of the French Renaissance. If your hotel is not a pick-up location, please make your own way to the Office du Tourisme de Tours. You will be accompanied with a knowledgeable bilingual guide (English and French).
Drive to the fairy-tale Château d’Azay-le-Rideau , which rises straight from the water on a small island in the Indre River. This elaborate structure started an era of leisure residences with the allure of a French style Chateau and the dignity of an Italian Palace. The pointed cones on the château bastions look like illustrations from a Hans Christian Andersen yarn, and the medieval towers lend the edifice an air of traditional French nobility.
Glide through the French countryside in your comfortable minivan to the magnificent gardens of Villandry .
The last of the large chateaus, Villandry was built in the Loire Valley during the French renaissance, and this flight of regal fancy is powerful testament to an era of indulgent aristocrats and artistic innovation. Its famous grounds are patterned with a water garden, ornamental flower gardens, and vegetable gardens, all governed by the entrancing geometry of hedge boxes.
Your minivan will drop you at Office de Tourisme de Tours, 78-82 rue Bernard Palissy at the end of the tour.