Villandry
and its gardens is
probably the most family orientated chateau within the
Loire
Valley
in that it has a children’s maze (not terribly difficult!) and play area
as well as the chateau and gardens for the adults. If you only have time
to view a couple of chateaux on your visit to the Loire Valley make sure
this is one of them.
The
chateau dates from circa 1536 when it was built by one of Francois
1’s finance ministers, Jean le Breton. Le
Briton was also responsible for overseeing the construction of the royal
‘flight of fancy’ that is chateau
Chambord.
The tower which looks a little out of place is all
that remains of the
old fortress he demolished to make way for the chateau.
As with
most chateaux the French
Revolution saw it
being confiscated before eventually being acquired for
Joseph Bonaparte (brother of the
Emperor) in the early 1800’s.
The chateau and gardens,
which combine flowers and vegetables, you see today are courtesy of a
Spaniard, Dr.Joachim
Carvallo who purchased it in 1906. He poured a great deal of time
and money into the
project the results of which are breathtaking, especially when viewed
from the top of the tow
er.
Villandry tries very hard to involve children in its
gardens and surroundings (question & answer book in English) and is
involved in the Loire's collective 'On the track of the Infant King'
programme.
The
combined ticket for visiting the chateau and gardens is 8€ for adults
(free to children under 8) and is good value for money as the inside is also well worth a
look as it is beautifully decorated and very well presented.
Take a useful map from the ticket desk to help you with your visit.
The
chateau is
situated
15km west of
Tours
on the D7 road. There is ample parking alongside the river and a
restaurant in front of the chateau which is both friendly and efficient.
Villandry is open all the year round and
stays open until
7.30 pm
during July and
August.
Tips: Visit early morning or evening to avoid the tourists !
Even
if the day starts of cloudy take some means of providing shade for
the kids as if the weather changes there is little in the way of
natural protection within these vast gardens.
Note
that it can be quite a walk from the car park by the river to the
chateau on busy tourist days.
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