“On Sundays the Loire Valley speaks softly — and you have time to listen.”
Each Sunday, we share a quiet bench somewhere in the Loire — a small reminder that peace is often found where you simply stop to notice it.
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© Experience Loire — My Sunday bench · Back to Home
Rue Xavier Branicki runs beneath the château at Montrésor, following the line of the old dry moat. The street takes its name from Xavier Branicki, the Polish aristocrat who acquired the château in 1849 and restored it as his home. His influence is still very much part of Montrésor today.
Look at this street and it is easy to imagine an earlier generation making its way beneath the château, with little more than the names and people having changed.
The Hôtel Goüin is one of Tours’ most distinctive historic buildings, dating from the 15th century and now used for temporary exhibitions. This autumn it is part of the major Alexander Calder programme across the Centre-Val de Loire, with an exhibition of more than fifty works on paper, photographs and other works running until January 2027. A monumental Calder stabile is also installed in the courtyard.
With some events in Tours affected by the current unrest, it is worth checking arrangements before setting out. The Calder exhibition at the Hôtel Goüin is currently maintaining its published schedule.
Hope your week ends well and it's followed by a lovely weekend.
Part of the “Bon weekend from the Loire” Series
Each Friday, we share a quiet moment from the Loire — a region that invites you to unwind, a beautiful weekend at a time.
© Experience Loire — Have a good weekend from the Loire · Back to Home
Standing on the bridge in Preuilly-sur-Claise, a classic Touraine view unfolds: soft October light, traditional slate roofs, and a lamppost dressed in a cascade of flowers. The Loire countryside feels gently timeless here quiet streets, brick and stone houses and that unmistakable sense of unhurried French village life.
“In Touraine, even the silence tells a story.”
Every Thursday, we pause somewhere in Touraine — a village, a vineyard, or a quiet riverside — to capture the spirit of this timeless Loire region.
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© Experience Loire — Taken in Touraine · Back to Home
Each Wednesday, we share a glimpse of the Loire Valley through its windows — small frames of everyday beauty and quiet reflection.
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© Experience Loire — Windows of the Loire · Back to Home
Crissay-sur-Manse is one of the villages that gives southern Touraine its distinctive character. Many of its houses date from the 15th and 16th centuries, built in the local tuffeau stone, and the village still retains much of its historic layout.
Above the village are the remains of Château de Crissay, built on the site of an earlier fortress, while the 16th-century church of Saint-Maurice stands slightly apart from the main group of houses. Crissay’s period of greatest development came in the 15th and 16th centuries, when the village acquired many of the buildings that survive today.
