Windows on a building of character in Blois.

The streets of Blois can occasionally reveal an architectural style quite different from the town's famous château. This late 19th-century townhouse combines red brick, carved stone and colourful glazed tiles in a design that reflects the craftsmanship of its period.

It's a fine example of how everyday homes can possess some of the character as the grand buildings for which the Loire Valley is renowned.

Blois experienced a building boom at the end of the 19th century, and many new homes were influenced by the fashionable Art Nouveau movement and regional architectural styles. Decorative glazed ceramic tiles, like those on this façade, were both ornamental and practical, adding colour while helping to protect the brickwork from the weather.

“Through every window, the Loire breathes — calm, patient, and quietly luminous.”

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Part of the “Windows of the Loire” Series

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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Windows and balconies - the Grand Hotel in Tours

The Grand Hôtel de Tours occupies one of the most visible corners in the city, facing place de la Gare and welcoming arrivals with a façade designed to impress. Built to signal comfort and status to travellers, it combines classical proportions with subtle Art Deco features most notably the gilded details crowning the corner bay.

The stacked balconies create a vertical procession of windows, each offering a slightly different view over the station square, while the curved rooftop pavilion gives the whole building a sense of theatre, as if the architecture itself were part of the journey.

It is a reminder of a time when hotels were not just places to sleep, but symbols of movement, modernity and social life, anchoring the railway in the everyday fabric of the city rather than standing apart from it. 

Part of the “Windows of the Loire” Series

Each Wednesday, we share a glimpse of the Loire Valley through its windows — small frames of everyday beauty and quiet reflection.

See more from Experience Loire

© Experience Loire — Windows of the Loire · Back to Home