Typical cycling holiday itinerary for the Loire
Day 1 Chinon
We arrived mid-afternoon after an easy journey from London by Eurostar and TGV, France’s fast train, to St Pierre des Corps. The very pretty Hotel Diderot offers a wonderful welcome with smiling staff and a courtyard garden filled with flowers. Towering above the town, the 12C castle, built by the Plantagenet King Henry II, is the first place we visit. Our reservation for dinner is at a restaurant in the centre of the medieval town which has tables laid outside in a cobbled pedestrianised street. Our first French dinner passes amusingly with the strolling window shoppers wishing us Bon Appetit as we tuck in.
Day 2 Chinon
Having read about a Chateau garden, Chateau du Rivau, which is a must see for gardeners when staying in Chinon, and near enough to be reached by even the slowest cyclist too, we set off, across the river and then along a network of paths dissecting the vineyards. The quantity of butterflies and bees buzzing along the wild flower verges is astonishing The Chateau grounds are filled with many small themed gardens, ‘Paradise Orchard’, ‘Enchanted Forest’, Carpet of a thousand Flowers’ and the courtyard is a mass of enormous pumpkins. A gardener’s heaven.
Day 3 Chinon - Montsoreau 15kms
The Thursday morning market is in full swing throughout Chinon so with a lunch time picnic in mind we buy soft cheeses and baguettes and a deliciously sweet smelling melon grown on a local farm according to the stall holder. The Loire @ Velo cycle route starts from Chinon so very soon we are on paths which are virtually traffic free but still meander in and out of little villages so the occasional coffee stop is enjoyed and we eat our lunch on the picnic tables by the Ecomuseum du Veron.
Day 4 Montsoreau
Our hotel is a troglodyte dwelling cut into the tufa stone hillside with views of the river Loire and the magnificent chateau de Montsoreau, dinner means a short walk to a superb restaurant by the river. Another day on the cycle path which takes us up the hill to the abbey at Fontevraud where the tombs of both Alienor d’Aquitaine, wife of Henry II, and their son Richard the Lionheart can be found. We discover the Plantagenet kings spent much more time in France than in England.
Day 5 Montsoreau - Azay le Rideau 20kms
The Loire @ Velo path leaves the river Vienne to follow the river Loire. Wild roses, honeysuckle and hollyhocks line the route, an occasional fisherman sitting beside a battered 2chevaux welcomes us with a ‘bonjour’ while fellow cyclists shout ‘allez, allez’ as though we are all Tour de France participants. A scrumptious smell seeping from a café on the banks of the river causes us to stop dead in our tracks, and order the set menu lunch. A mixed salad starter, braised beef in a rich wine sauce with new potatoes, a choice of local cheeses followed by a lemon sorbet and expresso café, all accompanied by a carafe of chilled red wine. We relax for the afternoon, snoozing in the sunshine.
Day 6 Azay le Rideau
The town is a network of flowered squares and tiny streets. We sample several cafés, and two superb restaurants during our stay. Villandry, another gardener’s paradise, attracts our attention. The ‘flower beds’ are filled with decorative vegetables and medicinal herbs. Along the river path on our return we watch an otter hunting through the reeds, apparently oblivious to the spectators. After an early dinner we hurry to the chateau and spend two hours wandering through the gardens watching and listening to the Son et Lumiere.
Day 7 Azay le Rideau - Chinon 25kms
We decide we haven’t got time to visit the Museum Maurice Dufresne despite it containing a guillotine dating from the Revolution!! Instead we pedal east towards the little vineyards which line the route back into Chinon. Everyone has a sign ‘Degustation’ and we look for the labels of the wines we have been drinking during the week. Success; we find our favourites; and after a very pleasant period of tasting some of the other wines from the same grower, we agree on 6 bottles, as much as we can carry, which will be delivered to our hotel later that evening.
Day 8
Homeward bound after a breakfast of hot chocolate, croissants and home-made jam.