Sunday, 21 December 2025

What's New at the Chateau of Chenonceau in the Loire Valley?

 I visit the Chateau de Chenonceau perhaps 40 times a year on average. People ask me if I get bored with it. Not at all. There is so much history, so much beauty, I always look forward to visiting, and to sharing it with clients. Every year something changes too, as the management develop the site. This year it is perhaps a rather mundane refurbishment of the café, but some years it can be the introduction of a really special new exhibition space, such as for the 16th century apothecary or the 18th century collection of scientific instruments. 

Café, Chateau de Chenonceau, France.

The café is in Catherine de Medici's former stables. Previously the old stalls formed booths in the café, but they've now been removed and a more refectory style has been introduced. To match the lighter furniture the beams have been cleaned and light oak panelling added to the walls. The place is brighter and more airy, not so dark and heavy. I have a feeling I know where the stalls are going to be reinstated too, so watch this space for the next development.

Photo shows the newly refurbished café.



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For details of our private guided tours of chateaux, gardens, wineries, markets and more please visit the Loire Valley Time Travel website. We would be delighted to design a tour for you.

We are also on Instagram, so check us out to see a regularly updated selection of our very best photos. You may also like to check out our YouTube channel. 

Sunday, 14 December 2025

Visit the Loire Valley in the Shoulder Season

Of course most people visit the Loire Valley in the summer when the weather is glorious and gardens are looking their best. But if you don't like the crowds and don't mind having grey skies, late September can be rewarding. The days are still long enough, the temperature is cool but not cold, and the light has that autumnal quality that can make your photographs quite special. The photo shows the Chateau de Chenonceau in late September.

Chateau de Chenonceau, France.



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For details of our private guided tours of chateaux, gardens, wineries, markets and more please visit the Loire Valley Time Travel website. We would be delighted to design a tour for you.

We are also on Instagram, so check us out to see a regularly updated selection of our very best photos. You may also like to check out our YouTube channel. 

Sunday, 7 December 2025

Floral Carpets in the Loire Valley

One of the joys of visiting the Loire Valley from late August to early October is the carpets of the pink autumn flowering Sowbread Cyclamen hederifolium in parks and gardens everywhere. You will see them in the dry shade of mature deciduous trees. The photo shows cyclamens in the grounds of the Chateau de Chenonceau.

Cyclamens in the grounds of Chateau de Chenonceau, France.



************************************************

For details of our private guided tours of chateaux, gardens, wineries, markets and more please visit the Loire Valley Time Travel website. We would be delighted to design a tour for you.

We are also on Instagram, so check us out to see a regularly updated selection of our very best photos. You may also like to check out our YouTube channel.