Come and See the Sunflowers

In only a few weeks time it will be sunflower season again in the Loire Valley. The farmers sow them in May and harvest them in September. In between, for a brief but glorious period in July and early August the flowers cover the fields with huge sunshine yellow blooms. If you visit at the right time of year, you cannot miss the sunflowers all over the Loire Valley. Driving from one chateau to another is a guaranteed way to see them and we are always happy to pull over so you can photograph the spectacle.

If you want to experience the sunflower season in the Loire, email us and book a tour in late July.

The Heart of France

One of the things you can do when you take a tour with us is truly get off the beaten track. There are some wonderfully peaceful spots, even near the major attractions, but you won't see them if you take a bus tour. This picture was taken in early March, very close to the bustling tourist activity of Chinon. Except for the leaves on the trees, this scene looks like this all year round.

If you want to walk in tranquil natural surroundings as well as visit magnificent chateaux and sample great food and wine, email us and let us use our local knowledge to create an itinerary that shows you the best rural France has to offer.

Meet Cristina

Cristina is an intern at one of our favourite wineries, Chateau Gaudrelle. She is a remarkable young woman, Romanian by birth, who has come to France to further her wine studies. Her placement at Chateau Gaudrelle is part of her programme while she works towards a Master of Wine qualification. Her ambition is to work in wine tourism and she has a dream that one day she will buy a parcel of vines in Romania and become a winemaker in her own right. In the meantime, she is impressing everyone here with her hard work and dedication.

She already knows more about wine than we will in a lifetime, and often conducts the tours of the winery and the tasting sessions when we visit with clients. We are very proud to be a small part of her professional development and very much appreciate the experience she offers our clients.

If you would like to meet people living and working in the area who are passionate about the Loire Valley and its traditions, email us and we will design a tour so they can present the wine, food and history of the area at its very best.