Sample Tours:
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About Celestine and Claudette
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Saturday, 30 January 2021
What Happens if a Rare Object Needs Repairing?
In the Loire Valley there are some highly skilled conservation and restoration workshops for historic objects of all sorts. Sometimes they are the only workshops capable of working with certain rare materials. They may be the only workshop who has retained an old piece of machinery that does a very specific job, or they may be at the cutting edge of conservation science. Sometimes the materials a historic object is made from are no longer legally available -- at least to ordinary members of the public. But never fear, beautiful objects with ivory inlay or lead paint can be restored using original materials under strict licencing rules. Furniture restorers are very secretive about their sources of rare woods and animal products such as ivory. They are legally allowed to work with these materials, but only under strict and regularly reviewed conditions. If you would like to know more about how historic objects are repaired and cared for, let us know. We are always delighted to include some interesting examples and share our knowledge of this specialised subject with travellers.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Tuesday, 26 January 2021
The World War One Hospital at Chenonceau
Many of our clients are doctors and/or veterans. None of them have heard of the World War One hospital at Chenonceau, but it is one of the sites they respond most deeply to. The story of the hospital and how it was run strikes a chord with them and in return they often pass on a few hints of their own personal experiences. They feel a bond with the Menier family, who own Chenonceau and have always encouraged the public to visit.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Friday, 22 January 2021
Bird Watching at the Chateau
The Chateau of Chenonceau is home to the largest colony of House Martins in the Touraine Loire Valley. Every year they arrive from Africa to breed, building mud nests under the cornices of the north facade, the chapel and the Marque Tower. These delightful little birds are real acrobats, hunting for tiny insects just above the visitors' heads. Even if you are not an habitual birdwatcher you will enjoy their aerial show and be fascinated by the structure of their nests. We always make sure that clients look up so they don't miss the birds, and the fine details of the exterior of the chateau.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Monday, 18 January 2021
Who Graffitis a Chapel?
Don't worry. It's not modern vandalism, but historic graffiti, that tells an intriguing but still mysterious story about a very troubled time. Certain myths have grown up about this graffiti, but we can show why they are not true, and how the real story is even more extraordinary. We will never know exactly who wrote it, but it does allow us to tell the story of a watershed moment in history. And this is far from the only example of historic graffiti in the Loire Valley.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Thursday, 14 January 2021
A View From a Balcony in the Loire Valley
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Sunday, 10 January 2021
How to See Sunflowers in the Loire Valley
July is the normal peak time for sunflowers in the Loire Valley. Sometimes the season is longer, beginning in June or stretching into August.
You may not have been able to get here to see the sunflowers last year, but not all is lost. There will be sunflowers again this year, and if you want to see them with us and take some stunning photos, now is the time to book. Email us or use our contact form and ask us to find sunflowers in bloom.
Wednesday, 6 January 2021
Having an Epiphany in the Loire Valley
Everywhere in the Loire Valley around the religious holiday of Epiphany, which is 6 January, you will be offered a pastry called galette des rois. It's puff pastry with an almond frangipane filling. Delicious! Every galette contains a small ceramic token called a feve and if your slice contains the feve then you get to be king for a day. Feves come in all sorts of shapes and are highly collectable. Naturally we have some in the shape of our classic Citroen cars for putting in our homemade galette.
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.
Even if you don't win the feve in your galette, we can make sure you are treated like a king for the day!
Saturday, 2 January 2021
Montresor, One of the Most Beautiful Villages in the Loire Valley
Small but beautiful villages are a special category in France. They have banded together to have their own co-operative marketing and website and are officially designated as les plus beaux villages de France (the most beautiful villages in France). They are all quite tiny as one of the requirements is to have a population of less than 200 people. All of them are well worth visiting, full of stunning views and thousands of photo opportunities.
The nearest one to us is Montrésor, featuring a large castle on top of a rocky outcrop right in the middle of the village, a beautiful Renaissance church and a very good restaurant. What more could you want? But there is more! Walk around town and along the river bank and you will see all sorts of beautiful and quirky things. A visit here is a real treat, and we would be happy to include it in your personalised itinerary if you request it. We are sure you will love it!
To enquire about our private guided tours of chateaux, wineries, markets and more email us or use our contact form. More tour ideas can be found on the Loire Valley Time Travel website.