Things to Do in Tours

Take your place alongside royalty with a visit to Chateau Gaillard, one of the Loire Valley’s most celebrated palaces, commissioned by Charles VIII in 1496. The chateau is known for having some of the first Renaissance-style gardens in France, and today both its interior and grounds are open to visitors.

The old city center of Tours, called Old Town (Vieux Tours), is one of medieval-era winding streets, quaint shops, a bustling square (Place Pumereau) with cafes and restaurants and half-timbered homes that date back to the 14th century. With so much to see here, it's a wonder that the city had at one point slated to tear it all down in favor of a grid street system!

Don't miss the St Gatien Cathedral, the weekly market in Place Jean Jaurès or the garden of the Musée des Beaux-Arts. This is where a cedar tree planted by Napoleon Bonaparte sits, as well as a bizarre stuffed elephant from the 1903 circus that came through town.