Are you planning a visit to the Loire Valley and looking for some underrated places to visit? Well then add the Chateau Azay le Rideau to your list! This castle is the PERFECT half-day visit from Tours and is a beautiful example of all of the Loire Valley’s charm!
The Loire Valley is one of the most unique regions in France because you can find over 300 castles all within the same region. You can literally ‘castle hop’ your way through the region! Some of the most popular ones are Chateau Chambord and Chateau Chenonceau (my personal favorite), but if you have the time, I’d recommend checking out some other hidden gems, such as Chateau Azay le Rideau!
This article will go over how to spend a morning at the Chateau Azay le Rideau. I will go over how to get there, where to eat, what it’s like visiting the castle, and some other tips for visiting the region.
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Tips for visiting the Loire Valley
📆 Spend at least 2 full days. If you only have time to take a day trip to the Loire Valley from Paris, that’s definitely better than not visiting at all. BUT if you can, I’d highly suggest staying at least a night or 2 in the area. It is really special and so well-connected! There are so many castles to see – you can easily visit around 2 castles per day if you plan your itinerary efficiently!
🏨 Where to stay: I’d recommend choosing Tours, as your home base when you visit the Loire Valley. It is very central to the region, has a beautiful old town and you can visit many castles in around 30 minutes by train. It’s also super easy to get to from Paris by train!
🚂 Take the train! Speaking of which, you should definitely take advantage of the efficient, vast train network in France. They run frequently and consistently and typically aren’t too expensive! When booking train tickets in France, I always use Trainline to find the best prices. I’ve been using them for years and have always found the best deals. This solution is way cheaper than renting a car, plus you won’t have to worry about parking or tolls!
To keep in mind: strikes in France are quite common and sometimes trains are impacted. If you are going to be relying on the train, make sure to give yourself some wiggle room in your itinerary in case there are any delays or cancellations.
Spending a morning at the Chateau Azay le Rideau
How to get there
From Tours: As I said above, Tours would be my recommendation of where to base yourself when visiting the Loire Valley. When we went, tickets from Tours to Azay le Rideau only cost us 6 euros and it was a 20-minute ride! Reminder, we booked our tickets using Trainline and I highly recommend using them!
From Paris: If you are coming from Paris, you will most likely have to take the train from Paris Montparnasse station to Tours and then transfer to Azay le Rideau from there. It is roughly a 2.5 – 3.5 hour journey!
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From Angers: Angers is another popular city in the Loire Valley, between Tours and Nantes. Similar to Paris, you will need to take the train from Angers to Tours and then transfer from there. This is roughly a 2-3 hour journey, but the trains typically are a bit cheaper than from Paris.
To keep in mind: If you are coming to Chateau Azay le Rideau by train you will need to walk 20-25 minutes from the train station into town. It’s not the nicest walk but once you reach the town, it becomes way more charming.
Tours you can take
If you’d like to make the most of your visit by not having to worry about coordinating transportation – I totally get it, it can be a headache – I’ve pulled together some tour options for you. Whats great about tours is that you will have an expert guide with you so you usually get more out of your experience! If this sounds like something you’d like to do, here are 3 tour options to take you to the Chateau Azay le Rideau:
✨Guided tour including some free time
⏰ 4 hours
🏰 Visit Chateau Azay le Rideau and Château de Villandry
⭐️4.9/5
✨Guided tour including some free time PLUS wine tasting and vineyard visit
⏰ 9 hours
🏰 Visit Chateau Azay le Rideau, Château de Villandry and local winery
⭐️ 19 5-star ratings on Viator
3. Customizable trip from Paris
✨Includes lunch, hotel transfer, and a completely customizable itinerary
⏰ 12 hours
🏰 Visit any 3 chateaus you’d like in the Loire Valley
⭐️ 3 5-star ratings on Viator
Chateau Azay le Rideau visitor information
📆 Chateau Azay le Rideau is open all year round. Peak season takes place during the summer season and the castle is open from 9:30 am – 7 pm. Shoulder season is September and from April to June, and the castle is open from 9:30 – 6 pm. And off-season is from October to March and the castle is open from 10 am – 5:15 pm.
🏰 I particularly enjoyed this castle because they organized the rooms according to different centuries. They had the different rooms decorated from the 16th – 19th century so you can see the castle evolve through time.
⏰ Visits can last 1-2 hrs.
💰It costs 13 euros for an adult but it’s free to visit if you are under 25 years old.
🎧 I’d highly recommend going with the free guided tours included with your ticket. When we went, inside the Chateau Azay le Rideau there weren’t many information panels so having a guide was super worthwhile! There are also audio-tours available for 3 euros!
✨ It’s free to visit on the first Sunday of each month during the off-season (December – March)
🎟️ You can book your tickets in advance here!
What can you do after your visit to the Chateau Azay le Rideau?
🌳 After your visit to the castle, enjoy the grounds! The castle is surrounded by water and there are lots of green spaces and a forest. It’s not massive but don’t rush off after your visit, take your time to appreciate the grounds.
🍽️ If you’re visiting in the morning after your visit will be the perfect time to grab a snack or lunch. There is a tea house, Le Lavoir, on-site that is open from April until September. If not, there is also a cute crêperie in town called Le Boudoir which we loved!
🥐 Visit the town of Azay le Rideau. There are tonnes of cute shops in town that are worth browsing. We popped into a local patisserie called Au Royal Chocolat and it was perfection!
🏞️ There is a river that runs through town back towards the train station. It was a much nicer walk than walking along the road, so I highly suggest checking it out!
🏰 As I said above, you can easily visit at least 2 castles a day when you are visiting the Loire Valley. From Azay le Rideau you can also explore castles nearby like Villandry or Château de Langeais.
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Planning a visit to the Loire Valley?
The Chateau Azay le Rideau is definitely an underrated gem in the Loire Valley. By now, you’ll know how to get there, either by tour or by train, and you have some ideas of how to spend a perfect half-day visit.
READ MORE: Beautiful Chateaus to visit in the Loire Valley
If you need more help planning your trip to France, I’ve helped clients organize their itineraries and created personalized guides for their trips. If you’re looking for some local tips, personal recommendations, and insight into exploring France, check out my customized travel planning services here!
