Central France & Loire Valley holidays

What to do on Central France and Loire Valley holidays?

The Loire Valley is renowned for its wine-producing prowess, and the sophisticated region certainly has some outstanding offerings (most notably its dry whites, such as Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé). Yet this area of central France has a lot more to it than its grape-growing ability, and with a lot of the landscape recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage site, the scenery is as beautiful as it is fruitful. If you plan on sampling the wine from some of the Loire Valley’s vineyards, there are plenty of regional specialities which pair well. The city of Tours offers up the quintessentially French Rillettes de Tours (a spread made from slow-cooked pork meat); Chinon champions, its classic dish of œufs pochés au Chinon (poached eggs in rich red wine sauce); and for cheese lovers, the village of Chavignol is famed for crottin de Chavignol (a small, round goat cheese). Work up an appetite while cycling through the Valley or exploring the lively cities of Tours, Orléans and Blois, before settling down for a French feast fit for a royal.

Historically, the Loire Valley was the chosen location for nobles, aristocrats, Kings and Queens to construct their extravagant feudal palaces. Today, you can still visit some of the grandest, including the castle of Chambord (with its park that’s as large as inner Paris), Château de Chenonceau (regarded as one of the most magnificent) and the Royal Castle of Blois (inhabited by 17 royals between the 13th and 17th centuries).

The heart of France is mostly agricultural, with a few geographical treasures scattered throughout, particularly in Auvergne and Limousin. Auvergne is famed for its emerald-green dormant volcanoes and postcard-perfect mountains, including Puy de Dome which is the highest volcano in the region at a towering 4800ft tall. The Monts Dore and the Chaine des Puys consist of 80 volcanoes and are like an open-air museum dedicated to the region’s tectonic past. Another scenic setting is Limousin, where brick-red cows graze in rolling pastures and the hillsides are dotted with little-visited villages. Although less to do here than in other parts of the country, it offers a great chance to get off the beaten track.