Visiting the Château de Villandry, a masterpiece of garden design
Located 15 km west of Tours, the Château de Villandry is a UNESCO World Heritage site. With over 335,000 visitors annually, it ranks among the top five Châteaux of the Loire Valley in terms of attendance. You will appreciate its elegant Renaissance architecture, the last of its kind in the region, along with its superb Italian-influenced gardens.
A medieval fortress turned Renaissance estate
Formerly a defensive fortress known as Coulombiers or Colombiers, the site served as a châtellenie (a castle district) from the Middle Ages until the 16th century. It was later remodeled by Jean le Breton, a minister under François I.
The medieval fortress attached to the keep was transformed into a residential wing opening toward the Loire and Cher rivers. Arcade galleries and wide mullioned windows framed by richly decorated pilasters brought a sense of sobriety and harmony to the structure.
Successive owners, including the Marquis de Castellane, Jérôme Bonaparte (the brother of Napoleon), and Joachim Carvallo, each contributed to the prestige and influence of the estate.
What to see inside the château
The interior consists of about a dozen rooms: a living room and study with a welcoming atmosphere, a dining room featuring marble floors and salmon-colored woodwork, a kitchen with terracotta tiles and copper cookware hanging on the walls, a grand staircase, four bedrooms, a library, a gallery of Spanish paintings, and even an oriental salon.
The highlight of the visit: The garden
The garden is among the finest in France and contains several distinct sections worth exploring step by step: a wooded area, two ornamental gardens, an audience garden, a water garden, a sun garden, a maze, a vegetable garden, an orangery, and a clementine grove. At the end of the season in March and November, the gardeners distribute the 40 types of vegetables cultivated on the grounds for free. Note that the Journées du Potager (Vegetable Garden Days), held the last weekend of September, are particularly informative.
Opening hours
*Information subject to change
The park and gardens at the Château de Villandry are really worth a look. They are perfectly maintained and it is very pleasant to walk around freely. In the middle of summer, it does lack a bit of shade. The château itself is very pretty, even if it is less impressive than Chambord, for example. Plan on spending two to three hours on site.