ヴィレンヌレロシェのおすすめランニングルート

Come and discover the Touraine in d'Azay-le-rideau. A pleasant centre has nice terraces to stay for a while. Discover the Château d'Azay-le-rideau and the park in English style and relax on the banks of the Indre on the island by the waterfall.

The origins of the castle Do you know the story of this castle that stands on a small island in the Indre? Built during the reign of Francis I by Gilles Berthelot, the king's financier, the Château d'Azay-le-Rideau is a subtle combination of French traditions and innovative Italian decorations. It became an icon of the new architecture in the Loire Valley in the 16th century and is today considered one of the jewels of the architecture of the first French Renaissance. More information on https://www.azay-le-rideau.fr/decouvrir/histoire-du-chateau

The circuit itself is certainly nice to cycle. Perhaps better to park a few kilometres further on at Château de l'Islette if you drive here. Parking is free there.

Nice to visit if you don't have much time to visit other castles in the Loire region. There are certainly some that are more beautiful to see, have nicer gardens and also show more history on the inside. You can better go to Château de Villandry. There you really get more value for your money.

Beautiful tree growing in the wall of the village church

The fruit of chance or the work of a mischievous bird, for almost two centuries in the small village of Cheillé, an oak tree has taken root in the wall of the church. More surprising: inside the Saint-Didier church (the patron saint of grape harvesters), we can guess nothing; the roots, invisible, have crept into the stone. When the Historical Monuments proposed the idea of uprooting this tree, because its weight weakened the bell tower, the inhabitants of the village who had always known it, opposed it. It has sometimes been mutilated, and road or telephone installation work has weakened its roots. But it withstood the shock and still sits above the road today. It was classified in 2018 among the remarkable trees of France.

What a superb Renaissance castle, with this central staircase on the facade which creates balconies in the main courtyard! A typical organization of Renaissance palaces. Having become state property at the beginning of the 20th century, the restoration of the castle is an absolute success and puts Azay-le-Rideau in majesty. The visit to the castle begins under the framework, and takes us down the centuries of residence from the 16th to the 20th; masterful, what a testimony! We will obviously take the time to tour the castle through its gardens, to discover Azay's unique architectural plan.

The first traces of the construction of the Saint-Symphorien church date back to the 11th century. The church was registered as a historic monument in 1908. Major restoration work 90 years later revealed the remains of frescoes in the choir and are visible today.