This ride departs from Hotel Campanile south of Tours. You will soon leave the RN 10. You will cross the Indre which follows you for a while.
The petrified caves of Savonnières are two caves in Savonnières. The Romans were present in the caves, as evidenced by the discovery of pottery, hand mills and a graveyard, with seven more tombstones. The caves were mostly formed during the Middle Ages, the stone was used to build castles. Centuries later, the caves were inundated with water, slowly creating new passages. They were visited by Bernard Palissy in 1547 and an extension was discovered in 1947.

Villandry Castle may be one of the great Renaissance castles in the Loire Valley, but it is best known for its beautiful gardens.
With its unique furnishings, decor and atmosphere, the Château de Villandry is a living testimony to French heritage. When Jean Le Breton acquired the Villandry estate, the building was a medieval fortress. The defensive architecture was scaled back, opened up and improved with elements from the Renaissance. In the 18th century, the Marquis de Castellane moved to Villandry and made some major changes to transform the building into a warm, light and comfortable home that reflected the art of living at the time. By the end of the 19th century, the estate had fallen into disuse and been saved from destruction by Joachim Carvallo and Ann Coleman, who in turn undertook a restoration campaign to return it to its Renaissance state. Henri Carvallo, the current owner of Villandry, is following in the footsteps of his ancestors, both preserving this unique heritage and opening it up to visitors.
But especially the 5 French gardens of Villandry are magnificent. The decorative vegetable garden consists of 9 square sections, which together form a colorful checkerboard. Throughout the seasons, the flowers and vegetables alternate, forming colorful compositions. The ornamental garden is divided into two 'salons'. The first, called 'Gardens of Love' (jardins d'Amour), is formed by 4 square boxwood sections, each representing a different love. So there is tender love with his hearts; passionate love with broken hearts; fickle love, clearly depicted by love horns, and where the color yellow symbolizes deceived love; and finally the tragic love depicted by knives and swords. Lyres and harps decorate the second 'salon', which is all about music. Then there is the water garden, whose central basin, in the shape of a Louis XV mirror, radiates calm and tranquility. The Herb Garden (jardin des Simples) offers a collection of medicinal and aromatic herbs. And finally, the maze will entertain young and old.
The very last garden was created in 2008, on the occasion of the centenary of Joachim Carvallo's ambitious project. This concerns the Zonnetuin, which is located on the high terrace of the castle. It consists of 3 rooms: the Children's Room with play equipment, the Sun Room with basin in the shape of an 8-pointed star, and the Cloud Room with rose bushes and other shrubs. In the forest above the gardens, a viewing tower provides an overview of the beautiful whole.
Next to the castle you can enjoy a nice lunch in restaurant Le Cheval Rouge.

You will now leave the Loire for a while to drive to the castle of Azay-le-Rideau, which is located on the Indre.
A masterpiece of the early French Renaissance, the castle is in some aspects reminiscent of medieval castles from the 15th century. It was built in the 16th century on an island of the Indre. Whether it is in the drawings of the windows, the design of the stairs or the decoration of the ceilings, on the outside you can see the French influence, reminiscent of the Middle Ages, and on the inside the decorations have Renaissance. Balzac describes the castle as "a faceted diamond surrounded by the Indre".
The walls and ceilings are also decorated with sculptures on the inside. There are a number of large Flemish tapestries. The salon has a fireplace above which a salamander has been processed. Adjacent are portraits of members of the former French royal family. You can also admire the royal apartments, which have large red and gold curtains. The blue room is decorated with ivory statues depicting the Thirty Years' War. The white bedroom has a large satin bed and a 17th century tapestry depicting the hunt. The ballroom can be found on the first floor. There is also a large kitchen to admire.

Further along the Indre you pass the castle of Islette. It is a beautiful Renaissance castle surrounded by two branches of the Indre that give it a peaceful, romantic setting. It is this setting that attracted Auguste Rodin and Camille Claudel during the latter part of the 18th century as they sought to escape life in Paris. The castle was built from white limestone between 1520 and 1530 and is a fine example of French Renaissance architecture.
You now follow the Indre for a short distance and then cross the Loire again at Langeais
via the majestic Langeais bridge with arched piers, decorated with turrets. In the 1930s, the pillars of the bridge took on the Gothic style of the castle. It was not modernized until the early 1980s. Today, apart from the A85 motorway, it is the only 45 km crossroads across the Loire between Tours and Port Boulet.

Langeais Castle has two faces: seen from the town side, it is sober and seen from the courtyard, it is delicate and refined. The park has one of France's oldest stone keep, a testament to medieval military architecture. The whole location speaks of the Middle Ages and tempts you to travel back in time to the dawn of the Renaissance.
It was built in the 10th century as a fortification on a rock overhanging the narrow valley of the Roumer at the beginning of the Loire Valley. In the 12th century the fortification was further expanded and strengthened. Ultimately, the fort was destroyed by the English during the Hundred Years' War. Louis XI of France (1461-1483) had it rebuilt to the state it is in today. The castle is one of the best examples of late medieval architecture. It is best known for its monumental decorated chimneys. The main hall of the castle was the scene of the wedding between Anne of Brittany (15 years old) and King Charles VIII of France. The politically arranged marriage was to strengthen and maintain the relationship and unity between the Duchy of Brittany and the Kingdom of France. There is a beautiful collection of carpets and antique furniture.
After the visit, you will continue to follow the Loire closely, sometimes hidden behind the bushes. Here and there you have beautiful viewpoints of this beautiful stream.
The next river on your route is the Vienne. It is 363 km (226 miles) long. It is an important left tributary of the lower Loire. It supports numerous hydroelectric dams and it is the main river of the northern part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region.
The Monplaisir cellar, unique in the Loire Valley, is an old underground quarry of more than 2500 m2 from which the tuff quarries were extracted that made it possible to build the many castles, lodges and manors that can be found in the region.
Following a secular wine-making tradition in Touraine, it has been converted into an obsolete storage cellar. You will walk through its impressive galleries full of treasures: more than 700 barrels and tens of thousands of bottles of Chinon's greatest wines! The best terroirs of the appellation are here: Chinon, Savigny en Véron, Beaumont en Véron, Ligré ...

The royal fortress of Chinon occupies a strategic position at the crossroads of the provinces of Anjou, Poitou and Touraine. From its rocky outcrop, the castle not only dominates the region, but also the hundreds of years of history still anchored in its towers, royal residence and ramparts. At the beginning of the current century, a major restructuring project and important archaeological excavation work began in and around the royal fortress of Chinon. The walls and the royal apartments were renovated so that a new visitor route could be set up. After more than a thousand years of history, the fortress is completely anchored in the present day, thanks to the modern technology with which it is equipped. Touch screens, sound terminals and augmented reality are a few examples of the countless interactive installations that make your visit better and that are accessible to everyone.

The day trip ends here. You cross the Vienne and a little further you come to hotel Ibis Styles Chinon (11 Rue de la Digue Saint Jacques). The hotel has private parking.