Half-day excursions

Enjoy the famous French Art de Vivre with this delightful morning including the visit of the elegant chateau of Azay-le-Rideau and the Chateau de Villandry and its unique gardens. An experience you will never forget! Your passionate guide will stay with you all along sharing many anecdotes that will make you feel part of those royal days.   Program:  9:30 am: Meet us in front of the Tourist office in Tours and get on our minivan, off to the Loire Chateaux!   You will start with a visit to the Château d'Azay le Rideau, which Honoré de Balzac described as "... A faceted cut diamond set by the Indre...". A true jewel of Renaissance architecture with its straight staircase called "ramp on ramp" and its main building of exemplary order, its history mixed with royalty, conspiracies and passion will not leave you indifferent.   Your passionate guide will accompany you on all the visits and will share with you the stories of the estate.   Then, arrival at the Château de Villandry, a jewel of French heritage built during the Renaissance. Your guide will accompany you through the remarkable formal gardens of Villandry, of breathtaking beauty and delicacy. What were the codes and meaning of such gardens? All this knowledge will be yours at the end of the visit. You will admire with him the vegetable garden, the maze, the water garden... We will show you hidden corners from where you will get the best views of this remarquable site.   1:30pm: Back to the Tourist Office in Tours

Since 2016, VinoLoire is a reference in Loire Valley wine tours starting from Tours city. As a wine professional for more than 20 years, Vincent will guide you with passion and will share his knowledge. This wine tour is a great introduction to the Loire Valley wines with a visit in the Vouvray vineyard and an extensive tasting of a variety of Loire valley wines (Chinon, Touraine, Bourgueil, ...)    Program 9:00 am: Pick up at the tourist office of Tours. Transport in a confortable minivan.   Visit in Vouvray vineyard First stop in the heart of  the vineyard : geography, first approach of the vine-grower work, ... Visit of the rock-hewn cellar belonging to the family for several generations  Taste different white wines typical from Vouvray  (Dry, Half dry,  Sparkling ) Wine and food pairing with local cheeses Second visit in Montlouis-sur-Loire vineyard Larger winery visit Tasting of a range of Montlouis wines Taste also a selection of red wines from the Loire Valley (Chinon, Bourgueil, Touraine …) Other local food pairing (Cheeses, Rillons, Rillettes, …) Around 12:30 pm: Drop off at the tourist office.

During this half day wine-tour you will be introduced to the diversity of the Loire Valley wines guided by Vincent (VinoLoire expert who works in the local wine industry for more than 20 years). This tour include two very different wineries to understand the winemaking process, to explore outstanding cellars and caves and to taste an extensive range of wines representative of the Touraine region. Program: 1:30 pm: Pick up in Tours, transport in a comfortable minivan. Visit in Touraine vineyard First stop in the organic vineyard: geography, first approach of the vine-grower work, ... Visit of the modern winery and the cellar Taste some different wines and grape varieties representing the Loire Valley diversity (Rosé, Red Dry & Half dry white, Sparkling) Second visit in Chinon Visit in an original organic estate Discovery of a very original cellar dug by the wine grower himself during 30 years! Large tasting of his organic wines Local product tasting (Cheeses, rillettes, …) Around 6:00pm: Drop off in Tours Please arrive 10 minutes before departure and present your voucher at VinoLoire Wine tour.

Explore the Loire Valley wine route and its vineyards, full of tradition and passion! Visit 2 superb estates of the Vouvray Appellation, admire the wonderful vineyard landscapes and learn how to taste these elegant wines produced from one of the most well-known terroir of the Val de Loire area!   Program:  2.00 pm: Start at the Tourist Office in Tours and get into our minivan, off to Vouvray! Discover this beautiful wine area full of passion-driven winegrowers!   Meet a genuine French winemaker in a charming family-run estate! Visit the traditional vat room where hundreds of barrels are lined up (bring your coat, it is cold in the vat room).   During this visit, you will improve your knowledge regarding wine-making and of course wine-tasting! The terroir of this wine area and its main grape variety of Chenin blanc, allows the production of elegant white wines, dry, sweet or sparkling!   After this, your guide will drive you to a grand wine house situated just along the Loire River. Stroll inside it's impressive troglodyte galleries. Dug in the hills, these undergound tunnels are part of Loire Valley's historical heritage. Needless to say that these long galleries are ideal to store wine today... Discover all the secrets of elaboration of the wines from this ancient historical house, still using the "méthode traditionnelle".   All along the afternoon, your will get to know and understand better the diversity of Loire Valley wines. « Intense color, fruity aromas, palate full of minerals… » Oops!! What is this all about?! Your guide will help you to learn the different steps of wine-tasting and train your nose to identify many wine aromas. Benefit from our tips and tricks and taste like a pro!    6.30pm: Back to the Tourist Office in Tours