Saturday: Pick up at St Pierre de Corps Rail Station and transfer to Montreuil Bellay, an interesting hill-top village with a chateau. The hotel boasts a wine cellar that winds underground to a tasting room.

Sunday: Between Montreuil Bellay and the first sight of the Loire lies the vine-yard of Samur Champigny.
We may stop for a tasting before continuing to the Royal Abbey of Fontevraud. This was traditionally the home for French Queens and other royalty but it is most famous as a resting place for Henry II, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and their son Richard the Lionheart. We pass through Montsoreau where the Vienne flows into the Loire. The river is wide here and the town can look like a seaside town as it stretches along the bank of the
river. We end the day at Chinon. In the chateau at Chinon successive English kings made their home when in France. It is older than most chateau in the region and its military purpose is obvious from its commanding position along the ridge overlooking the medieval town of Chinon.   35 miles.

Monday: We cycle back towards the Indre River and the Loire. Overlooking the Indre is the first major chateau, Usse, the inspiration for the castle in Sleeping Beauty. Next comes Villandry which is not exceptional but has wonderful gardens - a vegetable garden, flower garden and a water garden. Each year the gardening team chooses a theme and tells a story in flowers. Finally we reach Azay-le-Rideau, another great chateau. It is surrounded on three sides by the River Indre, which has been carefully managed to provide a beautiful reflective setting for this ornate structure. Tonight we stay at a hotel situated on the cobble-stoned street leading to the chateau which gives us a chance to see the sound and light spectacle in the evening. 25 miles

Tuesday: Today the route follows the Indre Valley and the flat rolling countryside that divides it form the Cher River. We visit Chateau Nitray where we stop for a wine-tasting. Our hotel tonight is the Chateau de L'Isle alongside the river and just downstream from the Chateau Chenonceau, the most visited chateau of the Loire. The ballroom, built by Catherine de Medici, spans the river in spectacular fashion. During the second world war the Cher River formed the boundary between occupied France and Vichy France and each end of Chenonceau's ballroom opened into a different county. There is a sound and light spectacle in the evening although it is not as good as others. 40  miles.

Wednesday:  Today is a rest day with a chance to see the interior of Chenonceau which is one of the few chateaux which has much of the interior furnishings, tapestries and floors. It also has a magnificent rose garden.
There is an optional cycle ride to the home of Leonardo da Vinci at Le Clos Luce where there is an exhibition of his inventions and writings. Many of the original furnishings are still in place.  Another option is to go canoeing
on the river and to stop at the Vouvray vineyard for a little wine tasting.

Thursday: We follow the Cher upstream with the chance to visit a sparkling wine-maker at Monmousseau for
a tour and tasting. We can visit the mushroom caves at Bourre where they grown traditional Paris mushrooms
as well as more exotic varieties. After lunch we pass Chateau Cherverney and at the end of the day we arrive at another highlight - Chateau Chambord. This is the largest of the chateaux - originally built as a hunting lodge
by Francis I. It lies within its own park surrounded by a wall 32 km in length and wild boar and deer can sometimes be seen from observation platforms in the forest. The only other building in the park is our hotel and the setting is fantastic. In the evening we can see the sound and light spectacle and wander about the chateau, 40 miles.

Friday: We spend most of today cycling down the Loire passing through Chaumont which in addition to its chateau boasts a famous garden festival. Our final destination is Amboise. The chateau here is in the middle
 of town and was the seat of the King of France. The setting, directly overlooking the Lire, is fabulous. Amboise has a lovely medieval centre with bars and cafes beneath the chateau walls. 25 miles.

Saturday: Transfer to the Railway Station at St Pierre de Corps.