Tours, a cathedral city situated in the Loire Valley, is situated on a spit of land between the rivers Loire and Cher, and has a vibrant nightlife, with plenty of bars and restaurants. There is also a variety of unusual museums including wine, crafts, stained glass and a good Beaux-Arts museum. The city has a number of fine looking buildings, including the St-Gatien cathedral.
There are two distinct quarters of the city which lie either side of the Rue Nationale, which is a buzzing retail area. The quieter centre part surrounds the cathedral, whilst in contrast the main tourist hub lies around Plumereau, about 600m west.
Tours is also the main transport link to the great châteaux of Villandry, Langeais, Azay-le-Rideau and Amboise.
Getting there
Tours is on one of the main lines of the TGV, and as a result, the west coast of France at Bordeaux can be reached in just two and a half hours. From there you can travel to the Mediterranean coast via Avignon and from there to Spain and Barcelona, or to Lyon, Strasbourg and Lille. Paris is one hour away by TGV, and Charles de Gaulle airport can be reached in an hour and a half.
Tours has two main stations: the central station Gare de Tours, and Gare de Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, just outside the centre, the station used by trains that do not terminate in Tours.
Tours Loire Valley Airport connects the Loire Valley to London Stansted Airport, Marseille and Porto. Scheduled flights to Dublin and Manchester as well as charter flights to Ajaccio and Figari are also available during the summer.