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Sunday

We will meet you at Montparnasse TGV station and then accompany you via TGV rail to the Angers rail station in the afternoon and on to your Chateau home for the week.

Enjoy a meet-and-greet with homemade hors d’oeuvres and locally produced wines, followed by a tour of the Chateau. Then relax, take a walk on the grounds, or just unwind in the elegant rooms of the Chateau until it is time for your Gourmet Welcome Dinner.

Gourmet Dinner prepared by Chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures.

 

  • Marybeth, Jess, and Amy will offer a variety of movement and mindfulness sessions daily.

Monday

After breakfast at the Chateau, we will visit our friends, an English-speaking wine expert and viticulturist couple, Cathy and Nigel, at Le Tasting Room in the beautiful countryside.  The day begins with coffee and sweets, and includes a comprehensive tasting and homemade gourmet lunch in the comfort of their old “barrel cellar”. We spend the majority of the day with them at their home which is also their business.  Built between the 16th century and 1869 it’s a typical winemaker’s home built from the local limestone and is partially underground. During the morning Cathy leads a tutored tasting of 6 different wines from 6 appellation regions of Loire Valley wine.   This means you’ll come away with a greater understanding of the region as a whole and have tasted wines from at least 7 different producers during the day. You’ll enjoy a home cooked lunch prepared by Cathy and Nigel and served in their beautiful candlelit cellar. They use their own herbs and salads from the garden and their cheese is sourced from the specialty cheese shop Beillevaire in Angers which is a Loire based company with shops in Paris & London. Gourmet Dinner at the Chateau.

Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner provided by chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures at the Chateau. Homemade Lunch provided by Le Tasting Room.

Tuesday

Breakfast at the Chateau. We then drive through the French countryside on to our destination of Angers, capital of the ancient province of Anjou. You will have the opportunity to explore the city of Angers with the group, or on your own, if you wish. Highlights include great shopping, eateries, the Cathedral and the beautiful Château, which is home of the Fourteenth Century Apocalypse Tapestry, the largest tapestry in the world. Don’t miss a great opportunity for gift-shopping. Dinner at the Château.

Breakfast and Dinner provided by chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures at the Chateau.

Wednesday

Yoga Breakfast at the Chateau, leisurely morning, then we visit the nearby Château Villandry. The Chateau of Villandry is the last of the great chateaux of the Loire built during the Renaissance in the Loire Valley. The sober elegance of its architecture combined with the charm of its outstanding gardens make this one of the jewels of world heritage.
An avant-garde architectural design, Villandry is one of the great chateaux built on the banks of the Loire during the Renaissance. It has the distinctive feature of being the residence of neither a king nor a courtesan, but of Jean Le Breton, Minister of Finance for François I.
At Villandry, Jean Le Breton drew on his exceptional architectural experience acquired on a large number of sites, including the Chateau of Chambord, which he supervised and directed on behalf of the Crown over many years.
When he arrived in Villandry in 1532, he had the old feudal fortress razed to the ground, except for the keep, a dramatic testimony to the conference held on 4 July 1189 at which Henry II of England (Henry Plantagenet) admitted his defeat before King Philip Augustus of France, signing the treaty known as “La Paix de Colombiers ” (The Peace of Colombiers) two days before he died.  Gourmet Picnic lunch by Artistic Gourmet Adventures. Back to ‘our’ Chateau for Dinner.

Breakfast, Gourmet Picnic Lunch and Gourmet Dinner provided by chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures at the Chateau.

Thursday

After breakfast, we will venture out for an exciting morning of shopping at the large weekly town market in Chinon.  Amazing deals can be found in clothing, shoes, crafts and local and regional delicacies. After lunch at the market*, we head to Martin de Candre, maker of hundreds of locally made artisanal French soaps (savonnerie artisanale), once sold in Barney’s of New York and great for gift-giving. After this enjoyable stop, back to the Chateau for a wonderful dinner by Chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures.

Breakfast and Gourmet Dinner provided by chef Walter and Artistic Gourmet Adventures at the Chateau.

Friday

Breakfast at the Chateau, then transportation to the Angers train station for your return home or on to your next destination-Paris!

*Your Adventure covers meals at the Chateau.