Tours, France
Self Catering Tours Holiday Cottages and Gites, France
Tours is the capital of the Indre-et-Loire department in the Centre region of France. A visit to Tours is the chance to spend time in "Le Jardin de la France" ("The Garden of France") –several parks are located within this stunning city.
Tours is located on the river Loire, between Orléans and the Atlantic coast. A stay in a Tours holiday gite means you’ll encounter the many bridges which cross the river Loire in the Tours section. The river Cher is also located to the south. Touraine, the region around Tours, is known for its wines, the alleged perfection of its local spoken French, and for the famous Battle of Tours in 732. It is also the site of the Paris–Tours road bicycle race.
When you rent a holiday home in Tours you’ll notice that its buildings are white with blue slate (called Ardoise) roofs; a style which is common in the north of France.
Don’t miss seeing Tours’ famous medieval district, called le Vieux Tours. Unique to the Old City are its preserved half-timbered buildings and La Place Plumereau, a square with busy pubs and restaurants, whose open-air tables fill the centre of the square. The Boulevard Beranger crosses the Rue Nationale at the Place Jean-Jaures and is the location of weekly markets and fairs.
Other places to visit when you stay in self-catering accommodation in Tours include the city’s famous cathedral. Also known as Saint Gatien's Cathedral, it was built between 1170 and 1547. It has been a classified a historical monument since 1862.
In the spring months temperatures generally hover around 20 degrees, with occasional rain. Long dry spells are frequent in the summer with temperatures from 22 – 28 degrees. In the autumn light frosts are common with highs of 17 degrees and in the winter it can be chilly with 8 degrees the average.
Travelling to your Tours holiday cottage: Tours is on one of the main lines of the TGV. It is possible to travel to the west coast at Bordeaux in two and a half hours, to the Mediterranean coast via Avignon and from there to Spain and Barcelona, or to Lyon, Strasbourg and Lille. It takes less than one hour by train from Tours to Paris by TGV and one hour and a half to Charles de Gaulle airport. To reach Tours is on average a comfortable 4-5 hour drive from France’s northern ferry ports – it is also conveniently located on the A28 auto-route.
Tours Loire Valley Airport welcomes Ryanair flights from London Stansted Airport and Dublin.