Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
that you'll wonder if the family just stepped out to get their poodle bathed. The 15-minute
Four Seasons of Villandry
slideshow (with period music and no narration) offers a look at
the gardens throughout the year in a relaxing little theater. The literal high point of your
châteauvisitisthespiralclimbtothetopofthekeep—theonlysurvivingpartofthemedi-
eval castle—where you'll find a 360-degree view of the gardens, village, and surrounding
countryside.
The lovingly tended
gardens
are well described by your handout. Follow its recom-
mended route through the four garden types. The 10-acre Renaissance garden, inspired
by the 1530s Italian-style original, is full of symbolism. Even the herb and vegetable sec-
tions are put together with artistic flair. The earliest Loire gardens were practical, grown
by medieval abbey monks who needed vegetables to feed their community and medicinal
herbs to cure their ailments. And those monks liked geometrical patterns. Later Italian in-
fluencebroughtdecorativeponds,tunnels,andfountains.Harmonizingtheflowersandve-
getables was an innovation of16th-century Loire châteaux. This example is the closest we
have to that garden style. The 85,000 plants—half of which come from the family green-
house—are replanted twice a year by 10 full-time gardeners. The place is as manicured as
a putting green—just try to find a weed. Stroll under the grapevine trellis, through a good-
looking salad zone, and among Anjou pears (from the nearby region of Angers). Charts
posted throughout identify everything in English.
Bring bread for the piranha-like carp who prowl the fanciful moat. Like the carp
swimming around other Loire châteaux, they're so voracious, they'll gather at your feet to
frantically eat your spit.
The pleasant little village of Villandry offers several cafés and restaurants, a small grocery
store, a bakery, and fair rates at the little
$$ Hôtel-Restaurant le Cheval Rouge**
right
on the main drag (Db-€64-75, extra person-€9, dinner
menus
from €20, Wi-Fi, tel. 02 47
50 02 07,
www.lecheval-rouge.com
).
Eating near Villandry:
Etape Gourmande at Domaine de la Giraudière
offers a
wonderfully rustic farmhouse dining experience. Gentle owner Beatrice takes time with
every client, and the country-gourmet cuisine is simply delicious (ask her how she landed
here). The
menu
is flexible: Choose just a starter and dessert, a starter and main course, or
allthreeifyou'restarved.Thediningroomis
très
cozy,buttheoutsideseating ispleasant,
too (€17-33
menus,
mid-March-mid-Nov daily 12:00-15:00 & 19:30-21:00, closed mid-
Nov-mid-March, a half-mile from Villandry's château toward Druye, tel. 02 47 50 08 60).
This place works best for lunch, as it's between Villandry and Azay-le-Rideau on D-121.
