Castles of Azay-le-Rideau and Troglodyte Valley

Begin at the Château d'Azay-le-Rideau, a Renaissance jewel rising from an island in the Indre River, where the famous grand staircase and reflecting pool set the tone for the day. Continue to the Troglodyte Valley of the Goupillières, a network of peasant cave dwellings carved into tuffeau limestone cliffs and inhabited from the 10th century until 1905 — bread ovens, wells, and farm animals bring centuries of rural life back to the surface. At the Château de Saché, the Balzac Museum preserves the rooms where Honoré de Balzac wrote Le Père Goriot and Le Lys dans la Vallée, surrounded by manuscripts and Rodin sculptures. End the day at the Château de l'Islette, a privately owned Renaissance castle where Auguste Rodin and Camille Claudel spent their summers, with riverside gardens and rowboat rentals on the Indre. This route is available from April to November, as the Troglodyte Valley and Château de l'Islette are seasonal sites. The Balzac Museum is closed every Tuesday — plan accordingly.