Château Royal de Blois

Home to seven kings and ten queens of France, this royal château in the centre of Blois shows four centuries of French architecture around one courtyard, from a Gothic hall to the famous open spiral staircase of the François I wing. The rooms are richly painted, and the château was the scene of the murder of the Duke of Guise in 1588.

Blois is a good base for the Loire Valley, on the main railway line, with buses and tours to Chambord and Cheverny. In summer there's a sound-and-light show in the courtyard. Across the square, the House of Magic celebrates the magician Robert-Houdin.

The Loire Valley is less than an hour from Paris by TGV to Tours, or about 1.5 hours by train to Blois.