5 little-known Loire Valley châteaux worth a visit

On the edge of the Brenne regional nature park, the Château d'Azay-le-Ferron offers a tour of its 15 rooms, so realistically reconstructed that you'd think they were still inhabited. Pass through the dining room, with its 18th-century sideboard and still-life paintings, to the kitchen, via the guards' room featuring hunting trophies brought back from Sudan by Roger Luzache d'Azay in the 19th century. The youngest visitors will be delighted by the mystery animal game they can play in all the rooms.

Closer to the Sudan, the de la Motte Saint-Pierre family, owners of Château de Montpoupon, are famous for hunting with hounds on their estate. Discover the Musée du Veneur, 30 rooms dedicated to this practice. Admire the stables, the exhibition of carriages and the saddlery. Finally, don't miss the Hermès room, named after the prestigious house famous for its silk scarves and saddles. A French savoir-faire not to be missed.

The reputation of the châteaux of the Centre-Val de Loire region is based not only on their impressive residences, but also on the parks and gardens that surround them. At the Château de Maintenon you will discover a true French garden, created according to the plans of Le Nôtre, the gardener commissioned by King Louis XVI. Stroll among 65 standard roses, 15,000 tulips and a carpet of 2,000 pink impatiens and blue sage. And don't miss the huge unfinished aqueduct that crosses the estate, a perfect illustration of the whims of the kings of yesteryear.

Paul Ardier, owner of Château de Beauregard, began his historian's dream in 1617: to create a portrait gallery retracing the history of France. Three generations of his family worked together to create this collection of 315 portraits of the people who have marked history through the 15 reigns of the kings of France. The result is the Galerie des Portraits, which since 1992 has been housed in the Jardin des Portraits, 12 gardens reminiscent of the gallery's 12 portrait groups. The perfect way to round off your visit.

If you want to discover castles in a different way, Meillant is the place to go. With the tour "L'autre Meillant", Aurélia de Mortemart will reveal the details and secrets of her castle life. Or perhaps you'd prefer to dine at the château, play a life-size game of Cluedo with the "Crime au château" activity, or visit the Musée des Miniatures where history is told through doll's houses. Out-of-the-ordinary visits to one of the lesser-known châteaux in the Centre-Val De Loire region, an area to be rediscovered without end!