Page 193 - Lonely Planet Europe’s Best Trips (Travel Guide)

TRIP HIGHLIGHT
6 Amboise
Perched on a rocky es-
carpment above town, the
Château Royal d’Amboise
(%02 47 57 00 98; www.cha
DANITA DELIMONT / GETTY IMAGES ©
teau-amboise.com; place Michel
Debré; adult/child €11.20/7.50,
incl audioguide €15.20/10.50;
h9am-6pm or 7.30pm
Mar–mid-Nov, 9am-12.30pm & FRANCE
favoured retreat for all of
France’s Valois and Bour-
bon kings. The ramparts
afford thrilling views of
the town and river, and
you can visit the fur-
nished Logis (Lodge) and
the Flamboyant Gothic
Chapelle St-Hubert
2-5.15pm mid-Nov–Feb) was a 14 CHâTEAux OF THE LOIRE
(1493), where Leonardo
da Vinci’s presumed re-
mains have been buried
since 1863.
Amboise’s other main
sight is Le Clos Lucé (%02
47 57 00 73; www.vinci-closluce.
com; 2 rue du Clos Lucé; adult/
child €15/10.50; h9am-7pm
or 8pm Feb-Oct, 9am or 10am-
5pm or 6pm Nov-Jan; c),
the grand manor house
where Leonardo da Vinci
(1452–1519) took up resi-
dence in 1516 and spent
the final years of his life at
the invitation of François
I. Already 64 by the time
he arrived, Da Vinci
spent his time sketching,
tinkering and dreaming
up ingenious contraptions.
Fascinating models of his
many inventions are on
display inside the home
and around its lovely
7-hectare gardens.
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