Amboise: top attractions & road trip guide
Amboise is a small town on the Loire River known chiefly for its royal château, perched on a rocky spur above the water, and for its ties to Leonardo da Vinci, who spent his final years nearby at the king's invitation. The town's compact center is easily walkable, wrapped around the château's fortified base.
Top attractions
Château d'Amboise
This royal residence overlooking the Loire was a favorite of Charles VIII and Francis I and contains the small Chapel of Saint-Hubert, believed to hold Leonardo da Vinci's remains.
Clos Lucé
Leonardo da Vinci lived and worked in this brick manor house from 1516 until his death in 1519; it now displays models built from his engineering sketches and gardens designed around his ideas.
Pagode de Chanteloup
This 44-meter Chinoiserie folly, built in 1775, is the sole surviving structure of the vast Château de Chanteloup estate and offers views over the surrounding forest from its upper gallery.
Château du Clos-Lucé Gardens (Leonardo's Park)
Spread across the Clos Lucé grounds, this park sets full-scale working machines based on da Vinci's designs, from bridges to flying devices, among landscaped woodland.
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