Bateaux Nantais

Le Lieu Unique is the national centre for contemporary arts. It opened in 2000 in the former Lu biscuit factory and is a space for artistic exploration and cultural effervescence. Offering activities across all arts, it is a unique setting with plenty going on.

This 15th century Gothic cathedral was built on the site of an earlier Romanesque cathedral. Taking nearly 500 years to complete, it was immaculately restored following a fire in the 1970s. Its crypt contains the tombs of François II, Duke of Brittany and his wife Marguerite de Foix.

This small museum is dedicated to the world-renowned science fiction author Jules Verne who was born in Nantes. On the 150th anniversary of his birth, the city of Nantes decided to dedicate a museum to the writer in order to reflect the richness of his contributions. Books, articles, portraits and photography depict the personality of this famous figure.

On the Ile de Nantes, which has been transformed in recent years, this gallery in the old shipbuilding area features the mechanical designs of François Delarozière and Pierre Orefice whose imaginations were inspired by the works of Jules Verne. The huge moving urban sculptures, such as the Great Elephant and the Branch of the Heron Tree, are open for the public to experience, though bookings are required as they are extremely popular.

This historic 15th century château of the Goulaine family has been producing wine for centuries and it is unknown when they first sold it commercially. You can wander around its rich rooms, see an exhibition dedicated to the biscuit Lu and tour the butterfly house.

To show how important the medicinal plant sector activity is in the district, a group of producers decided to create a garden of medicinal plants using the garden of Chemillé's town hall. Its name, Camifolia, is inspired by the camomile which was the first medicinal plant to be introduced into the area. Chemillé, where 60 per cent of the Pays de la Loire production is concentrated, is the first French centre for medicinal plants with more than 70 species cultivated over approximately 600 hectares.

This small restaurant in Angers serves traditional French cuisine made with locally-sourced fresh market ingredients explained on the classic chalkboard menu.

This cute traditional French restaurant in Blois serves good quality food on, as the name suggests, red benches! The dishes are innovative and work well, and the is atmosphere charming.

An Asian-influenced menu in a great setting with beautiful views over the Loire. The fabulous setting was designed by Jean-Pierre Wilmotte. The fabulous menu was created by Jean-Yves Gueho. It has a fabulous wine cellar too. Definitely worth a visit.

This wonderful restaurant run by Bernard Robin, the renowned chef, used to be a coaching house. Today is serves excellent traditional cuisine in a fine dining setting accompanied by an excellent wine selection. A top dining spot in the Loire with a Michelin star to match.

With a wonderful spot overlooking the Loire river, this restaurant is located in the fishing villages of Varades. The chef, Jean-Marc Terrien and his team produce mainly fish dishes using local market produce.

This excellent restaurant in Orléans serves traditional French fare using quality local produce.

This theme park is a historical tour around a medieval city, an 18th-century village and a year 1900 town square. It also has a number of historical shows reenacting Ancient Roman gladiator fighting, attacks from the Vikings and medieval adventures. The summertime evening shows are an explosion of colour, lights and entertainment. An incredible spectacular.

This relatively new course, set in beautiful Saumur, is a pleasant 9-hole round if you're searching for a change from historical monuments and châteaux.

In the grounds of the 17th century Château Perrièrre, the golf club is within ancient trees, water features and different plant varieties that create this undulating course offering a diverse round.

Bateaux Nantais offers cruises along the river Erdre or the river Loire on their modern and sleek boats. Particularly popular are their lunch or dinner cruises and their themed evenings.

This 18-hole course is set in the grounds of an 18th-century château which is now a leisure complex with outdoor pool and tennis courts as well as a charming hotel.

Take in the magnificent scenery of the Loire by air in a hot air balloon. Offering a number of different tours and launch sites along the Loire river, what better way to take in the châteaux from up above where their size and splendour can really be seen.