Chenonceau is one of the most romantic Loire Valley Castles! How long it takes to visit Chenonceau depends on the type of visit you choose: a self-guided tour or a guided tour. Here, we will describe the different available ways to visit Chenonceau.

Guided tour from Paris: visiting Loire Valley Castles

How long does it take to visit Chenonceau on a guided tour? Taking a guided tour only for the Chenonceau is not very interesting in terms of price. On the other hand, it is possible to make guided tours over a day of several Loire Castles. A guided tour of multiple castles is also better because you will get a fuller picture of castles’ origins and life in the XVIth century. You will also get more recent facts, like when the French resistance used the castle to cross the river to access the Free zone and flee Nazy tyranny.

From Paris. It takes a full day for a guided tour of 3 Loire Valley Castles, including Chenonceau. For example:

Visiting the emblematic Loire Valley Castles (Chambord+Chenonceau) + the city of Blois: a 12-hour guided tour on English from Paris, including transport
Guided tour of the 2 beautiful Loire Valley Castles (Chambord+Chenonceau+Amboise): also a 12-hour tour from Paris, but without visiting the city of Blois

Visiting Chenonceau without a guide

In summer, or if the weather is nice, it takes at least 3 hours to visit Chenonceau. It is a pleasure to discover the Chenonceau when the weather is nice. But it might get crowded; think about skip-the-line tickets. Add at least an extra hour if you are taking a boat cruise. We recommend, of course, the boat cruise, as Chenonceau is a unique castle, one that crosses a river.

In winter, it takes less time because if it’s rainy or cold, you don’t want to walk outside. You cannot enjoy the gardens of the Chenonceau either, which are very interesting to visit, so the visit is much shorter in winter. If there is fog, you will get spooky vibes when visiting. Plan for about 2h to visit Chenonceau in winter.

Price for visiting Chenonceau. To visit Chenonceau on a self-guided tour, i.e., without a guide, you can take skip-the-line tickets in advance, online tickets on the château’s website, or on-site. In high tourist season, there can be quite a queue to enter the Château de Chenonceau, not to mention finding a parking space.

Route idea. Discover our blog post for visiting the Loire Valley Castles in 1, 2, or 3 days and the best towns where to stay in to visit multiple Loire Valley Castles.

In summary, to know how long it takes to visit Chenonceau, you have to know if you are going on a self-guided tour. The free visit takes at least 4 hours in summer, including parking and time to grab tickets. In winter, it is much shorter, between 2 and 3 hours maximum.

Here are some photos from our visit to Chenonceau in December. We wish you a wonderful visit! If you visit the region with children, you can also visit the Beauval Zoo. Beauval is one of the best zoos in France. It is only 30 minutes away, close to Saint-Aignan, where is another Loire Valley castle.