I have an unproven theory that I come back to every time I'm around the area. Loire valley: The most impressive castles are usually the ones that tell you the least about who was actually there. Enormous castles like Chambord או What was tried? For all their romance, they often present a polished facade and sweep their bloody history under the rug. Château d'Amboise is different. Amboise is not shy. It has a doorframe that killed a king, a balcony where rebels were hanged, and a tomb where no one is really sure who is buried.
What is Amboise Castle? (Château d'Amboise)
Amboise Castle is one of the most fascinating and important castles in the Loire Valley of France. It served as the main stronghold of the kings of France (from the 15th to the 16th centuries) and displays a magnificent blend of French and Italian Renaissance architecture. The castle is famous for the bloody history of the royal court, the impressive structure that dominates the Loire River, and the Chapelle Saint-Hubert, where the tomb of the Renaissance genius, Leonardo da Vinci, is located. It is highly recommended to visit it if you are looking for a castle that brings history to life.
If you are planning a tour and are usingHiking trails in the Loire Valley, and looking for one castle to start with, I have a clear answer. Not because it is the largest (it is not — what stands there today is about a fifth of the original area), nor because it is the most magnificent. But because it is, more than any other castle I have seen, except perhaps Blois Castle, tells in the most tangible way what it was like to live (and sometimes die) in the French royal court.
Before we jump into the fascinating history of the castle, we need to first provide some tourist information, which may not be that interesting but is very important. For more extensive reading, you can always use theThe Complete Guide to the Loire Valley.
Visitor information for Amboise Castle
Order tickets
Since Amboise is a fairly popular castle, it is recommended to book tickets in advance to avoid waiting in line at the box office. There are two types of tickets for the castle:
- Ticket for the castle itself only
- Combined ticket to Amboise Castle and Clos Lousse (will save you a few euros)
Open Hours
Amboise Castle is open to the public All year round, except for two days when the site is completely closed: January 1 and December 25.
Opening hours vary according to the seasons, with the castle closing at noon for a break during the winter season (some days in January, February, November and December). It is also recommended to take into account that the park and gardens close 45 minutes after the ticket offices close.
Below is a breakdown of the full opening hours (updated for 2026):
- January:
- January 2-4: 09:00 AM – 17:30 PM.
- January 5-31: 10:00 – 12:30 and then 14:00 – 16:30.
- February:
- February 1-6: 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM and then 14:00 PM – 16:30 PM.
- February 7-28: 09:00 AM – 17:00 PM.
- March: 09: 00 - 17: 30.
- April: 09: 00 - 18: 00.
- May and June: 09: 00 - 18: 30.
- July and August (peak season): 09: 00 - 19: 00.
- September: 09: 00 - 18: 00.
- October: 09: 00 - 17: 30.
- November:
- November 1 (All Saints' Day): 09:00 AM – 17:30 PM.
- November 2-30: 09:00 AM – 12:30 PM and then 14:00 PM – 17:00 PM.
- December:
- December 1-18: 09:00 AM – 12:30 PM and then 14:00 PM – 17:00 PM.
- December 19-24 and 26-31 (holiday period): 09:00 – 17:00
How to get to Amboise Castle?
The castle is located in the city of Amboise in the Touraine region, right in the heart of the Loire Valley, and it is very easy to spot it dominating the skyline as soon as you cross the bridge into the city.
Guided tour from Paris
If you live in Paris and are looking for a day trip to the Loire Valley – I suggest not wasting time taking a round-trip train or bothering with renting a car, but simply taking a convenient guided tour through GetYourGuide. This will not only save you time and headache, but also won’t cost you much more than an independent trip (if you take into account the cost of travel and entry to the palace).
Here are some guided tours that include Amboise:
Arrival by car
I recommend renting a car in Paris only if you plan to travel to the Loire Valley for several days and/or continue from there to other regions in France, such as Brittany region.
Did you rent a car? Here's your route:
- Leaving Paris: Connect to the A10 motorway heading southwest (towards Bordeaux/Aquitaine).
- Traveling on the A10 highway: You drive for about 200 kilometers until you reach the area of the city of Tours.
- Exit to the local road: Connect to the D751 road (or parallel local roads) leading directly to the town of Amboise, located on the banks of the Loire River.
Please note that part of the route includes toll roads and you can avoid them (at the cost of extending the travel time) if you register to avoid toll roads in Visa.
Free parking lots (free)
- Parking des Tanneurs: Located at 8 Mail Saint-Thomas. This spacious, shaded and completely free car park is considered one of the most convenient options. It is a short walk from the city center and the Château de Amboise and the Château de Clos Lucé.
- Parking du Mail: Located on the banks of the Loire River at Quai du Général de Gaulle. The car park offers free parking, is open 24/7 and is just a 5-minute walk from the castle and the city center.
- Parking des quais: Another free car park located right on the Loire River quay. It offers a beautiful view of the castle and is considered very convenient for those coming for a day trip to the city.
Arriving by train
There are direct trains from Paris-Austerlitz station. The journey takes about 1.5 to 2 hours and the station in Amboise is located a short walk from the castle. If you are looking for a recommended website to book train tickets, let me recommend you: Rail europe Which I use when I book train tickets.
Recommended hotels in Amboise and the region
If you decide to extend your stay and soak up the city's nightlife (and it certainly has a special charm after the tourists leave), here are some recommended hotels I've collected for you in the area. By the way, if you have a car and prefer to stay a little further away, it's also worth checking out Recommended hotels in Tours Nearby:
Choiseul
A charming and luxurious boutique hotel located on the banks of the Loire River, right at the foot of the castle. It offers a great combination of tradition, elegant rooms, pastoral gardens and a fine restaurant. For details and to book rooms click here.
Pray Castle
Why just visit a castle when you can also sleep in one? This beautiful 13th-century castle is located a short drive from Amboise and offers a noble hospitality experience, alongside a Michelin-starred restaurant that will tantalize your taste buds. For details and to book rooms click here.
Bellevue Hotel
As its name suggests — “The Beautiful View.” A charming and accessible 3-star hotel offering comfortable, clean rooms at affordable prices, and located a short walk from the city center and Amboise Castle. For details and to book rooms click here.
What should you not miss on your visit?
- Chapelle Saint-Hubert: A perfect little Gothic gem that houses the tomb of Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519). Its stained glass windows are breathtakingly beautiful, especially when the sun is shining through them. Take a moment to enjoy it. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovations the last time I visited (in 2023), but I believe you will be able to visit it by the time you get there.
- The towers and cavalry ramps (Tours Cavalières): The Tour des Minimes and the Tour Heurtault. These are enormous towers with a spiral slope and no steps, which allowed horsemen and carriages to comfortably ascend from the city directly into the castle.
- Royal Residence Wing (Logis Royal): Here you can tour rooms furnished in the Renaissance style and take a peek at the historic balcony. I highly recommend using theHistoPad That you receive at the entrance – this is an amazing interactive tablet that illustrates in 3D what the rooms looked like in the past and will bring history to life right before your eyes.
- The gardens and the observation deck: Stroll through the beautiful formal gardens, and take a moment to admire the 360-degree panoramic view of the Loire River and the city.
The bloody story of Amboise Castle
Amboise Castle has been perched on a strategic cliff since the Neolithic period, and a fortress already stood there in the 4th century. Until the 15th century, it was an ordinary feudal castle, belonging to a local noble family, one of many along the Loire. Then, in 1431, King Charles VII (1422-1461) decided that the local Duke (Louis d'Amboise 1392-1469) was plotting against the throne. As a result, the Duke was accused and tried for treason, and the castle was confiscated and became royal property. This is when Amboise ceased to be just another feudal castle, and became a stronghold of kings.
His son, Louis XI (1461-1483) — nicknamed “the Spider” for his cunning — didn’t do much with the place. But his grandson, Charles VIII (1483-1498), was born in the château in 1470, and when he ascended to the throne he made it his main residence. And that’s when the story really gets interesting.
The King Who Loved Italy Too Much (And Paid for It with His Head)
Charles VIII (1483-1498) was not what you imagine when you think of a typical Renaissance king. He lacked the natural charisma of his father, but he had one clear obsession: Italy. In 1494, he set out on a military expedition to conquer Naples, and along the way was enchanted by the splendor of Milan, Florence, and Rome. When he returned, he brought with him not only his army but also Italian architects, artisans, and gardeners. He decided that Amboise should be transformed into an Italian-style palace, opening the door (literally) to the French Renaissance in the Loire Valley. What stands there today is largely the product of Charles VIII’s vision and construction.
Then, on April 7, 1498, the unthinkable happened. The 27-year-old king accompanied his wife, Anne of Brittany (1477-1514), to watch a game of “Jeu de paume” (an early form of tennis) in the castle’s games room. He did this to distract her, as only three weeks earlier they had lost their infant daughter. On their way, they passed through a low doorway.
King Charles hit his head hard on a door frame in Amboise. Amazingly, he continued to watch the game as if nothing had happened. However, on the way back, he collapsed, fell into a coma, and died nine hours later (although some claim that it was not the blow itself that killed him but a stroke, but we will stick with the dramatic version that fired the imagination of the people of the time – decide for yourself, I personally have not checked the medical record).
The Scottish Girl and the Night of the Amboise Murders
If Charles VIII gave Amboise its architecture, King Henry II (1547-1559) and his wife, Catherine de Médicis (1519-1589), filled it with life.
Among the children raised here was Mary Stuart (1542-1587), Queen of Scots, who was brought to France at a young age to marry their son François (later King François II 1559-1560). Imagine: a Scottish girl raised in a French palace, learning manners and speaking fluent French, before becoming one of the most tragic figures in British history.
But the real tragedy of the château came in 1560, during the short reign of François II (1559-1560). The ultra-Catholic Guise family was in power, much to the anger of Huguenot (Protestant) nobles. They hatched the “Amboise Plot”—a plan to kidnap the young king and remove the Guise family from power. The plan was leaked, and when the rebels attacked on March 17, they were quickly defeated.
The response was particularly brutal. Estimates suggest that between 1,200 and 1,500 Huguenots were executed (there are no exact numbers, but blood flowed freely there). Since there were no free gallows left in the city, they were hung from any available spot in the castle—from the walls, from the trees, and even from the iron hooks on the walls that were originally intended to anchor ceremonial tapestries. The walls turned red and sticky with blood, the sight of beheaded nobles. Some of the executions took place right in front of the “balcony of the hangings” of the royal residence, in the presence of the king and queen. Incidentally, François de Guise, who had initiated this massacre, was himself murdered a few years later—a historical cycle of revenge at its best. This rebellion was effectively the opening shot of France’s bloody Wars of Religion.
The genius who lives at the end of the secret tunnel
My favorite story in Amboise changes the tone completely. In 1516, the young King François I (1515-1547) invited an aging Italian artist—his name was Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)—to come live in France. He was given the title of “first painter, engineer, and architect to the king,” and a nearby estate called Clos Lucé.
Legend has it that François admired Leonardo so much that he ordered a secret underground tunnel to be dug connecting the Château de Amboise to the estate of Clos Lousse, so that he could visit him discreetly at any time. The opening to this secret tunnel can still be seen in Clos Lousse – worth checking out when you visit. Leonardo spent his final years there, working on his inventions and planning royal celebrations, until his death on May 2, 1519.
And here begins the mysterious part: Leonardo was buried in the church of Saint-Florentin on the grounds of the castle, but it was destroyed during the French Revolution. In 1863, excavations were carried out in the area where the church stood, and a skeleton and coins from that period were found, along with fragments of a tombstone bearing the name “Leonardo da Vinci.” The bones were moved to the magnificent Chapelle Saint-Hubert, which stands at the edge of the castle wall. On the wall you will find an inscription indicating that this is the “presumed” (Présumés) tomb of da Vinci. There is something poetic about a genius who dealt with unsolved puzzles his whole life, finding rest in a tomb that is itself an enigma.
From demolition to a prestigious prison for the Emir
Over the years, the castle was abandoned in favor of newer, more fashionable palaces such as the Chambord of Versailles. The French Revolution took a heavy toll on the castle, and large parts were destroyed or deliberately dismantled to sell their building materials. Imagine a castle five times larger than what you see today when you arrive – that’s exactly what it once was.
In the 19th century, King Louis-Philippe Ier (1830-1848) began to restore the building. Later, between 1848 and 1852, the château served as a prison (or, more precisely, a luxurious prison residence) for Emir Abd el-Kader (1808-1883), leader of the Algerian resistance. He described Amboise before it became his prison as a “smiling and lively city”. He and his family were held there until they were released by Napoleon III (1852-1870). Today, the château is maintained by the Saint-Louis Foundation (associated with the descendants of the Orléans royal family).
And then, what remains of Amboise today is a breathtaking Renaissance beauty tied by two red threads of blood: the blood of a French king who died in a stupid accident, and the blood of hundreds of nobles who were mercilessly slaughtered. A reminder that behind every romantic castle, there is often a dark story hidden.
Frequently Asked Questions about Amboise Castle
Is Leonardo da Vinci buried there?
Leonardo da Vinci is buried in the Chapelle Saint-Hubert, located on the grounds of Amboise Castle.
Who built the Château de Amboise in the form we know today?
King Charles VIII began the process of transforming the castle into an Italian-style palace after returning from a military campaign in Italy in the 15th century.
Is it possible to stay overnight near Amboise Castle?
Yes, there are several excellent hotels around the castle in the town of Amboise, such as Le Choiseul or Château de Pray, which provide a royal accommodation experience.
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