Val-Jalbert Historical Village — Attraction in Chambord

Loved it ! It'll take you about 3h to complete everything if you take the minibus between stops, if you choose to walk the entire pathway then expect it to take 4-5hours to do. The employees are so sweet and kind. Loved the shows and the attention to details. At the beginning of the trail you'll find a very small cemetery with some information on a panel that can be heartbreaking to read. Afterwards your next step is to the School/Coven where you see how classes were set up and where the sisters stayed on the 2nd floor. Many pieces are "as is" from when it got abandoned. Your next stop is the General Store with 2-3 worker houses that you can visit. Some are off limits due to the deteriorating conditions of the materials but still nice to walk around. Then you can get driven uphill to see more of the residential areas. In this spot there are homes that have collapsed due to the weather conditions. For some of them we were in awe how nature was taking back it's lot. Then you finish with the pulp mill and water fall. You can either take the cable car up the mountain or be brave and walk up the 764steps! 🤘🏻🔥 There's a nice restaurant inside the mill with quick meal options such as cold cut sandwiches and salads or you can get a heavier meal such as spaghetti or pasta salad. Anyways, everything was delicious 😋. I was accompanied with my cardiac mother and two children (7+3) and everything...

The camping was really nice, loved falling asleep to the sound of the river, we had a nice treat site that felt like our own private space.

The village was really cool to see, I was under the impression from the website/advertising that there would be more actors dressed in the clothing of the time, nuns and students in the school as if classes were in session etc. But there were only a couple here and there (one person outside the general store that just hung out on the porch, a couple at the post office and one dressed as a nun on the porch of the school building). I just thought there's be more people around on bikes etc. like the pictures to give a more immersive experience, as if you were stepping into a day in the life of 1920s Val-Jalbert.

The gondola style lift to see the waterfall was really nice and included in the ticket price(there are over 700 stairs you could take as well for the more athletically inclined).

We took the bus tour at first and then walked around the main street of town as well. The bus tour was good, the audio played on the bus gave you the story behind the things you were seeing which was nice.

Can't deny the beauty of the nature around and it was neat to see the old buildings as well....

It's an amazing place full of history! Due to Covid Situation we decided to take the smaller paths in the woods as much as possible, making us live a really awesome experience (try the "Sentier des ecoliers" = the path of schooldchildren). However the situation is well handled there with markers on the ground and hand sanitizers.

The welcoming staff and guides are all role playing and have historical clothes that makes it even more immersive. Kudos to the real marmot that was having a break on an old ruined house!

There is a lot of information along the way, also do not hesitate to go on top of the waterfall (764 steps on solid wooden stairs and paths) because the view is amazing. Usually you can go there by cable car but not during the pandemic.

Near the restaurant "Bistro du Moulin" you will find a modern structure in which you can go almost at the feets of the waterfall and it is very impressive too.

Finally it's a great place full of history (you are supposed to be able to enter differents old houses but depending to pandemic some of them are closed) and very...