La Renaudière — Hotel in Loches

Please don't think that La Renaudière is a HOTEL. It is not even an Airbnb. Usually in such places you can come few hours earlier than the check in time and drop off your bag, so that you can freehandedly stroll the city and take your pictures until returning to the official check in time or after dinner. Usually you can do that in 99% of lodgings in the entire world, you could even use their restroom and rest in the lobby, charge your phone, everything without actually checking in. Well, that is NOT possible here. La Renaudière has no guests, to the point that they don't even bother opening the entrance door before 4pm, their on purpose very late check in time. Outrageous, you might think, and so did we, and we called the owner leaving a message that we are in front of the gate and only wish to drop off the small luggage.

After a very long wait in the scorching sun in front of their gate, a poor staffer appeared saying that he can't take the bag because of COVID !! End of June 2023 when the whole world is open, La Renaudière uses the old Covid reason to keep doors shut and NO service to clients! Hearing that, we told to the staff that we won't be able to give La Renaudière a Good Rating and he said THAT'S OK!!

So, with La Renaudière's official approval, this is indeed a BAD review.

Not only that the staff refused to take our bag and Birthday cake and we had to walk the city with them melting down in 30 Celsius but worse is yet to come! The staff of La Renaudière sent us to the local Tourist Office to have them store our cake & bag. Which we did, go there, however the Office doesn't do Storage! They were so shocked with the request that in the end they did store our Birthday cake there and bag, out of pity for us! And they called the owner! Who, started screaming over the phone so loud we could hear her, insulting everyone and saying she REFUSES to have us overnight there today!! Just like that, they cancelled the non-cancellable booking on us RIGHT THERE, 3 hours before check in!

Outrageous?? And how! Now to the really AWESOME NEWS: the Tourism Office amazing staffers called everyone around and found us a Hotel for that night but a WAY BETTER one, Logis la Breche, just $10 more but a 3 star with hipster cool amenities fluffy 5-Star level bathrobes and a famous restaurant on site and in AMBOISE!! The city so much more worth a visit than Chenonceaux! Because the Chenonceaux Castle you see in 2 hours and are done there, the mirrored reflection on water that you see on postcards can only be photographed when the Dam is stopped and the water becomes a lake, which is almost never! nothing else to see, rose garden is small repetitive & boring, not worth filling up your memory card much with those pictures! Instead Amboise has so much more to see and do and also nature, the whole wide Loire River with impressive bridges! The amazing Royal Castle with Leonardo da Vinci's Grave!! The real house where he lived, with the real bed of Leonardo da Vinci is in Clos Lucè in same city! Early morning Balloon Ride over Loire River and stunning landscapes are there in Amboise NOT at Chenonceaux! The Renaudière owner cancelling on us out of arrogance and malice to ruin our Birthday did us such a HUGE FAVOR that I would give her a hug, ten stars rating and a Rose bouquet, if she was not such a malignant pitiful human.

Avoid overnight here, see Chenonceaux in 2 hours and get out, worked magic for us! While we were sitting at the Tourist Office many other tourists came there bored with Chenonceaux asking what else to do in the area meanwhile Amboise City is the real place to be in an overnight stay! See their delightful after sunset light-up illumination of the Castle & City, such nice shopping and delicious foods, for...

2 nights here in September. It's a lovely, large old building and our room was on the top floor - we needed the stair climbing with the gorgeous French patisserie! Our room was spacious, with views over the back garden. Very peaceful. Typical French style and the bathroom was in keeping with this - a not too brilliant shower over the bath and no shower screen. BUT, we didn't go there for up to date facilities so we were more than happy. The owners were extremely friendly and helpful and I was delighted that Madame didn't seem to speak any English so I HAD to use my French! We had breakfast both mornings in the dining room which is full of interesting objects and paintings. Breakfast was again, typically French and more than adequate. It was a little dark in there though!||We'd chosen the village of Chenonceaux because the chateau there is probably our favourite and we'd had another visit to the town and chateau at Amboise on our way. There isn't a lot in the village of Chenonceaux though unfortunately my husband did find the patisserie. Our hotel dining room was closed on the first night so we went further afield to eat and then on the 2nd night, found a restaurant in the village where we had an excellent meal at a reasonable cost.||This hotel probably isn't the best if you're disabled although I believe there are some rooms in a separate single storey annexe and it may be possible to access the dining area without the steps at the front of the house. But check if you're thinking of booking.||There is secure parking within the grounds and a further car park immediately across the road.||If we're in the area again we'd...

I made a bit of a last minute booking as we were travelling around the Loire Valley. The lady who welcomed us was as usual very friendly. We had the room at the top of the hotel - not good if you have mobility problems. The hotel is faded but clean, the pictures on the web site must be old. I must admit I hated our pink bathroom - something from the '60's or earlier, but that's because I really dislike pink. It was all very basic but it was clean and handy.||The hotel is in a great position for exploring the Chateaux Chenonceaux - walking distance and there are lots of restaurants just down the road but most of them are booked up or overpriced. The one we ended up in was a very nice surprise. Had the set menu - starter of French onion soup was divine. ||We didn't have breakfast so I'm afraid I can't comment. The grounds looked huge and also a bit tired. But perfect for a quick start or using as a base to explore the area. Just remember...