The 10 most beautiful castles in Pays de la Loire
10 châteaux
Chosen among 1,125 recorded castles
What to see in Pays de la Loire when you only have a weekend: the 10 most visited castles according to their visitors’ reviews, among those open to the public whose visiting conditions we checked on the official website. For each: what you see, the entry price, the link to the full entry.
Ranked by renown: how often their name is searched on Google each month, and how many reviews visitors have left. “Beautiful” is your word; what we measure is what visitors choose.
No. 1
Château du Puy-du-Fou
Les Epesses
The Château du Puy-du-Fou, in Les Epesses, Vendée, combines the remains of a medieval fortress with an unfinished Renaissance wing.
No. 2
Château des ducs de Bretagne
Nantes
Set in the heart of Nantes, this 15th century castle has changed roles many times without ever leaving the city: ducal residence of Brittany, then a royal fortress after the duchy joined France, it now houses the Nantes history museum.
Adult €9Hours, prices and access
No. 3
Château d'Angers (Angers Castle)
Angers
The Château d'Angers stands above the Maine river, enclosed within a 13th century fortress wall raised around 1230 under Saint Louis, its seventeen towers of schist and tuffeau rising close to thirty metres.
No. 4
Château de Brissac (Brissac Castle)
Brissac Loire Aubance
Rising to seven storeys, Brissac castle stands in the Anjou region as one of its most imposing residences, combining the remains of a 15th century fortress with a baroque facade raised in the 17th century.
Adult €13.50Hours, prices and access
No. 5
Castle of Brézé
Bellevigne-les-Châteaux
In Bellevigne-les-Châteaux, in the Maine-et-Loire region, the Château de Brézé combines an early 16th-century Renaissance wing with neo-Gothic additions commissioned in the 19th century by the Dreux-Brézé family.
No. 6
Château de Saumur (Saumur Castle)
Saumur
Perched above the Loire on its rocky spur, the château de Saumur rises with its towers and steep roofs over the town below. Founded in the 10th century and fortified under Saint Louis, it took its present shape when the Dukes of Anjou turned it into a pleasure residence at the close of the Middle Ages.
No. 7
Château de Noirmoutier (Noirmoutier Castle)
Noirmoutier-en-l'Île
On the island of Noirmoutier, this 11th-century fortress overlooks the town of Noirmoutier-en-l'Île from its keep, which rises to nearly 20 metres. Together with the neighbouring church, it is the only surviving trace of the island's former abbey.
No. 8
Château de Serrant (Serrant Castle)
Saint-Georges-sur-Loire
Located in the Maine-et-Loire region, at Saint-Georges-sur-Loire, the Château de Serrant displays an architecture blending Renaissance and Classical styles, begun under Francis I and completed under Louis XIV.
Adult €11Hours, prices and access
No. 9
Château de Clisson (Clisson Castle)
Clisson
In Clisson, Loire-Atlantique, the remains of a 13th-century fortress stand on a rocky spur above the Sèvre Nantaise river. Damaged during the Revolution and partly restored afterwards, the site still reads as a fortified stronghold, now open to visitors as ruins. It is listed as a historic monument.
No. 10
Château de Tiffauges (Tiffauges Castle)
Tiffauges
The ruined castle of Tiffauges stands on a rocky spur above the Crûme river, on the old borders of Anjou, Brittany and Poitou.
Every castle in Pays de la Loire (1,125)
Frequently asked questions
- What is the most beautiful castle in Pays de la Loire?
- The most visited in Pays de la Loire is Château du Puy-du-Fou, first in this selection according to its visitors’ reviews. All 10 castles listed are open to visitors with checked hours.
- How much does a visit cost?
- The adult entry price is shown under each castle when the official website publishes it; 0 of these castles are free.
- How is this selection made?
- Among the 1,125 castles recorded in Pays de la Loire, we keep those open to the public with a photo, then rank by number of Google reviews. No castle pays to appear.