South Touraine with kids

From 2 to 6 years old

Get your little ones on board for a 45-minute horse-drawn carriage ride in Loches and Beaulieu-lès-Loches! Pony trekking should also go down a treat and is available in all the riding centres around Loches and its forest.

Take them to La Duterie Farm in Beaumont-Village where they'll discover all about daily life in the countryside. They'll also love the one-of-a-kind Cactus & Agaves educational farm with its 200 animals from around the world. In Neuilly-le-Brignon, Ani'Maurice invites you to explore the realm of farm animals and to taste yoghurt made on the site.

With a local goat's cheese tasting session at the Limouzin Farm or at the organic Cabri au Lait goat farm where kids can also feed the kid goats. And, when it comes to dessert, discover all the secrets of making lollipops at the Hallard confectionery.

From 7 to 11 years old

Head off with your kids and discover the Royal City of Loches and enjoy an augmented reality tour of its keep with Histopad©. Spaces that have disappeared come back to life on the touch-screen tablet and whisk you off on a 3D journey through the Middle Ages.

South Touraine's greatest fortresses invite you to delight in incredible tours like Bridoré with its keep dating back to the times of knights in shining armour and Betz-le-Château with its underground hideaways steeped in mystery.

Get your budding young detectives to head off on a treasure hunt through Loches where the clues are hidden across the town! Then move on to Montrésor and find the golden lizard's treasure. Download the free "South Touraine Explorer" app, chase after trolls in Touraine and discover the wonderful villages of Descartes and Le Grand-Pressigny. Or use the same app and try and find your way out of the maze in Tours-Preuilly Forest.

Your apprentice archaeologists journey back through time along the Claise River valley that's been populated for at least 200,000 years! They'll discover the Museum of Prehistory where they'll take part in a archaeological dig workshop, will learn how to make fire without matches and how to carve flint.

Experiment, observe, imagine! Lansyer Museum, located at the very heart of Loches, invites to learn all about the techniques used by a landscape artist back in the 19th century. Kids can make their own oil paints, paint with a knife and learn to admire the work through mini games and experiments.

Combine a stroll with a drawing workshop by heading off to the Pas aux Anes Lake, in the middle of Loches Forest. Signs turn into drawing tables along the randocroquis® trail, where you observe, then draw on the subject of water or the forest. Enjoy another moment of sharing at the Papilio Workshop in Petit-Pressigny where you can find out all about mosaic techniques.

Then, enter the world of Cadeau et Chocolat in Manthelan, discover the art of chocolate-making and indulge with your family.  

Enjoy a stroll with the family through Loches Forest. In summertime, go for a walk around Chemillé-sur-Indrois Lake. Before you dive into the lake for a swim, admire the centuries-old oak trees everywhere, as well as the incredible site of the Chartreuse du Liget (former Carthusian monastery).

The Prairies du Roy interpretation trail in Loches invites you to discover the fauna and flora typical to wetlands. At Louroux Lake, an ornithological station has been set up to observe nesting and migratory birds. 

And, while you're here, why not initiate your kids in fishing on one of the "family"-labelled trails created throughout south Touraine?

From 12 to 16 years old

Start off with an invigorating trip through the forest on an off-road electric scooter. Loads of laughs and a great breath of fresh air guaranteed! For the more sporty-minded among you, head to Clic'Lac, the treetop leisure park to fly high over the lake on a giant zip line. Find out just how nimble you are as you cover the treetop adventure courses at a height of over 12 m above the ground. To cool down, sail along the Indre or the Creuse in a canoe or a SUP.  

Head off on the Greenway on your bike to discover south Touraine differently. This former railway track weaves its way along the Claise for some 42 km. Enjoy your ride through charming villages, from Descartes with its René Boylesve Garden to Tournon-Saint-Pierre and delight in the abundance of unspoilt nature. If you fancy a dip with the family, head for Naturéo, the water park in Loches, and have fun in the sports and leisure pools, on the water slides, the natural outdoor pool and beach volleyball court.