From Paris, pop over to the town of Tours (three hours by car, just over an hour by train) and stroll through the castles of the Loire Valley. Most of the region's chateaus are between 30 minutes to an hour outside of Tours, so it's a fairly convenient place to make your home base (and an adorable town in and of itself). Villandry, Amboise, Blois, and Angers all offer gorgeous castles to explore — though Chenonceau (pictured here) and Chambord are the crowd favourites.