Blois

Blois needs 1 day: the Royal Château, which combines four wings in completely different styles built by successive kings between the 13th and 17th centuries, with the spiral staircase of the François I wing as its centerpiece, is the main reason to visit. April-September is best. It's mid-priced by French standards. It was a regular residence of the French court for much of the Renaissance, and within its halls Catherine de' Medici and the Duke of Guise played out some of the most memorable political intrigues of the Wars of Religion.