France, it seems, simply refuses to go out of fashion. In 2025 the country welcomed over 102 million international visitors, keeping its long-held crown as the most visited nation on earth, a title it has now held for more than three decades. Paris and the Riviera hog most of the headlines, but plenty of travellers are cottoning on to the quieter charms further inland. Which brings us neatly to Anjou.
Anjou is the old name for what’s now officially called Maine-et-Loire, a region thick with orchards, vineyards and centuries of history, yet somehow still overlooked in favour of the grander château country to the east. Good news for anyone tired of queuing.
Life here runs at its own unhurried pace. Shops still close for a proper lunch, and locals seem entirely unbothered by the idea of getting anything done between midday and two. If that leaves you stranded without bread, don’t panic. Several villages have taken to installing twenty-four-hour baguette vending machines, because the French will apparently go to any lengths to make sure you’re never without a decent loaf.
So, once you’ve got your bread sorted, what else is there to do?
Here are our top ten picks.
Discover the Apocalypse Tapestry in Angers
See the end of the world, rendered entirely in needlepoint.
Housed in its own climate-controlled room at the Château d’Angers, the Apocalypse Tapestry depicts scenes from the Book of Revelation and remains the largest surviving medieval tapestry in the world, originally stretching over 140 metres around 103 metres of it survive today.
It was commissioned by Louis I of Naples in the late fourteenth century and hung in Angers Cathedral for hundreds of years, until tastes moved on and the clergy decided to flog it off.
Nobody wanted it. The ninety panels were cut up and used as rags to wipe down horses, which is either a tragedy or the most French thing imaginable, depending on your mood.
Remarkably, much of it survived that indignity, and today its strange, vivid visions of the apocalypse are on full display. While you’re there, climb the battlements for views across the surrounding countryside that make the whole trip worthwhile on their own.
Cruise the Loire River
Few things reveal a landscape quite like seeing it from the water. Choose a sunrise cruise, a sunset one, a wine tasting cruise, a wildlife safari, or simply an hour and a half of gentle drifting with someone else doing the steering.
The guides know their region inside out, from its history to the herons lurking in the reed beds, and the views from the river are ones you’ll never get from the road.
Feeling flush and slightly more adventurous? A hot air balloon ride offers a bird’s-eye view of the valley, though your wallet will feel the altitude too.
Savour Local Cuisine at a Guinguette or Bistronomic Restaurant
You could go for the full fine dining experience, all crisp white linen and hushed waiters, or you could grab a wood-fired pizza from the back of a van parked on a market square. Both are entirely valid choices, but they’re not the whole story. Anjou also does two other things brilliantly: the guinguette and the bistronomic restaurant, and the two aren’t the same thing at all.
A guinguette (pronounced gang-ette) is as much about the setting as the food, a traditional open-air riverside restaurant where dining slides effortlessly into dancing. Menus range from proper gourmet cooking to simple, satisfying plates of steak, salad and charcuterie, built around whatever’s in season, but the atmosphere always comes first.
Bistronomie is a different animal altogether: not a place, but a movement. It grew out of Paris in the 1990s, when chefs trained in grand restaurants started cooking serious, technique-led food in stripped-back settings, no starched tablecloths, no ceremony, just proper skill behind a short, seasonal menu.
We ate exceptionally well at La Route du Sel in Le Thoureil, which sits right at the crossover point. It borrows the setting of a guinguette, an open-air terrace looking straight out over the Loire, and the same unhurried, come-as-you-are atmosphere.
But the food itself belongs to the bistronomic tradition: composed, inventive, and clearly the work of a chef taking things seriously rather than just keeping the wine topped up. Think of it as a guinguette’s setting wearing a bistronomic kitchen’s ambition.
Explore Anjou’s Underground Wonders
The limestone caves around the Loire provide fascinating insights into subterranean life. Whether you’re interested in troglodyte living, want to gasp at illuminated sculptures or have a passion for mushrooms, the caves around the Loire offer a unique insight into life underground.
At Château de Brézé, an extensive network of passages and rooms sits beneath the château itself, and it’s a fantastic spot for families to explore.
Meanwhile, an entire village once lived underground at Rochemenier. Two of the old farms, occupied right up until the early twentieth century, are now open to visitors, complete with photographs of a way of life that has almost entirely vanished.
Visit a Loire vineyard
If wine tasting makes you nervous, an organised tour takes the guesswork out of it, though a few tips on how to taste wine in France will get you further than you’d expect.
Anjou is having something of a moment when it comes to winemaking, particularly with its Chenin Blanc. Vineyards like Domaine Belargus, founded by Ivan Massonnat, have built international reputations on biodynamic farming.
We always return to our old favourites, but we make a point of trying somewhere new each time too. One regular stop is Terra Vita Vinum, formerly Domaine Richou, taken over in 2019 by Luc Briand and Bénédicte Petit and now farmed biodynamically. It’s known for its subtle whites and reds, plus the sweeter styles from the Aubance appellation where it’s based.
Worth the detour too is Domaine de la Motte, tucked at the entrance to Rochefort-sur-Loire where the Layon meets the Loire. It’s an 18-hectare estate dating back to 1935, run by Gilles Sorin for almost three decades before passing to Gwennael Visset in 2022. The Coteaux du Layon sweet wines are what built its reputation, but don’t overlook the Anjou-Villages reds while you’re there.
Many of the bigger estates cater well to English speakers, but even at the smaller ones, a handful of French words, a willingness to try anything, and a fair bit of arm waving usually gets the job done.
We always come home with a boot full of excellent wine at a fraction of what we’d pay in England. It’s meant to last us the whole year. It never does.
Tour the Châteaux of the Loire
There are dozens of châteaux to choose from, each with its own history and architectural quirks, and you could visit a different one every day of your holiday and still not see them all.
We fell in love with Château de Brissac, the tallest château in France, owned by the same family for generations. Centuries of destruction and rebuilding, from the eleventh through to the seventeenth century, have left it with a fascinating mix of architectural styles.
Thankfully, the family ran out of money partway through their planned rebuild, or those magnificent towers might have been demolished entirely and lost to history.
Buy from a boulangerie
Nothing wrong with supermarket bread, but you owe it to yourself to try something from an actual boulangerie at least once while you’re here.
Just don’t assume there’ll be one wherever you land. Maine-et-Loire has lost around 30 percent of its artisanal bakeries over the past fifteen years, and villages across Anjou are losing theirs one by one.
So when you do find one still open, treat it properly: buy the bread, buy the pastry, and be glad it’s there. Pork Belly swears you can tell a good one by the quality of their Flan Pâtissier, that classic bakery staple consisting of a thick, silky, vanilla custard baked inside a buttery sweet pastry crust.
Come Sunday, the shelves fill up with Brioche, glossy Tarte aux Fruits, flaky Mille-Feuille, and some of the most delicate pâtisserie you’ll find anywhere.
Wander Through the Gardens of the Loire
From the fairy-tale gardens of Château du Rivau to the formal stateliness of Villandry there’s something for everyone.
Early summer is best for roses, but the Oriental Gardens at Maulevrier look striking whatever the season, and the herbal and medicinal plants at Camifolia are intriguing.
Families who need a little more excitement to get them revved up about plants can always go to the extraordinary park for gardeners at Terra Botanica, an entire theme park built around plants.
Shop at a French market
French markets are vibrant hubs of activity, offering fresh produce, local delicacies, and a lively atmosphere.
Even on a fully catered holiday, skipping the local market would be a mistake.
They’re loud, busy and completely alive, full of shoppers haggling over the day’s bargains and stalls sending out clouds of roast chicken, spicy paella or vegetable couscous. It’s sensory overload in the best possible way.
Sit in a French Café and Watch the World Go By
That’s what the locals do, so you should too. Order a coffee, a cold beer or a glass of local wine, sit back, and let an hour or two slip past without checking your phone once.
After all, you are ‘en vacance’, aren’t you?
Visiting Anjou
For up-to-date news and travel advice, Visit the Anjou Tourist Office website
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