From Tours, trains and buses alike arrive at the gare SNCF on the east side of the Indre, just up from place de la Marne, where the tourist office is housed in a little wooden chalet (July & Aug daily 9.30am–7pm; Sept–June Mon–Sat 9am–12.30pm & 2–6pm; tel 02.47.91.82.82, www.lochesentouraine.com).If you decide to stay, the Hôtel George Sand, 37 rue Quintefol (tel 02.47.59.39.74, [email protected]; €70–85), just below the eastern ramparts, has its best rooms at the back, looking onto the river; its restaurant is patchy but often good, and worth it for the dining terrace overlooking the Indre. The Hôtel Tour Ste-Antoine, 2 rue des Moulins (tel 02.47.59.01.06, fax 02.47.59.13.80; €40–55), is large and central, but the France, 6 rue Picois, near the Porte Picois (tel 02.47.59.00.32, fax 02.47.59.28.66; €40–55), is more pleasant, with an excellent and inexpensive restaurant. The municipal campsite, La Citadelle (tel 02.47.59.05.91; closed mid-Oct to mid-March) is between two branches of the Indre by the swimming pool and stadium, looking up at the east side of the Citadel. For an informal meal, a couple of fair café-brasseries can be found on the central place du Blé; better still, stock up at the excellent market, held in the winding streets just above the Château gate on Wednesday and Saturday mornings, and on occasional evenings in July and August, when costumed musicians add medieval colour to the event.
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