Château d’Ussé
Ussé is the château people mean when they say fairy-tale: white tufa towers, slate cones, and terraced gardens against the dark edge of the Chinon forest. Tradition holds that Charles Perrault had Ussé in mind when he wrote Sleeping Beauty in the 1690s, and the château leans into it without apology.
The short version
- Ussé is the Sleeping Beauty château by tradition: white towers, slate cones and terraced gardens against the Chinon forest.
- Our 2-Night Loire Valley Tour ends its second day here, after Villandry and Langeais, with admission included.
- Admission is €14.50; children 8 to 16 pay €7.50 and under-8s enter free.
- The château opens February 14 to November 1, 2026: 10:00 to 19:00 from April to September 20, 10:00 to 18:00 at either end of the season.
- There is no train. Ussé is 40 minutes from Tours by car and 20 minutes from Chinon and Azay-le-Rideau.
The Castle of the Story
The visit runs from the Vauban-designed terraces through furnished period rooms to the attic circuit, where waxwork tableaux tell Sleeping Beauty scene by scene, and up the tower stairs the story climbs to its spindle. It sounds like kitsch and lands as charm, and children rate Ussé the best château in the valley by a wide margin.
Visiting
Ussé is privately owned, home to the Duke of Blacas’ family, and opens from mid-February to the start of November; hours and prices are at chateaudusse.fr. It sits in the Indre valley near Chinon and Azay-le-Rideau, 40 minutes from Tours by car, with no useful rail link, and combines naturally with either neighbor.
Ussé needs a car, and it is the last stop on the second day of the LinkParis.com two-night Loire Valley tour; the top ten castles page separates the rail-reachable châteaux from the drive-only ones.
Planning the day
Ussé needs a car. The château sits in the Indre valley 40 minutes from Tours, with Azay-le-Rideau and Chinon each 20 minutes away, and the three make a day west of Tours with lunch in Azay or Chinon. Allow 90 minutes: the terraces and gardens first, then the furnished rooms, then the attic circuit of Sleeping Beauty tableaux, which is the part children remember.
The season runs February 14 to November 1; the last ticket is sold an hour before closing, 18:00 from April to September 20 and 17:00 at either end. Children 8 to 16 pay €7.50, under-8s nothing.
On our 2-Night Loire tour, Ussé is the last stop of the second afternoon, after Villandry and Langeais, with the van doing the driving from Tours and the hotel waiting back in Amboise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ussé really the Sleeping Beauty castle?
By tradition, yes: Charles Perrault is said to have taken Ussé as the model when he wrote the tale in the 1690s. The claim is old and unprovable, and the château’s silhouette argues for it.
Is Ussé open year-round?
No. As a private family home it closes in winter, opening roughly mid-February to mid-November; check chateaudusse.fr for the current season.
Which châteaux pair with Ussé?
Azay-le-Rideau and Chinon, both within 20 minutes in the Indre valley. The three make a strong car-based day west of Tours.
