‘Beauty and the Beast’ Takes Over a French Royal Château This Christmas

Christmas in the Land of Châteaux, the event behind the Loches show, runs in Touraine for its 10th year from Nov. 28, 2026, to Jan. 3, 2027. Marie Driaux of the Kreatio company designed the staging at Loches, turning each room of the royal residence into a scene from the story. The visit runs from a snowy staircase through Beauty's chamber and a banquet to a finale, with snow, red roses, sets and a light show along the way.

The Touraine Tourism Board said visitor numbers rose from 57,702 in 2015, the year before the event launched, to 203,001 in 2025. Visitor accommodation numbers rose 8.2% over the same period. Loches' "Alice in Wonderland" staging posted a 28% increase in 2025, the board said.

Every château picks its own theme and hosts one evening opening. Here they are in date order:

Villandry, famous for its vegetable garden, lets the forest's animals build their own Christmas vegetable garden. A metal crown by Liz'Art Metal, an artist from Artannes, sits on the dining room table (evening opening Dec. 5).

Amboise hands the royal residence to the château's animals, including a baby giraffe and an ostrich, for their own royal Christmas. Taxidermist Monsieur Engel and the Le Terrier workshop worked on the scenes (Dec. 11).

Marie Robert partnered on the sets at Azay-le-Rideau, where each room spotlights an ingredient or iconic dish from the Christmas dinner (Dec. 12).

Chinon's Royal Fortress fills with fairies, from Tinker Bell to the Wicked Fairy, and its Clock Tower hosts an exhibition on the Cottingley fairies (Dec. 19).

Chenonceau celebrates Christmas traditions around the world, starting in the kitchens with Provence's 13 desserts and Alsace's golden Gugelhupfs (Dec. 23).

The Quart de Soupir Company turns Langeais into a musical Christmas that ends in the château attic, which opens to the public as an enchanted forest (Dec. 26).

Loches stages "Beauty and the Beast," the tale Gabrielle-Suzanne de Villeneuve first published in 1740 (Dec. 29).

Passes cover three to seven châteaux and include discounts from partners such as local shops and leisure activities. New this year, a children's pass covers ages 8 to 17. You can buy passes through Tours City Pass or the Tours tourist office.

Traveling with kids? Villandry pairs "The Blue Feather," a shadow-theater play starring animals, with a creative workshop, and Langeais adds a children's show and a workshop of its own. Azay-le-Rideau hosts fairy-tale readings and gourmet visits, while Amboise offers an opera for children and candlelit Christmas tours of the château.