Things to see and do Tours

248 steps to climb: you have to deserve the panoramic view of the city thanks to the guided tours. In the past, the Charlemagne Tower was located on top of the northern arm of the transept of the medieval collegiate church dedicated to Saint Martin. The collegiate church has disappeared, only the clock tower and this one remain. Closed in 1972, it is again open to visitors. The summit (48 metres high) offers a breathtaking view of the old town of Tours, and you can add the option of an aerial visit in summer for an unforgettable moment in the heart of Tours.

... or Place Plum' for the locals. It is one of the emblematic and unavoidable places of Tours during a visit or a festive evening. Located in the heart of the Old City, it is rectangular, paved, on two levels. It is surrounded by half-timbered houses dating from the 15th century and classified as historical monuments.

Plum' beats to the rhythm of tourism and commerce during the day, before becoming the heart of the nightlife. Because what makes it special is the numerous cafés, bars and restaurants located all around. They all spread their terraces in the center, giving the square its famous animation and its great conviviality. So it's no wonder that it's often found on the top steps of Internet podiums of "best places to have an aperitif."

But like many places in the Loire Valley, Place Plumereau also has links with the great History of France. It is notably here that Joan of Arc would have stayed the time to have her armor made and to gather her army to go and deliver the city of Orleans.
The place Plumereau has not always been called like that. It was named after Charles Plumereau, a city councilor, in 1888. At his death, he had bequeathed to the city an annuity intended for secular schools as well as houses located on the square. A place that has known many lives and that was notably an unhealthy parking lot. It is to the mayor Jean Royer that we owe its restoration in the 1960s which led to its current form.

If the place Plumereau is the heart of the city of Tours, the place Jean Jaurès is the nerve centre. This is the ideal landmark in the city: indeed, the two arteries that are Béranger Boulevard and the Heurteloup boulevard intersect here perpendicular, cut Tours in four well defined areas. The square is dominated by the Hotel de Ville, a magnificent monument designed by the tourangeau architect Victor Laloux at the hinge of the th and th centuries. It also houses the Palace of justice, built in 1843 in a Louis Philippe style, without forgetting the two majestic fountains, which are different over the seasons by playing light and landscaping of the best taste. However, when the square was created in 1745, it was named after the Gates of Iron and marked the southern boundary of the fortifications. What the city has grown up!