Current Time in Blois, France

Blois is the capital of the Loir-et-Cher department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France, situated on the Loire River approximately 180 kilometers southwest of Paris. The city is built on a hillside above the river and is one of the principal cities of the Loire Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage landscape celebrated for its extraordinary concentration of royal châteaux and Renaissance gardens. The Château Royal de Blois, one of the finest Renaissance royal palaces in France, dominates the city and stands as a vivid testament to the role Blois played as a primary residence of the French kings during the 15th and 16th centuries.

With a population of approximately 50,000, Blois is the principal city of the Loir-et-Cher department and a comfortable base from which to explore the surrounding Loire Valley châteaux including Chambord, Cheverny, and Chaumont-sur-Loire. The city itself has considerable charm, with a medieval old town climbing the hillside above the Loire, punctuated by churches, half-timbered houses, and the remarkable Maison de la Magie Robert-Houdin, a museum celebrating the art of magic that occupies a building opposite the château.

The history of Blois as a seat of royal power reached its zenith in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, when the French court established itself here. Louis XII was born in the Château de Blois and made it his primary residence, beginning the transformation of the medieval fortress into a royal palace. Francis I, the great Renaissance patron who also built Chambord and brought Leonardo da Vinci to France, added a wing to the château in the most sophisticated early French Renaissance style. The château became the scene of one of the most dramatic incidents in French history when, in December 1588, King Henry III had the Duke of Guise and his brother Cardinal Louis assassinated within its walls, an act that shocked Catholic Europe and hastened the resolution of the Wars of Religion.

The Château Royal de Blois, combining four distinct architectural wings representing different periods from the Gothic to the Neoclassical, is one of the most architecturally diverse and historically complex châteaux in France. The extraordinary Francis I staircase with its spiral ramp decorated with salamanders and ermine, the royal symbols of Francis I and Anne of Brittany, is one of the most celebrated examples of early French Renaissance architecture. The château contains the Musée des Beaux-Arts with important collections of paintings and decorative arts, and the historic apartments of the queens of France furnished with period pieces and remarkable tapestries.

The Maison de la Magie Robert-Houdin, named for the 19th-century magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin who was born in Blois and was the inspiration for the stage name of Harry Houdini, offers entertaining and imaginative exhibitions celebrating the art of magic. Dragons appear from windows of its facade at regular intervals, delighting visitors. The old town's churches, including the Cathedral of Saint-Louis and the Church of Saint-Nicolas with its fine Romanesque nave, provide additional architectural highlights.

Blois is connected to Paris Austerlitz station by direct train in approximately ninety minutes and is easily accessible by road along the A10 motorway. The city's royal château, its central position within the Loire Valley World Heritage landscape, and its convenient access to the extraordinary Château de Chambord just 20 kilometers away make Blois an ideal base for exploring one of France's most magnificent cultural landscapes.