Tours

Tours, the art of balance

It was not by chance that the Kings of France chose to make their home in the Val de Loire, today listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The gentleness, harmony and quality of life in Touraine region have attracted many people. A Ville d'Art et d’Histoire (City of Art and History), Tours enjoys an outstanding location in the heart of the Jardin de la France (Garden of France, central region), one hour from Paris.

Far from withdrawing within the extreme wealth of its historic monuments and the intensity of its cultural and sporting life, Tours has created many structures which have made it a major economic and academic centre in the Greater Western region.

Innovative and humane, Tours places environment, beauty and diversity at the heart of its ambitions.


Finding one's balance one hour from Paris

A garden city in the heart of the Val de Loire

Tours, the capital of the Jardin de la France, regularly receives awards for its green areas and floral decorations. Its wide shaded avenues, the many historic gardens in the very centre, and its giant parks, rolled out like green carpets along the banks of the Loire and the Cher, have the trees and the flowers competing against the multitude of private gardens lovingly cared for by their residents.

On the border between the north and the south, the centre and the greater western region, the city has always laid claim to its position as a crossroads. Looking like five-pointed star with its motorway interchanges, lying on a major European route, and with its own international airport, it is astonishingly easy to access at any time of day, thanks to the motorway exit situated two minutes from the city centre. The TGV high-speed rail link means that it is only one hour from the capital and it is also linked to other French and European cities with many daily train connections.

The city of festivals… for all

Above all, Tours enjoys diversity. Throughout the year, about fifteen festivals set the pace for the city's cultural life, with many events that are now famous, such as the Fêtes Musicales, the Florilège Vocal, and not forgetting Acteurs Acteurs, Aucard de Tours, or Rayons Frais, which, every year, takes over the banks of the Loire and the city streets.

The city of all sports!

Team sports often put Tours in the headlines of the sporting news. But, in Tours, sport is also synonymous with simple pleasures, such as running along the banks of the Loire, or participating in one of the numerous water sports activities available on the many lakes: rowing, kayak-canoeing, dinghy sailing, windsurfing, etc.

Tours is a dream city for all sportspeople, whether they are top level athletes or, quite simply, looking for some fresh air. More than 600 hectares of parkland, woods and forests, in the city centre or in the surrounding area, offer everyone every opportunity to devote themselves to their favourite activity, in particular, with the brand new aquatic centre and the future compact golf course in the centre. Every year, the 10,000 participants in the 20 km of Tours and the Nouvelle République, prove, if necessary, the love of the residents for sport. With 160 sports clubs with over 32,600 licence holders in more than 120 disciplines, there really is something for all levels and all tastes.

Tours is also able to count on its main clubs to provide it with the energy for victory. Tours Volley Ball (European level), Tours Football Club (now in the 2nd division), Tours Joué Basket, U.S.T. Rugby, Tours Football, or A.S.G.T. (Tours Ice Sports Association) are the worthy representatives of the city's sporting spirit, which is illustrated magnificently by the Paris-Tours race.


» www.tours.fr