Lying on the river Thouet and about 40 km south of Saumur in the Loire Valley, Thouars is still a fairly well-kept secret. A medieval and 19th century town, its castle sits commandingly on a cliff overlooking the Thouet. Thouars has an outstanding market, on Tuesdays and Fridays with stallholders, visitors and buyers coming from all parts of the north Deux-Sèvres and beyond particularly on Fridays.
A ‘truly French’ town of around 11,000 inhabitants, Thouars itself is relatively untouched by expatriate settlement, although there are a number of British families scattered throughout the rural area.
Thouars is best known for its impressive château, seat of the Ducs de la Trémoille, rebuilt on the site of the medieval castle in the 1630s; its main façade is more than 110 metres high. The Trémoilles were dispossessed during the French Revolution and the château became a barracks and later a prison. It has been restored for its present use as a school. A beautiful, impressive high Renaissance palace, it draws many visitors to the town which also boasts ancient ramparts, beautiful churches, ancient towers and floral parks.
Thouars is the birthplace of:
Louis de la Trémoille, Prince de Talmond and Vicomte de Thouars, 29 September 1460
Jean-Hugues Anglade, film actor, on 29 July 1955
Property prices and availability in and around Thouars
Thouars is a great town with a lively ambience and plenty of character, making it a good place to own a property. It should also appeal to those who have a limited budget, as prices in this region are not over inflated, with some amazing bargains still available. Prices per square metre reported by SeLoger.com range from 1120 m2 (Brion-près-Thouet), 1320 m2 (Airvault, Saint Généroux) to 1340 m2 (Argenton-les-Vallées, Bressuire). For those starting a business, it may be helpful to know that the local authority is actively developing a new parc d’activités for businesses and has a range of support services for new entrepreneurs.
Shopping
Thouars has a wide selection of shops, ranging from the small and specialist – boulangeries, boucheries, pâtisseries, florists – to modern furniture, electrical, motorbike, telecoms stores and then the ‘grandes surfaces’ supermarkets, media and sports warehouses, and DIY retailers. if you have chosen to make the town your new home, you’ll find most things there for your daily life. All this is supplemented by the excellent open air markets twice a week where you can buy the best of the local produce and catch up with the town’s gossip.
Further afield, city shopping in Poitiers, Bressuire, Cholet, Angers and Niort is within easy reach.
Restaurants
For wining and dining, Thouars offers a wide choice of bars and restaurants, with several varied cuisines from the extremely good value for money simple, well cooked food, a choice of ethnic cuisines and excellent standard family restaurants through to the refined ‘gastronomie’ of the Logis de Pompois.
Leisure
Thouars offers the usual tennis courts and swimming pool for the town-based energetic, but the jewel of the area is undoubtedly the network of walks around Thouars. Randonné pédestre (rambling) is very, very popular around here as are fishing, horse-riding, golf, canoeing and cycling.
What to see
Thouars is designated as a Ville d’Art et d’Histoire and also has 4 stars under the ‘Ville Fleuries’ scheme. The parks department keeps the town’s open spaces in tip-top condition and their creativity is a joy to behold making even roundabouts into works of art!
Apart from the very photogenic château and ramparts, there are the Black Prince’s Tower and the Porte au Prévost plus a number of civil buildings dating back to the medieval period including the thirteenth century Pont des Chouans. The Eglise Saint Médard facade is currently being renovated, but a walk around the old town with its narrow streets and ending up by the banks of the Thouet is very rewarding.
Thouars was an important railway town and occupied by the Germans during the Second World War. However, the town and surrounding area became a strong centre of resistance as documented by the fascinating Museum of Resistance and Liberation.
More information at Thouars official website. www.thouars.fr
How to get there
There are two airports close to Thouars, these being Tours and Poitiers. Both have direct flights from the UK with Ryanair, the cut price airline, keeping flying costs low. If you prefer to travel by ferry, the ferry port of St Malo is around a four-hour drive from Thouars, with Caen and Cherbourg at about 5 hours distance. Thouars also has a train station with easy links to the TGV station at Poitiers.