The guinguette in Tours sur Loire

Général

In late spring, when the poppies make their appearance in the fields of Touraine, the guinguette in Tours sur Loire opens to customers on the banks of the royal river, and it feels like the holidays have really begun! Especially because, on the other side of the River Loire, Tours beach is another attractive holiday spot, with a bar, snacks and activities for all the family.

The guinguette at Tours – an atmosphere under the influence of the Loire

The soothing Loire atmosphere is always hard to describe, since everyone perceives it in a personal way. A special light, the sound of the Loire, a relaxing landscape… plus the shade of the trees, the discreet and colourful glow of the fairy lights when evening comes, the musical background at the guinguette and the sound of voices…

Below you can read how there is always something going on at the guinguette at Tours sur Loire. But whatever happens, a peaceful atmosphere holds sway, like in the capital of Touraine.

The guinguette at Tours sur Loire

The guinguette at Tours sur Loire

There are five spaces to choose from: Chez Dupont, the Central Bar, the Bar à Mômes, Le Foudre and La Plage (the beach). The simple and tasteful approach is always effective at the restaurant with varied cuisine and dishes made from local and seasonal ingredients, as well as house desserts to suitably round off the meal.

For brunch on Sundays, head for La Plage or… Chez Dupont. This last place, located next to the municipal library, offers from Tuesday to Sunday a nice spot to relax, with notably dj sets. In addition to aperitif boards, the restaurant’s menu features street food from the four corners of the world, all washed down with organic or natural wines and craft beers.

During the day, the programme aims to be eclectic with workshops, a language café, bodily awareness, cinema, trips in traditional gabare boats with the association Boutavant, activities for children… In the evening, we can’t wait to enjoy the musical line-up once again (DJ sets, rock, dub, swing, tango, salsa and other mixed music styles).

Programme of events to be consulted on the website of the Guinguette du Petit Monde

USEFUL INFORMATION

From may to september

• The guinguette at Tours sur Loire: at the foot of Pont Wilson in Tours (Indre-et-Loire). Open from 3 May to 30 September 2023. Bar: every day of the week from 11am to midnight. Chez ta mère restaurant: Tuesday to Saturday from 12:30 to 14:15 and from 19:30 to 21:30. Monday evenings and Sundays for lunch and dinner: jarred formulas at the counter.
• Chez Dupont (next to the municipal library level): Tuesday to Sunday. Open from 5 May until 17 September.
• The Bar à mômes, its playground and its shows for young people: from Wednesday to Sunday, from 3 May to 30 September.
• Le Foudre, an alternative, free and wild place! Open from 11 May until 16 September.
• La Plage (a quiet bar and restaurant, a few deckchairs for reading or napping, board games…), open from 12 May until 3 September 2023. from 12 noon to dusk.

The other guinguettes in Touraine

The guinguette at Tours sur Loire with its festive atmosphere ticks all the boxes for dinner and a great evening out, but you will definitely also be won over by other venues with the same aim in mind! If you want to stay near Tours and not stray from the banks of the Loire, then the guinguette de Rochecorbon (near the Lulu Parc theme park) is ready to welcome you… It’s also the most dance-oriented. Ideal for a pre-dinner drink with a dish of small fried fish to share!

A little further afield, the Chez Oscar & Suzette guinguette is ideally located near the royal River Loire in the beautiful town of Amboise. And although it is not strictly speaking a guinguette, Sauvage (in Chargé) has a similar atmosphere.

The Amboise guinguette, Chez Oscar & Suzette.

The terrace at the Guinguette Rabelaisienne, definitely has the most impressive view: only the River Vienne separates it from the royal fortress of Chinon. But to complete this overview, we should also mention the wonderful Guinguette des Farmers at Lac d’Hommes, Port Avertin, on the banks of the River Cher, Les Javanaises in Beaulieu-Lès-Loches and the guinguette in Montbazon, with the River Indre providing a peaceful country setting.

Did you know?

The word “guinguette” comes from “guinguet”, a white wine once made in Ile-de-France. It doesn’t seem to have been very tasty (“If you drink one pint of Montmartre wine, then you’ll piss four pints!” as the saying went in the cafés), but it was a big factor in the festive atmosphere in the bars, restaurants, accordion-music dances and open-air cabarets. These cafés and bars became known as “guinguettes”. They were mostly located outside Paris, beyond the 57 “barrières d’octroi” (toll gates) set up in 1785 by King Louis XVI (the “octroi” was an old indirect tax paid in certain towns and calculated according to the value of the goods imported inside the town’s walls).

Guinguettes were also opened on the banks of the Seine and the Marne (Joinville-le-Pont, Nogent-sur-Marne, Champigny-sur-Marne, Suresnes, Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, Nogent-sur-Seine). They combined riverside café terraces and music for dancing with rowing boats, swimming and diving contests, water jousting and fishing, as well as carnival games, skittles and boules. In the 1960s and 1970s, swimming was banned in many rivers due to the poor quality of the water and a high number of drownings, leading to a decline in these sociable spots… But they have made a big come-back over the past few years in the French festive heritage, as is the case for the guinguette at Tours sur Loire! 😉

Guinguettes map