Everyone is familiar with the scenery of the little town that Belle and her father, Maurice, hail from in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast but the inspiration had to come from somewhere. In this blog post, I’ll be giving you an insight of the different destinations that are said to have inspired the Beauty and the Beast Locations.
Alsace, France
Alsace is located is a region in France, the heart of Europe, with an abundance of architectural and cultural gems. It’s no surprise that the film has links to this location with the similarities of the architecture and the lifestyle in general. Alsace stands apart from all other regions of France. The capital of Alsace, Strasbourg, is home to world renowned historical heritage sites, with the Grande Lle listed as UNESCO World Heritage. For information on visiting Alsace, visit the official website.
Riquewihr, France
Another location said to have inspired the film is the French town of Riquewihr. Known as ‘the Gem of the Alsace Vineyards’, the town features quaint half-timbered houses, cobblestone streets and structures which date back to the 13th century. There’s quite a fairytale feel to Riquewihr, which is probably a good reason as to why it served as inspiration for the Disney film. Find out more about the town here.
Chäteau de Chambord, Loir-et-Cher
This is the location which inspired the Beast’s Castle. Talking about the visit to the Chäteau de Chambord, animator Glen Keane said “It was an ominous, impressive place with all of these spires and just standing there before us. “I mean I’ll never forget the morning driving up there through the mist and fog and seeing it there. I thought, ‘This is the Beast’s castle. This is where he lives.'” It is one of the most recognisable châteaux in the world due to its distinctive French Renaissance architecture that blends traditional French medieval forms with classical Renaissance structures. For more information and to book a visit, check out the official website.
If you’re looking to visit some of the locations, Adventures by Disney are now taking bookings for a Beauty and the Beast inspired cruise on the Rhine River Cruise. A stop includes the village of Riquewihr Where you can enjoy an excursion and guided horseback ride followed by after dinner activities back on the cruise which includes On board screenings of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast or some Beauty and the Beast karaoke. Prices and dates can be found here.
Have you visited any of these locations? Where in particular would you love to put on your travel bucket list?
See more posts from Beauty and the Beast Week here
Jazz is a Disney, tea and pop culture enthusiast with a passion for blogging. Also a proud introvert.
Great idea for a post – we are all going to be so obsessed with this movie!! Excited doesn’t cover it!
Hi hun, this is amazing!! I have just bough some beauty and the beast film cell…love that film. thanks for sharing 🙂 HappyMonday xx
It’s so easy to see the inspiration these locations provided to the scenery in the film. I think it would be such great fun to go on one of these Beauty and the Beast inspired cruises and have a chance to see these locations in person!
Chäteau de Chambord looks breathtaking. I can definitely see some resemblance to the film in these places. Jo x
Chateau Chambord looks amazinggggg! Definitely adding this to my bucket list x
I have to say Chateau Chambord looks beautiful, I loved reading your post and would love to visit one day x
What gorgeous places to go and visit! I’ve been to France quite a few times but never to these locations x
Wow what a fabulous post. The areas you have included look incredible. I absolutely adore France 🙂 this gives me another reason to go back x
Wow the Castle which inspired Beast’s is stunning, I’d absolutely love to head here x
Oh wow, I really need to visit these places! Beauty and The Beast is one of my favourite Disney films.
Beauty and the Beast has always been my favourite Disney movie and I would love to go on a river cruise and see the locations that inspired the film!
Omgh I love this post so much!! I am so excited for the film and this is just making me so much more giddy!!! Thanks for posting!
Oh my!! These are spot on. I can’t get over how cute the towns are!
It makes so much sense, but I had no idea until now that Beauty and the Beast was inspired by actual places in France. What a great post!
What fun! I would love to visit every single one of these places but Riquewihr in particular looks stunning!
Oh awesome is this, I’m super excited for the films release this week
I love the Alsace Lorraine, I first visited when I was just 12.
Such beautiful places! Some of those have been on my travel list, and the others are going on too!