Bürresheim Castle is a medieval castle northwest of Mayen. It is built on rock in the Eifel mountains above the Nette. Bürresheim Castle, Eltz Castle and Lissingen Castle are the only castles in the Eifel region which have never been destroyed. It was inhabited until 1921 and is now a museum.
Built in the 12th century, Bürresheim was first mentioned in 1157 with its former owners, the noble Eberhard and Mettfried “de Burgenesem”. The castle consists of buildings constructed between the twelfth and the seventeenth century. Almost all of it is original, including the twelfth century keep, which is the oldest part. The castle was never taken or raised or slighted (unlike almost all other Rhine castles). It featured in the film Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, in which it was called Brunwald Castle.
The Château du Lude is one of the many great châteaux of the Loire Valley in France. Le Lude is the most northerly château of the Loire Valley and one of the last important historic castles in France, still inhabited by the same family for the last 260 years. The château is testimony to four centuries of French architecture, as a stronghold transformed into an elegant house during the Renaissance and the 18th century. The monument is located in the valley of Le Loir. Its gardens have evolved throughout the centuries.