‘The last stop on our 10-day roadtrip adventure was to Bourdeaux, France, known as a wine capital of the world. While not part of Basque Country, it was a relatively short and easy drive after our stay in Biarritz. We cashed in some Marriott points and got a free upgrade to make it a worthwhile stay for three nights before returning to Barcelona.
The Renaissance Bordeaux
During our visit to Bordeaux, we stayed at the Renaissance Bordeaux, part of the Marriott family. It was probably the smallest hotel room of our entire trip, and the bare floors made it tough for Koval, who loves jumping on and off the bed.
That said, we did a get an upgrade to a corner room which provided some gorgeous views of Bordeaux, including Cité du Vin, the wine museum.
The hotel’s restaurant and bar were located on the top floor which also offered amazing views. Overall, our stay was decent—the room was clean and we slept well enough. However, the breakfast at the hotel restaurant was pretty average.
Sightseeing in Bordeaux
Since our hotel was conveniently located near the Cité du Vin, we decided not to explore any wineries during our short stay in Bourdeaux. In addition to exploring the museum, we visited a charming wine shop and the local Christmas market, all while taking in the city’s rich architectural heritage.
Cité du Vin
The Cité du Vin is a museum dedicated to wine that opened in May of 2016. It is by far one of the most unique museums we’ve ever visited with its many interactive displays. And the exterior is absolutely gorgeous! Its design is meant to evoke “perpetual movement”, referencing the action of wine swirling in a glass.
The exhibitions offer an immersive journey into the world of wine, exploring its history, art, and traditions from the moment you walk in. (We were given an audio guide, but since it was a bit difficult to use, we listened briefly for some context and then mostly wandered and explored on our own.)
First, is a giant display of the world showing the winemaking countries in a single glance:
Next to the vineyards of the World display is the “Terroirs of the world” display:
Terroir is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop’s observable characteristics or traits. This section introduced ten winemakers from around the world who shared the particularities of their terroir and revealed how these characteristics affect the wines they produce. The audio guide let us hear from them directly.
As you walk around inside, the building’s curved structure is supported by a series of wooden ribs that arch around the exhibition spaces.
Of course the museum has a whole wall devoted to the different grape varieties.
Further along were a couple of long tables dubbed “The Buffet for the 5 Senses.” There was a table for reds and a table for whites and they’re meant for visitors to squeeze the pump and explore the colors, aromas and textures of wines. I found this whole interactive exhibit really cool and different.
As we wrapped up walking around the museum, we passed through a section called the “Six Wine Families.” Here we explored the six different wine families or types of wines. The displays were just the coolest bottle shapes made of wood and cut in half.
The museum entry (€22 per person) included a glass of wine on the eighth floor rooftop bar called The Belvedere.
The Belvedere overlooks the river and offers great views all around the city.
Looking out, you can see Bordeaux’s submarine base that was built by the Germans during World War II. (The brick building in the distance.) It functioned as a dry dock for the maintenance and repair of German submarines. The city has since recovered the base and it has undergone transformation and currently houses Bassins de Lumières, the world’s largest digital art gallery. The Bassins de Lumières is open for visits, and even though it wasn’t far from our hotel, we unfortunately didn’t make it over.
The Jacques Chaban-Delmas Bridge
Dubbed “a bridge like no other” is the Jacques Chaban-Delmas Bridge. Instead of a typical draw bridge, this bridge lifts up vertically. While we passed the bridge each time we walked to and from the tram, we only saw the bridge lifted once, on our first night in Bordeaux.
The four pylons change colors when the lift is raised and is also lit in different colors to denote low and high tide.
The bridge’s name honors Jacques Chaban-Delmas, a pivotal figure in Bordeaux’s political landscape. He served as the mayor of Bordeaux for eight terms and also served as the Prime Minister of France.
L’Intendant
Located in Bordeaux’s “Triangle d’Or” (Golden Triangle), the historic heart of the city, is L’Intendant. This is THE shop for Bordeaux wines and is also known for its unique design. As soon as you walk in, you’re greeted with a circular tower with a spiral staircase reaching up through five floors.
Even if you’re not shopping for wine here because the prices are high, it is absolutely worth visiting and walking around.
Bordeaux Christmas Market
The biggest Christmas market of our whole roadtrip was in Bordeaux in the Place des Quinconces. Located halfway between our hotel and the heart of Old Town along the tram line, we went during the daytime and thoroughly enjoyed it.
The market had the usual fares of baked goods, a ferris wheel and interestingly, a stand that was selling returned packages. We never saw the price of them, but it was like a mystery grab bag of sorts. You wouldn’t know what you’re getting because everything was still in its shipping packaging.
No stop at a Christmas market is complete without having a raclette sandwich. A deliciously hot, bubbly cheese is scraped from a giant wheel and served on a baguette, often with ham.
Related: 2019 Trip to Hotel Marqués de Riscal in Elciego, Spain – Staying at a Winery
Also located in Place des Quinconces is the 54-meter-tall Girondists monument. Built in memory of the Girondists political group who fell victim to the Reign of Terror during the French Revolution.
Strolling Around Town
Since we spent each day walking around city center, we passed by a lot of great landmarks and other beautiful sites of Bordeaux.
The Bordeaux gates are ancient entrances that allowed people to enter and leave the city when it was surrounded by a wall. The first wall was built in the 3rd century, during Roman times. Here are a few that still remain:
Built in the 15th century, the Great Bell Gate (pictured above and below) owes its name to the huge bell that crowns its central tower. The architectural style mixes Gothic and Renaissance elements, two of my favorites.
It was disappointing to learn that the Centre Jean Moulin, a WWII documentation center and a museum dedicated to the history of the Resistance, Deportation and the Free French Forces was closed for renovation. We’ll just have to return!
Dining Out in Bordeaux
Our eating and drinking during this portion of the trip covered a lot of ground and different cuisines and we had no complaints! Our first night in Bordeaux was a Sunday so it was little challenging to find places open but we made it work. The kebab at Aslan Berliner was the best I have ever had. It was giant so I brought the leftovers back to the hotel and they were delicious a day later as a snack.
Two stellar dinners we had are on opposite ends of the food spectrum. One night was burgers at Petit Mignon where a knife and fork were needed because of the amount of cheese on the burger. Highly recommend a stop there.
Another delicious dinner was at L’Embarcadère for seafood, a random place we more or less stumbled on and looked up before deciding to eat there. Nik and I shared the fish soup to start.
For entrees Nik had the sauteed prawn noodles and I had the lobster served warm with garlic and parsley. All of it was delicious.
Across from our hotel was Les Halles de Bacalan, a food hall. Due to their odd hours and not being sure when they opened or closed, we had lunch there one day and picked up lunch to go on the morning of our departure from Bordeaux.
Wine Bars
Two random spots in Bordeaux that we stopped at for wine and charcuterie were Les Trois Pinardiers and Coumé Vaï.
Beer and Cocktails in Bordeaux
In the land of wine, we managed to find some local beer spots and a neat little cocktail bar too! One beer spot that was quite busy was Le Sur Mesure Bordeaux and located close to the Porte Cailhau.
Space Factory was another beer spot and unfortunately we neglected to get a picture. It was a unique bar with a galactic theme that also had board games on hand.
For cocktails we really enjoyed our drinks at Liftov. Self-described as a “retro-futuristic” space, it lived up to its name. The cocktails all had space themed names, such as the Buzz Aldrin, Life on Mars and Vanilla Sky.
Overall we really enjoyed Bordeaux and going at a slower pace was a great way to end our 10-day road trip from Barcelona to Bilbao, San Sebastián and Biarritz. We look forward to experience each city again sometime down the line.
Once again I am in awe of what you are doing and what you have seen, learned and taught to us all. It is just amazing.