Bordeaux, France

By Ashley Rudolph

Bordeaux is a beautiful city. I spent my time there drinking copious amounts of wine, marveling at the city's architecture, and eating well. Even though I caught the flu while I was there (and spent my nights warding off fevers), I was still lucky enough to be able to see quite a few things on my list during my three day stay!

My top 5 things to do in Bordeaux

Drink wine. This is a no-brainer. You can't think about Bordeaux without thinking of wine, so when you're there you'll want to have a glass for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (don't worry - no one will judge you). I learned more about wine in Bordeaux than I had on any other wine trip. From my day trip to Saint-Émilion, evenings at Ecole du Vin, and spending hours at La Cité du Vin, it's safe to say that Bordeaux is a wine lover's heaven. Which leads me to my next point...
Visit one of Bordeaux's famed wine subregions. If you're familiar with Bordeaux wine, you've likely heard of Médoc, Saint-Émilion, Pomerol, or Graves. If you haven't, don't worry! There are 60 appellations and over 7,000 chateaux in Bordeaux. I spent a day in Saint-Émilion visiting 2 chateaux and a wine shop and walking around the town. Saint-Émilion was only about 45 minutes from the city, so it's well worth the trip.
Shop. You'll likely stumble upon Rue Sainte-Catherine quickly, it's one of downtown Bordeaux's major pedestrian streets. You should definitely walk [some of] it, if only to say you've seen the longest shopping street in France :), but I found the best shopping on Bordeaux's quaint side streets. I loved Cantik for small trinkets and home accessories and Mieux for clothing and jewelry.
Marvel at the city's architecture. The downtown area of Bordeaux is extremely walkable and you'll be able to cover its major sights in less than half a day. You'll want to carve out time to see the Monument aux Girondins, Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Esplanade des Quinconces, Place de la Bourse (and Miroir d'eau), and Cathédrale Saint-André.
Eat well. You can't have great wine without great food (IMO). Not only is Bordeaux a wine lover's paradise, it's a foodie paradise as well. Unfortunately, most of the city's highly recommended/Michelin star restaurants were either closed for the holidays or open for limited hours during my trip (as if I needed an excuse to go back!). My hotel offered up a few suggestions for places that would be open during my stay and I was still able to have some great meals (more on that below).

Visit La Cité du Vin

La Cité du Vin is a new addition to the city. It's outside of the downtown area but a quick ride away by tram. I fell in love with the place as soon as I caught sight of the decanter shaped exterior. The permanent exhibit of the museum houses over 20 different themed areas and if you take your time going through each you could easily spend at least half a day there. It felt like the ultimate wine tour - with overviews of all the major wine producing regions of the world including Australia, South Africa, Argentina, Portugal, Italy, and the US, but of course, the star of the show was France. I loved how interactive each section was, often calling for guests to swipe, scan, or push a button to activate each presentation. You end your visit with your choice of a glass of wine (I selected a Romanian red) and a 360° view of Bordeaux. I opted to visit in the afternoon so that I could watch the sunset on the top floor of La Cité du Vin while sipping a glass of wine. It was perfect!

Take a trip to Saint-Émilion

Don't expect to stumble out of a chateau after too many glasses of wine in Saint-Émilion. You're there to learn and embrace wine culture. Tasting, while important, is more of a science than it is a stop on the road to Tipsyland. Since I've ended most of my wine tours in Tipsyland, I was a bit shocked at the Bordeaux approach but I've come to appreciate it :) I booked my day trip with Rustic Vines and we visited Chateau Bernateau (a smaller family run chateau specializing in *delicious* organic wine) and Chateau de Pressac (a beautiful chateau, that looked like castle, with a long list of award winning wines).

Where to eat and drink

As I said before, there's plenty of places to eat well in Bordeaux but timing just wasn't on my side. Here are my favorite places and where I *would have* gone if they were open while I was in town:

Breakfast: Do yourself a favor and grab a croissant and coffee from a different local bakery each morning.
Dinner: I loved La Brasserie Bordelaise. I had the braised lamb shoulder was good but their Crème brûlée stole the show. Le Petit Commerce was good as well, I had the daily special that included an amazing salmon quiche and mussels in lobster bisque.
Dessert: I couldn't stop eating canelés when I was in Bordeaux. La Toque Cuivrée was my go to spot, I ended up there multiple times and I have no regrets.
Drinks: I loved the bar at Mama Shelter (when it's warm, visit their rooftop), the wine list at Le Bar a Vin, and the cozy interior and tea options at La Diplomate.
Places I didn't get to try but are *still* on my list: Côté Rue (newcomer to the scene with impeccable reviews), Le Pressoir d'Argent (Gordon Ramsay's Michelin star Bordeaux restaurant), and Julien Cruège.