Things to see in Bordeaux

Europa acompañada — Wed, 08 Mar 2023 17:17:33 +0000

What to see in Bordeaux, this French city worth discovering, known for having some of the most famous wines in the world, for a remarkable architecture and culture that has earned it the nickname of little Paris, in short a city that will surely make you fall in love as it did with us.

Bordeux or Bordeaux is a port city in southwestern France, capital of the region of New Aquitaine and the prefecture of the department of Gironde.

How many days should we spend in Bordeaux? I think at least three to be able to see what we have left here, although there is certainly much more and we would need many more days to explore it well and calmly, in our case we did not have more days.

Free walking tour Bordeaux

We begin this tour of what to see in Bordeaux with a free tour, the same ones as you know we always like to do when we arrive in a city and from there begin a tour at our leisure with information about the city and data that we take the opportunity to ask the guides.

After finishing the tour and in the same place where we left off, we see the stone bridge.

Stone Bridge

This stone bridge spans the Garonne River. Built between 1810 and 1822 by orders of Napoleon I, it has been registered as a Historical Monument since 2002.

We stop looking at the bridge for a moment and go to the attraction that is perhaps the most striking in this city and of which you have surely seen impressive photos on Instagram, and which also encourages us to bring out our inner child and play for a while in the water. We are talking about the water mirror of the Place de la Bource.

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Water mirror

It is the most photographed place and one of the places to see in Bordeaux, between the Garonne and the 18th century façade, the Mirror of Water is now part of the contemporary World Heritage.

Two centimetres of water on a gigantic granite slab transform the magical place into a mirror where the old facades, the passing train and loads of children and adults playing in the water are reflected, turning it into a wonderful spectacle.

The recommendation is to go with plenty of time to enjoy it, especially if it is summer and you have a very hot day like we did, and the other recommendation is that in addition to going during the day, you should also go at night.

And from here we will cross towards the Place de la Bourse and retrace our steps towards the Stone Bridge to see on the way one of the 6 wonderful gates that the city has.

Cailhau Gate

This magnificent gate from the Middle Ages was built between 1493 and 1496 and allows access to it. We have not done it, the cost of it is €5.

Our steps will now take us to another of the gates, the Burgundy Gate.

Burgundy Gate

The Porte de Bourgogne was built in the mid-18th century, as part of a larger project to improve Bordeaux, carried out by the mayor, the Marquis de Tourny. Its construction took place from 1750 to 1755.

St. Michael’s Basilica

We continue our walk discovering what to see in Bordeaux and we are going to visit the Basilica of St. Michael.

Built from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, it is characteristic of the flamboyant Gothic style.

The basilica has the peculiarity of being equipped with a bell tower outside the sanctuary.

Outside the church we find a very picturesque street market, but we are going to see a closed market, the Capuchin Market.

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Capuchin Market

But we continue on and arrive at the Capuchin market. The first weekly market was held here on October 2, 1749, on the initiative of the Marquis de Tourny, who carried out important works in the district. After several changes over the years, its last renovation dates back to 1999. As in all the places we visit, a market is always charming.

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Porte d’Aquitaine and Piazza della Vittoria

We arrive at another of the city gates, the Aquitaine Gate and the Place de la Vittoria.

This former entrance to Bordeaux was built between 1754 and 1755 and dedicated to the Duke of Aquitaine.

The marble column located in the center of the square, celebrates the wine heritage of Bordeaux.

We cross the arch to reach the famous Rue Sainte-Catherine.

Santa Catalina Street

Santa Catalina Street is known as the longest pedestrian street in Europe. This street is one of the two main axes that cross the historic center of the city. It cuts through the center from Piazza della Vittoria, which we have just visited, to Piazza della Commedia.

Grosse Cloche

We now come to another of the city gates, the Grosse Cloche. The Grand Cloche was part of the walls of Bordeaux, and is the oldest gate still standing in Bordeaux.

You can see it on a guided tour the cost is €6.

A short walk awaits us until we reach the Bordeaux Cathedral and the Pey Berland Tower

Bordeaux Cathedral and Pey Berland Tower

The Cathedral of St. Andrew in Bordeaux is one of the main monuments and the most important church in the city. Since 1998 it has been part of the World Heritage Site as part of the Paths of Santiago de Compostela in France.

Entrance is free. Like the previously visited Basilica of St. Michael, the bell tower is separate, the Pey Berland Tower. It was built in the 15th century and fearing that the cathedral could not bear the weight of the tower and its bells, it was built separately from the church. You can climb it to get beautiful views, the cost of the climb is €6.

Dijeaux Gate

Getting lost in streets and squares we arrive at the Porte Dijeaux. It was built by André Portier in 1748.

Place de Quinconces and Monument to the Girondins

We continue with this tour of what to see in Bordeaux and now we are going to see one of the largest squares in Europe, the Place des Quinconces and in it the Monument to the Girondins.

This large square was laid out in 1820 and the main monument in memory of the Girondins was erected between 1894 and 1902.

Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux

A few more steps and we will arrive at the Place la comedie and there we will find the Grand Theatre.

It was built between 1773 and 1780 and is an emblem for the city. It is a historical monument of France and is said to have inspired Charles Garnier for the creation of the Paris Opera.

From here, at least in our case, the free tour of Bordeaux that we took on the first day left.

In front of the theater we find the Le Gran Hotel de Bordeaux, on its rooftop it has a bar that you can access and enjoy apart from very good views, unfortunately we could not do it.

The square features the restaurants of two superstar celebrity chefs, Gorden Ramsay at the Grand Hotel and his French equivalent Philip Etchebest across the street at the Grand Theatre!

And now if we go two places that are different visits in the city.

The first will be the Bassins des lumieres, a light show in a former submarine base and finally the cité du vin.

Les Bassins des Lumières

As I was telling you, the place of the visit will be this abandoned submarine base, just thinking about going in to see what it is like caught my attention and… entering a totally dark place made me think for a moment if it had been a good idea to go… but it was only for a moment. As soon as the light and music show began, which is reflected in the walls and waters of the building, I was amazed.

As I always tell you, tastes depend on each person but I can only tell you that I loved it.

The ticket price is € 14.50, you can get them online on the official website of Les Bassins des Lumieres.

I can’t leave you the original music because of the copyright, so it looks and impacts less than it is to see it there live.

La Cité du Vin

And finally, I will tell you how the visit to the Cite de Vin turned out for us.

We have arrived at the city of wine, the cité du vin. This is a thematic visit, dedicated to wine. The City of Wine offers a fun visit to enjoy a journey through the world of wine through the history and geography of the world’s wine regions. At the end of the tour you will go up to the terrace with a view of the Garonne and the city to taste two glasses of wine.

If you are a big fan of wine tourism, this is something you cannot miss. It gives you a lot of information about the cultivation and production in different countries, it is very interactive, and the whole family can attend.►Cité du Vin

The city offers many more places to see in Bordeaux such as the Jardin Public or the Chartrons district with its market.

How about a visit to Mont Saint Michel?

Accommodation in Bordeaux

Where do we stay to do this tour of what to see in Bordeaux? We stayed at the Best Western Grand Hotel Francais. Very good location and very good service.

►Where to stay in Bordeaux?

We had dinner in different places, one of them was the Brasserie Bordalessa.

If you have several days and want to add more things, a visit to Saint Emilion is a good idea, a medieval village located just 40 km from Bordeaux known for the wines produced in its surroundings. The visit to its abbey and vineyards is well worth spending an extra day in this area.

Always remember, when putting together your vacation, to take out travel insurance. We use Iati, from our link they have a 5% discount on hiring it.