Bordeaux City Guide

Garonne, Old Town & Wine

From the Neoclassical Grand Théâtre to the iconic Place de la Bourse with the world's largest reflecting pool, along the Garonne quay to the fairy-tale gate Porte Cailhau and Napoleon's stone bridge Pont de Pierre. Through the lanes across Place du Parlement, the bell gate Grosse Cloche and the Cathédrale Saint-André, on to the Capucins market and by tram to the spectacular Cité du Vin wine museum.

1. Grand Théâtre / Place de la Comédie – The walk begins at the Grand Théâtre on Place de la Comédie, the heart of Bordeaux. The Neoclassical building of 1780 shows a front of twelve Corinthian columns crowned by statues of muses and goddesses. Its magnificent staircase is said to have inspired Charles Garnier for the Paris Opera. From here the elegant shopping streets of the centre radiate out.
2. Place de la Bourse – The Place de la Bourse of 1730 is the very image of classical Bordeaux: a curving, strictly symmetrical palace façade of pale stone opening towards the river, with the fountain of the Three Graces at its centre. When it was built, the old city walls were torn down - a deliberate sign of an open city turned towards trade and the Garonne.
3. Miroir d'eau – Opposite the Place de la Bourse lies the Miroir d'eau, at around 3,400 square metres the largest reflecting pool in the world. A wafer-thin film of water covers the granite slabs and mirrors the palace façade upside down - alternating with rising mist. On hot days children splash in it, and the city's finest photos are taken here. In winter the mirror is switched off.
4. Porte Cailhau – The Porte Cailhau of 1495 was once the city's ceremonial gate towards the Garonne, built to mark a victory of King Charles VIII. With its pointed turrets, battlements and oriels it looks like something out of a fairy tale, half fortified gate, half castle façade. From the small museum inside, the climb leads to a pretty view over the river and the roofs.
5. Pont de Pierre – The Pont de Pierre was until 1965 the only bridge over the Garonne, built on Napoleon's orders and completed in 1822. Its 17 red-and-white arches are said to stand for the 17 letters of Napoléon Bonaparte. From the bridge or the quay opens the classic view of Bordeaux's long, curving riverfront, the Port de la Lune, to which the city owes its crescent-moon name.
6. Place du Parlement – In the heart of the Saint-Pierre quarter lies Place du Parlement, a square enclosed by uniform 18th-century façades with a Second Empire-style fountain at its centre. Cafés and restaurants with terraces line it beneath the trees - the ideal spot for a break, a coffee or the evening's first apéro.
7. Grosse Cloche – The Grosse Cloche is one of the city's oldest landmarks, the old 15th-century bell gate rising over Rue Saint-James. Between two round towers with pointed roofs hangs the great bell, which once rang for council meetings and the grape harvest - and which the Bordelais loved so much that its sound became a symbol of the city's freedoms.
8. Saint-André Cathedral – The Gothic Cathédrale Saint-André is Bordeaux's largest church, where in 1137 the young Eleanor of Aquitaine married the future King Louis VII. Right beside it stands, free-standing, the Pey-Berland tower, the former bell tower - climb its narrow steps for the finest panorama over the old town's roofs. Inside, the richly adorned Gothic portals impress.
9. Marché des Capucins – The Marché des Capucins is fondly called the belly of Bordeaux, the city's great covered market hall. Among stalls of cheese, sausage, fruit and vegetables, its heart lies at the oyster bars: here in the morning you order a dozen fresh oysters from the Bassin d'Arcachon with a glass of dry white wine, standing right in the lively bustle. Best on a weekend morning.
10. La Cité du Vin – To finish, the tram takes you north to the Cité du Vin, the spectacular wine museum by the river. The curving building of gold and glass is meant to evoke wine swirling in a glass, vines and the eddies of the Garonne. Inside you explore the wine cultures of the whole world in interactive fashion, and at the very top in the Belvédère a tasting with a panoramic view over Bordeaux awaits - the perfect, indulgent finale.