TO SEE/TO DO
The Bordeaux Wine Route
The Châteaux Route
From Bordeaux to the Pointe de Grave, the finest Bordeaux wine route is best discovered by bike. Studded with châteaux, the Médoc region is home to the greatest Bordeaux wines. Visit the famous Château Margaux, cross the Saint-Julien domain and stop off at Pauillac, which hosts the largest amount of great wines: Lafite-Rothschild, Latour, Mouton-Rothschild, whose magnificent cellars are well worth a visit, and the museum dedicated to the art of wine. The visit continues in the domains of Saint-Estèphe and Moulis.
Tip: Spend the night at the Château Cordeillan-Bages in the heart of the Pauillac vineyards and succumb to the cuisine of Jean-Luc Rocha.
The Heritage Route
On the right bank of the Dordogne, this route takes you to the Libournais region through the vineyards of Saint-Emilion, Fronsac, Côtes de Castillon and Côtes de Francs. Valleys and hillsides dotted with windmills all offer wonderful viewpoints. Walk the medieval streets of Saint-Emilion, a Unesco World Heritage Site, surrounded by fine wines: Ausone, Figeac, Cheval Blanc...
The Hillside Route
Head north towards the valleys of Blayais and Bourgeais. From Bourg-sur-Gironde to Blaye, the superb Vauban citadel, the road is studded with beautiful pale-stone villages, Roman churches (Bayon), Gallo-Roman remains (Gauriac, Plassac) and little ports offering lovely views of the Gironde estuary.
The Graves Route
The birthplace of Bordeaux wines, the vineyards of Graves and Sauternes cover the area between Bordeaux and the Landes forest. The only great Bordeaux white wines are made here: Pessac-Léognan for dry wines, Barsac and Sauternes for sweet wines.
Worth seeing: the Château de la Brède, home of Montesquieu, the Maison du Vin des Graves in Podensac and the charming villages of the Sauternes region.
The Bastides Route
Between the Dordogne and the Garonne, the Entre-deux-Mers is home to a wide variety of reds, rosés and whites. A rich heritage is waiting to be discovered: bastides (walled towns) and medieval villages (Cadillac, Saint-Macaire, Créon, Sauveterre-en-Guyenne, Montségur…), abbeys (La Sauve-Majeure) and residences of writers and artists (Mauriac at the Château de Malagar, Toulouse-Lautrec at the Château de Malromé).
