How to spend 24 hours in Bordeaux

A short answer to the question How to spend 24 hours in Bordeaux would be: Go drink wine. For a longer answer to the same question, please keep reading.

Why wine?

Apparently, the Bordeaux wine region is one of the best spots in the world for winemaking. Some of the most expensive bottles the world has ever seen come from here but also, many cheaper bottles represent great value for money. The climate here is perfect, soil quality as well. When we add a convenient for trading geo-position and international interest, it's easy to understand why some bottles coming from Gironde end up on the highest shelves. They are that good. Here, even if you are not a wine-person, you might became one. It actually happened to me.

Wine testing in some of many châteaux or wine bars around here is an activity full of wonderful surprises. When you think you have found your favourite one, you suddenly discover your new favourite one. And so on. In the end, you wanna take them all home. Flavours from well known, to those more complex and unexpected, like truffle, tobacco, chocolate, spices, and even mushrooms and earth will keep popping up and keep surprising you. Now, many of the major châteaux aren't actually open for drop-in visitors. You can visit those which are (Kirwan, Franc Mayne, Pape Clement for example), or arrange your trip with some of the service providers - Rustic Vines has been doing a great job. TIP: Every two years the famous Bordeaux Wine Festival happens. The last one just ended a few weeks ago. If you are a true wine lover save the date for the next one in 2020.

What else?

The entire centre of Bordeaux is a World Heritage Site. There are many stunning buildings around, if that's what you are looking for. Some of them are: Palais de la Bourse, La Porte Cailhau, Palais Rohan, Gare de Bordeaux St-Jean, Opéra National, Grand Théâtre, InterContinental Bordeaux Grand Hôtel. They are all very beautiful and all very French.** But there is more. TIP:** take yourself a cheap V³ bicycle. You will pay initial 1.60€ for 24h membership and be able to use it during 30 minutes for free. Then just leave it at one of 175 docking stations and take another one, out of 1800 available bicycles.

Darwin Ecosystem

Darwin is an alternative place on the right bank of Garonne. Former military barracks, now home to all kind of activities, features the largest organic restaurant in France, it's a green economy hub, with an urban farm, a huge skatepark, free expression spaces for graffiti artists, an organic grocery, co-working space, and a wellness centre. TIP: here you can find an alternative if you are a beer-lover in the city of wine - try organic Darwin beer.

Cinema Utopia Bordeaux

For more alternative experiences during your 24 hours in Bordeaux, don't miss this cinema built inside an old church. This is the coolest cinema around, and also the cheapest one! Come if you are into independent movies, wonderful atmosphere is guaranteed and there is a café too. And yes, they serve wine.