Mention the word Bordeaux and even the least knowledgeable wine-lover sits up. This region in south-west France, and centred on the rivers Gironde, Garonne and Dordogne, produces some of the world’s greatest wines, including clarets such as Pomerol and St-Emilion. Staying in one of Bordeaux’s wine hotels is surely the best way to learn, sample and appreciate these heady wines. It’s not all about wine, however. There are walks, bird-watching and the port city of Bordeaux, with its flourish of elegant buildings, modern museums (including, yes, a wine museum) and a revamped dockside, to explore. We’ve picked out some of the best wine hotels in Bordeaux – including chateaux, luxury hotels and those on vineyards.
- The fairytale Chateau de Pitray, near St Emilion, with its towers and turrets and creeper-covered pale stone, has just four rooms, elegant with antiques and beautiful garden views. Tours of their small surrounding vineyard can be arranged by the friendly hosts, plus there’s a pool for a refreshing dip.
- Also with a pool, Le Relais de Franc Mayne is a substantial sandstone house surrounded by its vineyards. Bedrooms are boldly decorated with themes such as Out of Africa and French country house. After dinner in nearby St Emilion, return to a nightcap from the well-stocked cellar.
- The adults-only Chateau du Palanquey offers just five large and sophisticated rooms that cleverly mix contemporary and vintage pieces. As well as a small spa and outdoor pool, there’s a terrace and gardens plus far-reaching views over vineyards.
In the Margaux region
- The handsome Chateau Giscours is a classical 19th-century building of pale stone, terraces and large shuttered windows. The three rooms, with their wooden floorboards and floral fabrics, have a country-house feel, plus there’s a beautiful exposed-stone kitchen for hearty breakfasts. The hosts offer vineyard tours and cellar-tastings.
In the Medoc Region
- The handsome Le Clos de Meyre offers excellent value for money with just eight, light and traditionally furnished rooms. There are wine-tastings of its 300-year-old vineyard, plus a large outdoor pool.
In the Cotes du Bourg Region
- Also offering good value for money is Chateau de la Grave, a turreted affair dating back to medieval times. Interiors are cool and colonial in style, some bedrooms with exposed-stone walls, and an effective mix of antiques and more contemporary fabrics. There’s also a pool and glorious views over the surrounding vineyards.
In the Graves and Sauternes regions
- For a town-based stay, La Chartreuse des Eyres, in Podensac in the Graves and Sauternes wine regions, is an excellent-value ‘petit chateau’. Interiors are stylishly chic with stripped-wood floors, panelled walls in Farrow and Ball colours, and bold modern art. One room is offered as a self-catering apartment.
- On the banks of the Garonne and just 15 minutes from the centre of Bordeaux (water-taxi available), Chateau Grattequina is a handsome 19th-century chateau with light, contemporary-style rooms. The chateau has a large pool, wide terrace and romantic outside dining.
For a B&B
- In the St Emilion region, the 18th-century manor house of Clos 1906 sets cool, contemporary furnishings against the house’s classical original features. The result is an elegant yet relaxed feel, plus there’s a small pool and garden.
- On the edge of St Emilion town, Le Pavillon is a luxury B&B in a handsome pale-stone villa. Interiors are cool, light and spacious with a modern country-house feel mixing antiques and contemporary pieces, and all set against pale walls and stripped floorboards.
- 5 Lasserre is a large country house in the St Emilion area, with contemporary-style rooms set against stripped floorboards and exposed-stone walls. There’s an outdoor pool, dining terrace plus one room can be a self-catering apartment.
- Also with an outdoor pool, Petit Garros, on the banks of the Dordogne (not far from Libourne) and surrounded by vineyards, offers five charming rooms that mix a rustic feel with antiques and bold splashes of colour.
For foodies
- Hostellerie de la Plaisance, near St Emilion, has a country-house style with elegant public rooms and large bedrooms decorated with comfortable fabrics and classic furniture. It offers superb service but with a relaxed feel, plus there’s a sublime restaurant boasting two Michelin stars, and excellent wine cellar.
- Surrounded by vineyards, Les Sources de Caudalie near the Gironde, is an indulgent French country-house hotel with a rustic style. Grand public rooms have polished floorboards, antiques and sweeping views, while bedrooms mix contemporary and classical furnishings. There’s also a spa, large indoor pool and a choice of two restaurants, of which La Grand' Vigne has two Michelin stars and is divine!
- Not far from the coast, Chateau Cordeillans Bages is a beautiful 17th-century manor house surrounded by its own vineyards in Pauillac. Bedrooms are bright and contemporary plus the michelin starred restaurant is unmissable.
- In the heart of St Emilion, the Logis de la Cadene offers effortlessly French rustic-chic style: rooms with beams, rugs on wooden floors, muted colours, natural fabrics and contemporary lighting. The well-regarded restaurant, one of the oldest in the town, has a team of young, inventive chefs.
- Just outside St Emilion, and surrounded by vineyards, Chateau Grand Barrail is indeed a grand affair with lavishly draped bedrooms – some with four-poster beds – a beautiful glass-roofed atrium, fine-dining gastronomic restaurant (considered one of the finest in the region), spa, pool and golf.
Still not sure which to book?
