France in 5 days: Saint-Émilion, Bordeaux, Île de Ré and Bergerac
- thewonderance
- Sep 5, 2018
- 7 min read
Sometimes less is more. But occasionally more is more.
At the start of the year my husband and I had booked flights into/out of Bergerac France from London City Airport (the best airport in London hands down) for the bank holiday weekend in August. A couple of months ago the original plans we had for that weekend changed and as such we decided to make the most of the 5 days we had in France and do a mini tour instead of staying in the one place.
Saint-Émilion
First stop was Saint-Émilion. Roughly an hour's drive from Bergerac, the journey was scenic with vineyards engulfing you at every turn - this is wine territory after all. We had one night in here but the character of this little town welcomes you as soon as you drive onto its narrow cobbled streets. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, dating back to prehistoric times the town looks like it's naturally risen out of the ground, stones merge seamlessly into buildings with the pièce de résistance undoubtedly the Monolithic Church at the heart of the village - itself partly subterranean. The bell tower resides dramatically over the main square which contains a number of cafes and bars to while away the hours in. One of the most popular restaurants due to it's prime position on the square is the Amelia Canta http://ameliacanta.com//?tag=exp098-20 - we had a very pleasant dinner here, soundtracked by a local saxophonist performing in front of the church; the French know how to create an atmosphere.
Saint-Émilion is a wonderful place to wonder around, discovering little alleyways and ancient artefacts along the way or just taking in the views from the top of the belltower. A lot of the town is apparently underground so there are tours you can take to visit the catacombs too though we didn't have time to do so on this trip. Undoubtedly, most visitors will be coming here for the thing the town is most famous for, the wine, and they won't be disappointed. There's more wine shops here than I've ever seen in such a small space. If we were to return I'd aim to take a wine tour at the Château Cantenac http://www.chateau-cantenac.fr/ - an award winning Château providing tours and tastings that appears to be one of the best out there if Trip Advisor is anything to go by! Saint-Émilion isn't short of good accommodation either, we stayed at Les Logis Du Roy in the centre of the town in the Cabernet Suite - it was clean, a great amount of space for the 2 of us and perfectly located, plus the hotel's reception was in a wine shop (well I wouldn't have expected anything less).
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g488277-d647907-Reviews-Les_Logis_du_Roy-Saint_Emilion_Gironde_Nouvelle_Aquitaine.html
Selection of photos from the Monolithic Church of Saint-Émilion, views of the town, our bedroom in Les Logis Du Roy and the famous vineyards
Bordeaux
Day 2 and we were off to Bordeaux to collect some friends from the airport. Bordeaux is actually the closest airport to Saint-Émilion, taking approximately 50 mins by car. With a bit of time to spare in the morning we headed straight to Place de la Bourse, one of the city's most famous squares, steeped in history. Something I really wanted to see was the Miroir d'Eau - the world's largest reflecting pool located between the Garonne river and the Place de la Bourse. Designed by Michel Corajoud, the surface is made of granite slabs covered in 2cm of water which you are encouraged to walk over. In the summer a mechanism under the granite creates a truly stunning mist across the 37,000 square feet structure every 15 minutes - if you weren't in France you could potentially be in a New York steam cloud. It has a real cinematic feel to it and is certainly worth a visit if you're in the area. Afterwards we found a fantastic Italian restaurant to eat at for lunch - I'm half Italian so it's almost law that I check out the local Italian no matter what country I'm in. The Murano Chapeau Roughe https://www.murano-bordeaux.fr/ served delicious Italian cuisine in a relaxed environment, there's also seating al fresco if the weather is good enough. The veal au citron was especially delicious! And then we were off to collect our friends from the airport and head to our next destination of Île de Ré.
Miroir d'Eau in Bordeaux
Île de Ré
I was told this is the place Parisians go to holiday and I certainly wasn't disappointed. It was a chilly Friday evening when we drove into town but even the lack of sunshine couldn't take away the beauty of Île de Ré which is no surprise given its UNESCO world heritage site status (I seem to keep finding these on this trip)! There's a certain feeling you get upon arriving, that you've stumbled upon some kind of beautiful oasis, where bicycles outweigh cars and you just want ditch the car keys, hire a bicycle (with basket obvs) and go buy some baguettes from the nearest bakery. Everyone is very French, very chic, very friendly and it's honestly the perfect place to visit for a break from it all.
We stayed in a 2 star hotel in Saint-Martin de Ré which is one of the liveliest and in my opinion, best towns to base yourself https://www.hotellescolonnes.com/
What our hotel lacked in stars it made up for in location, cleanliness and service.
Based on the harbour, you're in the right location for pretty much everything - restaurants, beaches, historical artefacts, beautiful walks around the cottage strewn streets and it's especially easy to visit neighbouring towns from here too.
We hired electric bikes (don't judge me) from Bike'N Volt https://bikenvolt.com/ though there's many options to rent bikes from - both electric and standard - so I wouldn't worry about reserving anything in advance. Prices range from approx €12 - €45 per day depending on what you're after, but you can of course just hire for a couple hours instead if you want to keep costs to a minimum. It really is the best way to explore the island as it's so set up for 2 wheel adventures with cycle paths everywhere; there were lots of children cycling along with their parents too so it's a great activity for the whole family to get involved with.
I can't write a blog on Île de Ré without mentioning the colour scheme that the island adheres to when painting the shutters of their buildings - they have to be one of 16 colours within a blue/green spectrum, it sounds like a little thing but it is so pleasing to the eye when you're there as the colours all compliment each other and it brings a real cohesiveness to the town. It was such a pleasure to cycle around the back streets of Saint-Martin de Ré, like a mini maze with unfolding beauty, you just want to keep going as each street seems more intriguing and stunning the deeper you delve. There are also lots of gorgeous boutiques here, so do make sure to park your bike up and wonder around as they're not to be missed. Antiques / Homeware / Clothing - whatever you want you'll find - and you'll no doubt all be dressing like a French stereotype by the time you leave.
Saint-Martin de Ré: Antique shop, the beautiful backstreets, views from the cycle path and a stunning sunset
Places we cycled to during our weekend here included:
La Flotte - a charming village with a renowned daily food market.
La Couarde-sur-Mer - a picturesque village with a church at it's centre that the whole town seemed to congregate around on the Sunday we visited. A few roads away and we found ourselves faced with a wonderful 5km rugged beach flanked with pines. We appeared to have the whole beach to ourselves, which on a weekend was pretty glorious.
Le Bois-Plage-en-Ré - more of a seaside resort vibe here with a hugely popular beach, it seems that here is where the locals spend their time at the weekend playing boules on the sand or just swimming in the twinkling blue sea.
L-R: La Couarde-sur-Mer Beach, Church in La Couarde-sur-Mer, Harbour at La Flotte, Scenic walks in La Flotte, Backstreets of La Couarde-sur-Mer and the courtyard at Côté Jardin
Restaurants we visited in Saint-Martin de Ré:
The menu in every restaurant we visited was very seafood / shellfish and fish focused though you'd tend to get a few meat options thrown in there too. Vegetarian options were a little thinner on the ground. If you like oysters you're in the right place as Île de Ré has some of the best so definitely give them a go!
Le Serghi - https://www.leserghi.fr/ - overlooking the harbour - a family feel restaurant where the food is fresh and the frites are to die for.
La Baleine Bleue - http://www.baleinebleue.com/ - a lovely place to eat or even just to have an aperitif as you watch the sunset go down.
Côté Jardin - https://www.restocotejardin.fr/ - a gem of a place with a vine filled courtyard out the back where you can dine and instagram to your hearts content.
L'Avant Port - http://www.lavantport.com/menu-en/ - a beautiful setting for lunch or dinner, this was on the pricier side and the dishes had very strong flavours so potentially for those with a more complex palate. The desserts looked outrageously good.
The best Restaurant in Île de Ré
Le Balaou - Avenue de Nouralene, 17670 La Couarde-sur-Mer, France - in my opinion this was the best restaurant on the island. Whilst every restaurant we ate at was good, this was another level up, this was just excellent not only in cuisine but also in service. Every dish was mouthwateringly good but you absolutely must have the salt cod beignets as a starter, they're unreal!
So that was our 2.5 days in Île de Ré - it definitely feels like we stumbled across a secret only the French know about and I'm quite happy to try and keep it that way. It's a beautiful place to holiday and I cannot recommend it enough. The nearest airport to fly into is La Rochelle, a mere 30 mins drive away from this island paradise of the blue/green beauty.
Bergerac
Our last stop on our 5 day tour is more of a teaser than anything else. We literally got to spend about 30 mins here prior to driving back to the airport but from what I saw this is definitely a place I'd like to spend more time in. Bergerac is absolutely beautiful, I literally had no idea! Don't believe me, check out these photos from the historic old town.
Comments