Bordeaux

Bordeaux's old centre, then Saint-Émilion, the Médoc or the coast

Plan two days for Bordeaux's 18th-century centre and at least one more for the vineyards and coast. The city days cover the Place de la Bourse, the quays, Saint-Pierre, the cathedral, Chartrons and the Cité du Vin; day trips go to Saint-Émilion by train, Arcachon and the Dune du Pilat, or the Médoc.

If wine is the reason you came, give the vineyards two days.

• The river and old town: begin at the Place de la Bourse and its Water Mirror, then follow the 3 km crescent of quays known as the Port of the Moon. Head inland through Saint-Pierre to the Cathédrale Saint-André and climb the detached Pey-Berland bell tower.
• Art and wine in town: the Musée des Beaux-Arts in the morning, then north to the Chartrons district and the Cité du Vin, open since June 2016. At dusk cross to the east bank for the view back over the Garonne.
• Saint-Émilion: a TER train from Saint-Jean takes about 35 minutes, and the station sits among the vines about 1.5 km below the medieval village.
• The coast: hourly trains run to Arcachon for oysters and the boat to Cap Ferret, with bus line 1 continuing to the Dune du Pilat. A car or an organised tour opens up the Médoc châteaux north of the city.

Château visits usually need booking. Weekends are busiest, as is the harvest in September and October. Some estates limit visits in winter. If tastings are the plan, join a tour from the tourist office on Place des Quinconces, because French drink-driving limits are strict. Hotels near Quinconces or in Saint-Pierre keep the old town and the main tram hub within a short walk.

Tour the Médoc with a hire car and a sober driver; trains also run south to Biarritz.

Wet winters, early springs and the September vendanges

Winters are mild but wet, with December close behind November at 106 mm. Frost comes every year while snow is rare, falling on no more than three or four days. It is a good season for museums and long lunches, less so for vineyard walks.

Spring comes early. That is the season for the Atlantic beaches and the Dune du Pilat. On hot afternoons children splash through the thin sheet of the Water Mirror.

The harvest, or vendanges, starts in September and runs into October. With highs of 24°C and then 20°C, it is the most atmospheric time to visit the estates, and also the busiest, so book tastings well ahead. Sundays are quiet in town, as many shops close, which makes them a good day for the riverside quays.

Steak à la bordelaise, canelés and reading Bordeaux appellations

In Bordeaux, eat steak à la bordelaise, canelé pastries and Arcachon oysters, and read wine labels by appellation, since around 50 of them spread across eight main areas. Start at the Cité du Vin or the Musée du Vin et du Négoce in Chartrons, then taste at each district's Maison du Vin.

Wine shapes the table here, starting with the sauce. À la bordelaise means a red wine sauce with shallots and bone marrow, traditionally poured over grilled steak. The city's best-known queue forms outside L'Entrecôte on Cours du 30 Juillet. It takes no reservations and serves a single menu of walnut salad, steak and unlimited fries. Expect to wait.

The canelé is the local pastry: a small cake flavoured with rum and vanilla, with a dark caramelised crust and a soft, custardy middle, thought to have been invented at a Bordeaux convent. Oysters come from the farms of the Bassin d'Arcachon, an hour away. At La Tupina, near the river, the regional cooking runs to corn-fed fowl from the Landes.

On a label, a specific name such as Saint-Émilion or Graves says more than plain AOC Bordeaux. The English called the red claret after clairet, a deep rosé still made in the Graves just upriver.

Restaurants keep set hours, typically 12:00 to 14:00 and from 19:30 in the evening. Service is included in the bill. Place de la Victoire is the student bar hub, and the nightclubs line the quays near the railway station.