FRANCE A LA CARTE

Wine-tasting and gastronomy breaks

Eating and drinking have always gone together in France and our short breaks range from serious tasting of the 'grand crus' in the Bordeaux region to a more leisurely introduction to the oldest French spirit - Armagnac - in deepest Gascony.

Bordeaux Prestige - the details

Bordeaux airport or TGV station are the most convenient arrival points.

Try the simple version of this tour - in a city centre 4* hotel

BOOKING ENQUIRIES

other wine-tasting packages

Gascony - a real French spirt - Armagnac

Corbières - Languedoc's answer to Bordeaux

Cahors - Chateaux Mercuès & Haute Serre

Gaillac - Albi and the Tarn: interesting wines

Cognac - the 'other' great French spirit

BORDEAUX PRESTIGE WINE TOUR

6 days / 5 nights escorted tour

This prestige wine tour takes the form of an escorted tour. Participants are met at their airport/TGV station of arrival and transferred thereafter to their hotel and the different wine sites over the six days. Transport is by comfortable air-conditioned minivan with an experience english-speaking driver-guide. No more than 6 people are in the party.

Day 1: Arrive Bordeaux
Welcome by your driver and transfer to your 4* hotel «Le Relais de
Margaux» next to Bordeaux (35 minutes drive from Bordeaux city

centre and from Bordeaux Airport).
Overnight at the hotel “Le Relais de Margaux****L

Day 2: Full day tour of Médoc
Pick up at the hotel, departure for the Médoc, the most famous of the Bordeaux vineyards which lies to the North-West of Bordeaux city, a vast spit ofland between the Atlantic Ocean to the West and the Gironde Estuary to the East, a geographical location which confers on it a temperate climate suited to vine-growing. This symbiosis of plantand environment has given us 60 Grand Crus classés and 400 Crus Bourgeois in the 8 AOC of the Médoc.

* Visit and tasting at the Chateau Lascombes, Grand Cru classé in the Margaux Appellation.
* Visit and tasting at the Chateau Lynch Bages, Grand cru classé in the Pauillac Appellation.
Lunch somewhere in the area.
* Visit and tasting at the Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande at Pauillac.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Margaux.

Day 3: Full day tour of Saint Emilion
Pick up at the hotel and departure for Saint Emilion.
Visit to the Château Franc Mayne, Grand Cru classé of Saint Emilion.
Visit St Emilion, mediaeval city, UNESCO world heritage site and one of the centres of Bordeaux wine-making.

Lunch where you will in the mediaeval city.

Visit to the Château Fonplegade, Grand Cru classé of Saint Emilion
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Martillac.

Day 4: The Arcachon basin
Departure for the Arcachon basin, a vast lagoon on the Atlantic, coast some 45 minutes west of Bordeaux. On the way a stop at theDune de Pyla – highest sand dune in Europe – to catch the
beautiful views over the ocean and the interior forested in pines.
Arrival in Arcachon: stroll around the town.
Short cruise to see the celebrated «tchanquées», picturesque oyster-breeders' cabins on stilts.
Lunch Chez Diego l’Ecailler, seafood restaurant on the sea-front.
On the return trip to Bordeaux, stop at a sturgeon farm : visit and tasting of caviar.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Margaux.

Day 5: Bordeaux
Breakfast at your hotel. Transfer to Bordeaux city.
Departure for a guided visit (2 hours) of Bordeaux to discover the old town.
You will be able to discover the new heart of the City which has been considerably renovated with cleaned-up monuments, pedestrian zones and brand-new tram in service. From the vestiges of the Middle Ages (11th century cathedral of St André, the St Pierre quarter), to the
elegance of 18th century (the 4 km long façade overlooking the river, the place Royale, the Grand Theatre, Bordeaux's 1781 opera).

You will discover the different golden ages of Bordeaux's history, dominated by the wine trade and various colonial influences. This afternoon you can do some shopping in the centre.
Dinner at restaurant «Le Chapon Fin».
Night in a 4* hotel in Bordeaux

Day 6: Departure
Breakfast. Transfer to Bordeaux airport or TGV station for onward travel

reservation and enquiries

Accommodation. This tour is based in a 4*Luxury hotel (the top grade in France) in the vines of the Margaux appellation of the Médoc.

Relais de Margaux****L

The Gironde, covering a total surface area of 10,000 km2, is the biggest department in France and its estuary, formed by the convergence of Garonne and the Dordogne, is so large that we even talk of the "European Mississipi". It has the highest dune in Europe, at Le PYLA (112m), a string of lakes, the forest of Les Landes and Gascony (the biggest forest in Europe) and 1,000,000 hectares of vineyards with legendary
names and exquisite vintages..

Location:
The "Relais de Margaux" is located on the Médoc peninsula. This region has a temperate climate all year long thanks to the Atlantic Ocean and to the cool of the river Gironde which is located along the Golf course.

Accommodation :
The "Relais de Margaux" offers 100 individual, spacious and quiet rooms, all decorated differently and equipped with air­conditioning, direct telephone, WIFI, mini­ bar, satellite television, safe, trouser­press (except Club rooms : valet) and fully­ equipped bathroom.

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Restaurants :
The Relais de Margaux is proud to offer two restaurants...
The "Ile Vincent" Gastronomic Restaurant situated in the old part of the building.
The "Brasserie du Lac" in a very classy style, with its panoramic terrace and a beautiful sight on the Golf and the Gironde. (Advance reservations are advised for our restaurants)

The Margaux Golf course : Par 71-18­ hole golf course (6048 metres long)
The course lies right in the heart of the famous Margaux vineyards, close to the most prestigious chateaux of the Médoc. The fairways are lined with elms and ash trees, with some following the banks of the Gironde estuary and others surrounded by lakes and water hazards.

The Spa Harmonia
Welcome to the kingdom of well­being and harmony of body and mind. Allow yourself to be pampered by the expert hands of our professional staff (physiotherapists, osteopaths, hydrotherapists, beauticians etc...)

Other activities : swimming pool, tennis court, volley­ball pitch and private harbour