Gironde
Gironde Essence: Where vineyard vistas meet Atlantic waves, historic Bordeaux whispers tales, and maritime allure dances in the air
Press the down arrow key to interact with the calendar and select a date. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates.
Press the down arrow key to interact with the calendar and select a date. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates.
Your holiday home in Gironde
Gironde, France’s largest department, has 120 kilometres of sand beaches. Ideal for a seaside holiday. In seaside resort Soulac-sur-Mer, on the route to Santiago de Compostela, are beautiful villas and an archeological museum with Gallic and Gallo-Roman artifacts. From Soulac you can cycle or go horseback along the coast and through the dunes and forest. You pass Lacanau-Océan and Le Grand Crohot, ideal surf sports, just as Lac de Lacanau in a beautiful natural area. From your holiday home near Bassin d’Archachon you can rent a boat or canoe and explore the bird island in the bay, with its distinctive pole huts and where it’s excellent walking. Climb in Teste-de Buch the highest dune in Europe: Dune du Pyla (also known as Dune de Pilat).
Bordeaux from Gironde
More inland is the departments capital: Bordeaux. Situated on the Garonne with beautiful quays and a lively centre with cosy squares, shops and restaurants. Of course this is the region of the famous wine. You can find wine châteaux near Pessac, Pomerol and the medieval bastides Libourne on the Dordogne and Saint-Emilion which are listed as UNESCO world heritage sites.
From your holiday-home you can take wonderful walks through the vineyards. In the Entre-Deux-Mers area is Graves, the oldest wine region in Bordeaux, and Cadillac, where the founder of the world famous car brand came from. In Médoc you can visit several wineries at Pauillac and Margaux.
Gastronomy in Gironde
Bassin d’Arcachon is famous for its oysters. Taste them on holiday in Le Cap Ferret, Arcachon, seaside town Montalivet on the Sunday market or in the lively market hall in Bordeaux. At low tide it is possible to walk to an oyster hut in one of the oyster parks or take the boat to one of the oyster harbours. Other specialities are asparagus, artichokes, porcini mushrooms and caviar.