This French Destination Has All the Perks of a Parisian Vacation — at a Fraction of the Cost

Why Bordeaux, France, might be the perfect alternative to Paris.

After hustling around in Paris for a few days, overstuffing my itinerary with must-do activities, I boarded a two-hour TGV train to Bordeaux. The French city is best known to Americans like me for its wine: I imagined long, lazy days at bucolic vineyards in the French countryside — somewhat akin to a Napa Valley getaway. As excited as I was to visit Bordeaux, it had been over a decade since my last Parisian trip — and I hadn’t quite had my fill yet.

As we approached the station, I thought for a minute that our train may have doubled back to the capital. Instead of the grapevine-lined rolling hills I had pictured, I soon found myself in an enthralling urban center, with grand limestone architecture and alluring sights reminiscent of Paris. But it was without all the challenges I had experienced there: sky-high prices, constant crowds, and logistical hurdles. (One night in Paris, for example, I was rejected from five empty restaurants for not having a reservation.)

Sitting on a slight curve of the Garonne River, the heart of Bordeaux, is the Port of the Moon — the historic city center that was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007. Here, I found myself delighting over the Instagram idyllic Miroir d'Eau (or, water mirror) that reflects the Place de la Bourse and the stunning details of the Opéra National de Bordeaux dating back to 1780.

Every dining experience had a unique spin, like the hyper-local eatery Les Récoltants tucked behind its farm-fresh grocery store, the Michelin-starred Le Prince Noir in a castle, or the thriving food hall Halles de Bacalan in the Bassins à Flots district.

During my three nights in the port city, I realized Bordeaux has all the elements visitors crave in a French getaway, but on a more intimate scale.

Case in point: staying at the luxury Villas Foch, a 28-key property in a 19th-century mansion sandwiched between the Place des Quinconces city square and Jardin Public. Striking the balance between a cozy home and luxury hotel, the most spectacular part was that room rates here are significantly lower than in Paris. (In fact, according to Kayak, the average hotel rates in Bordeaux are $156 on weeknights and $148 on weekends, compared to $506 on weeknights and $466 on weekends in Paris — that's up to $350 savings per night overall.)

But what was so rewarding was that the value didn’t come at an experiential or cultural cost. In fact, as the ninth biggest city (by population) in the country, Bordeaux is on the rise, actively improving every bit of its infrastructure. It’s no wonder that the city was named one of the European Capitals of Smart Tourism in 2022 by the EU’s European Commission, based on its innovation in sustainability, accessibility, digitalization, cultural heritage, and creativity.

Of course, its famed fine wine permeates the city with nearly 7,000 winemakers in the area — but it does so in the most forward-thinking ways. While visiting the organic vineyard Château Paloumey in Ludon-Médoc, on its aptly named Nature and Future Tour, owner Pierre Cazeneuve explained to me how he’s been experimenting with new techniques to account for the inevitable temperature increases from climate change. That includes taking out rows of grapevines and replacing them with trees in hopes of providing shade while increasing water flow and blocking out winds. While time will tell whether the test will garner the desired effects, I walked away from the château with not just a stronger appreciation for the craft of winemaking, but also a deeper connection to environmental needs. And the best part is that it’s long been part of the family-run business' ethos since his mother Martine Cazeneuve first took it over in 1989.

Though she was one of the first women to own a winery then, female-run wineries are celebrated throughout the city. Perhaps nowhere is it showcased better than at Les Furies Douces, a relaxed wine bar in the trendy Chartrons neighborhood whose motto is “Women Do Wine.” Run by Audrey Bochahut, the eatery serves bottles from women-owned wineries, along with tapas, cheese, and charcuterie.

There’s also an entire museum, La Cité du Vin, dedicated to wine. This is a place begging to be judged by its cover — the eye-catching whimsical circular design of the building is meant to mimic wine swirling in a glass, which is just the first hint of the creativity of the exhibits inside. Divided into 18 modules in six universes, visitors can curate their visits based on their own interests, like gastronomy, winemaking, history, or environment. One moment you’re getting an oversized bird’s-eye view of the most stunning vineyards from above, and another you’re doing a deep dive into the six wine families or learning about wine tasting using all five senses. And, of course, admission comes with a tasting, which can only be one-upped by dining at the panoramic Restaurant Le 7 on the seventh floor with a choice of 500 wines.

Wine aside, Bordeaux also boasts other Paris-like experiences. While the capital city has an outpost of Culturespaces’ immersive light-projection Atelier de Lumières, the southwestern city one-upped it by a landslide with Bassins des Lumières. Located inside a former World War II submarine bunker, it's the world’s largest digital art center. It is unlike anything else, with the images being projected in four water basins, reflecting off the walls and water, creating a seemingly infinite effect that envelopes visitors in its lights and colors.

Perhaps the most impressive site in Bordeaux is the Darwin Ecosystem — it's one part multi-use space, one part entertainment complex, and one part social justice project. Above all else, every business and element here must have a commitment to responsible sustainable practices. The result is a skatepark and graffiti art gallery mingling next to an organic sourdough bakery and Europe’s largest organic bistro dining hall, as well as co-working spaces and the only repairing-and-recycling location of the French sustainable shoe brand Veja.

In between filling my cup with all the elements I love in a French getaway, I also simply strolled the streets, as I would in Paris, following my instincts. Here, I was led to bakeries overflowing with canelés, with crunchy caramelized crusts leading into soft custard centers; coffee shops roasting their beans on-site; and boutiques filled with handmade crafts, finding joy in every stumble-upon find. While nothing can ever be a true replacement for the City of Lights, a trip to Bordeaux can certainly scratch a traveler's Parisian itch — at a slower pace of life and a more affordable price.

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