This weekend (June 14-18) Bordeaux will turn into a big wine celebration, marking the 20th year anniversary of “Bordeaux Fête le Vin”, one of the largest wine festivals in the world, a biannual event taking place in Bordeaux since 1998. Every two years, the banks of the Garonne are inviting wine lovers to five unforgettable days of events all dedicated to discovering the wines of Bordeaux and its region, Nouvelle aquitaine. But “Bordeaux Fête le Vin” is much more than a wine celebration! Visitors will be able to enjoy many events like visiting the beautiful tall ships, daily fireworks and music concerts. In this post I packed all the details you’ll need to plan your visit.
So how does it work?
This event allows you to taste wines from more than 80 appellations from Bordeaux and the Nouvelle – Aquitaine area and meet the wine makers and other professionals from the domain. While the event is free, in order to actually taste the wines you will have to buy the “Pass dégustation” that will cost you 21 euros. You can use the pass for the whole event (5 days).
Pass dégustation for the Bordeaux wine festival
What does the pass include:
One wine glass with its red cute case to carry it around the festival
12 wine tastings: one from each of the 11 pavilions and an additional one of your choice. The pass is not personal so if you don’t need 12 wine glasses share the pass with friends.
A workshop at the pavilion of the Bordeaux wine school.
A daily public transport ticket (tram, bus, boat) that you can use in only one of the festival days
Participation in the festival raffle
Reduced prices to the guided wine themed exhibitions in Musée d’Aquitaine, Musée des Beaux- Arts and Musée du Vin et du Négoce de Bordeaux.
The pass is valid from Thursday to Sunday (June 14-17) from 10:30 to 23:30 and on Monday (June 18) from 10:00 to 18:00.
Where and when can I get the pass?
You can either purchas the pass online or buy it in one of the three information/selling points along the banks of the river. Either way in order to get the pass itself and the wine glass, you will have to reach one of these three points:
Locations: Chartrons, Quinconces, Cailhau (you will see them in front of the promenade).
Opening hours: Thursday to Sunday (June 14-17) from 10:30 to 23:00 and Monday (June 18) from 10:00 to 18:00.
See the ships parade in Bordeaux
What other activities are on?
la Fête du vin de Bordeaux is so much more than just wine tasting. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the wine festival 30 amazing tall ships are about to arrive to Bordeaux on Thursday the 14th, and you’ll get a chance to visit them.
Here is the list of all you can do besides tasting wine:
Visit the ships- For the five days of the Fête le Vin (June 14-18), 30 tall ships will be docking along the banks of the river, arriving from many different European destinations. About 20 of these are going to be open to the public where you could take a free tour on the decks and discover the ships and their equipment. You can learn more about these special ships and their stories here.
The ships parade– you can see the beautiful parade of all the 30 boats leaving Bordeaux on Monday the 18th at 11:00.
The crew parade – The crew of the Tall ships are coming to Bordeaux from England, Netherlands, Russia, Spain, India and different ports in France. Saturday the 16th at 16:00 the crews parade, from soldiers to young trainees will march along the quai from Miroir d’eau throug Cours du Chapeau rouge, Place de la Comédie and Colonne des Girondins and will finis at Place Munich.
Fireworks – every evening at 23:30 the festival will welcome the night with an incredible pyrotechnic show that will be seen from the quais.
Sailing on the Garonne – three of the boats will offer one hour daily trips on the Garrone between Pont de Pierre to Pont Chaban-Delmas. The price is 15€ for adults and 8€ for kids. The sailing will take place June 14-17. See more info here.
Deck parties – two ships, la Caravelle Vera Cruz and le l’Étoile du Roy, will hosts evening parties of two hours from Thursday to Sunday (June 14-17) at 22:00. The ticket to the party includes two glasses of wine of Bordeaux or Nouvelle- Aquitaine, some snacks and non-alcoholic drinks for kids. The price is 25 € for adults and 15 € for kids (5-15 years old) and free for kids under 5 years old.
Concerts – throughout the festival plenty of concerts and shows will take place all around the city. See the full list of concerts here.
LOVE-LOVE-LOVE event – Friday the 15th at 18:00, the National Opera of Bordeaux will give one concert in Darwin as part of the Bio wines celebration. See more info here. The price is 10€.
Big Wheel– if you’re coming to the festival with kids and they get a bit bored, take them to the big wheel installed at Place des Quinconces (5€).
Meet the crew of the big ships that arrived especially for the wine festival
Grand Crus Weekend
One of the most interesting events accompanying the Bordeaux wine festival is the Grand Crus Weekend that will take place June 16-17. This event, organized by the the Union des Grands Crus (regional wine classification), aims to create an international meeting of wine lovers. The highlights of this weekend will include tasting wines from over 120 Grand Crus and meeting different chateaux owners as part of pre-organized dinners in these châteaux.
Read more about the event and the full program here.
“Bordeaux Fête le Vin” is probably the biggest event in Bordeaux, celebrating what this city is most famous for. This year the celebrations are going to be even larger than usual with the arrival of the beautiful tall ships that will be docking at the banks of the Garonne. You can see the the full program of events here and buy the pass here. For more updates follow the Lost in Bordeaux facebook page.
Don’t miss the chance to be a part of this incredible wine feast and don’t forget to share this post with friends on social media 🙂
The main event this weekend is undoubtedly the Bordeaux wine festival- “Bordeaux Fête le Vin“. The festival is taking place on June 14-18 and includes an extensive program of events and activities. My recent post about the fête du vin will give you all the information you need to participate in the wine celebrations – prices, where to buy tickets, what activities are on and more. Be sure to check it out so you don’t miss any interesting events.
I think I’ve been talking enough about the wine festival in the last few days, so let me now just focus on all the other interesting events that are about to take place this weekend in and around Bordeaux.
Here is the list of things to do in Bordeaux this weekend (June 15-17):
Festivals and Special events
Grand Crus Weekend
One of the most interesting events accompanying the Bordeaux wine festival is the Grand Crus Weekend that will take place June 16-17. This event, organized by the the Union des Grands Crus (regional wine classification), aims to create an international meeting of wine lovers. The highlights of this weekend will include tasting wines from over 120 Grand Crus and meeting different chateaux owners as part of organized dinners in these châteaux.
Read more about the event and the full program here.
When: June 16-17 Where: many locations, see the program
Festival Vie Sauvage
Vie Sauvage, is a music and gastronomy festival that takes place every year in Bourg. The seventh edition of the festival will take place June 15-17 and includes a long list of artists that will take the stage during the three days, you can see the full program here. For more details check out the website of the event. The price is 25 euros for a day and 40 euros for the three days pass.
When: June 15-17 Where: 57, rue Valentin Bernard, 33710 Bourg-sur-Gironde
Jazz and Blues Festival in Leognan
The 23rd edition of the Jazz and Blues Festival of Leognan takes place as part of Leognan’s 300 years anniversary celebrations. Out of the six concerts in the program, two concerts are still to take place on June 15-16 in Saucats and in Martillac. Take a look at the full program here.
When: June 7- 16 Where: See all the locations in the link above How much: the prices in the link above
En avant la musique in Langon
An early celebration of the Fete de la musique will take place in Langon this Saturday (June 16) from 17:30 to 23:30. The event will start with the performance of Perry Gordon at the Place des Carmes and will continue from 21:00 on the quai with three performances of rock music. For more details click here.
When: June 16 Where: Place des Carmes & Esplanade des quais. Langon
Festival Regula à La Réole
Regula is a dance, music and equestrian art festival that will take place this Saturday (June 16) in la Réole. Through these forms of arts, the performers will interpret the theme of the third edition of the festival, which is “American Myths”. For more details check out the facebook page of the event.
When: June 16 Where: Château des Quat’Sos ,Côte de Pirly, 33190 La Réole
See the FIFA World Cup in one of the open air bars around the city
From June14 to July 15 the world will be glued to the screens to watch the FIFA World Cup games. While the open air screening were canceled this year due to security reasons, there are a few places around Bordeaux where you can see them on a large screen and some are in the open air. Two such places are the Factory in Talence and L’Et-Cætera in Pessac. See more pubs that will screen the games here.
The Factory: 246 bis avenue de Thouars, 33400 Talence
This Saturday (June 16) a big gathering of artists will take place at the Place de la Mairie in Le Bouscat neighborhood. “RDV des Artistes” will include live painting and exhibition of local artists.
When: June 16 (10:00-18:00) Where: Place de la Mairie, Le Bouscat
Latino Gartonomique festival
A gastronomic Latin American festival will take place on June 16(2pm to 10pm) at Saint Augustin. Besides celebrating the gastronomic richness of Latin America the program will include concerts and different activities. See the facebook page of the event.
When: June 16 (2pm to 10pm) Where:Place de l’Église Saint-Augustin, 33000 Bordeaux
Climb Up open doors
A huge climbing indoor space opened in Bordeaux yesterday and this weekend they invite you for an open door two days event. The event is for adults and kids over 3 years old, it’s free and will include climbing lessons. Take a look on the details of the event.
When: June 16 – 17 (2pm to 10pm) Where: 17 avenue Pythagore, 33700 Mérignac, Aquitaine, France
CULTURE
Classic Ballet by the Bolshoi of Minsk
The prestigious Bolshoi of Minsk ballet company will perform parts taken from some of the best classics of ballet, such as Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and Don Quixote, a beautiful event to take the kids to. The show will take place on June 17 (4pm) at the Bordeaux Métropole Arena.
When: June 17 Where: Bordeaux Métropole Arena, 48-50 avenue Jean Alfonséa, 33270 FLOIRAC
Penas y Alegrías – traditional flamenco dance and music show
“Penas y Alegrías” offers you a high energy, colourful flamenco show. This is a traditional flamenco performance as one would see in the peñas (flamenco clubs) of Andalucía. This show presents a wide variety of flamenco styles including the poignant and melancholy soléa to the lighter, mischevious alegrías.
Read about this beautiful show in my previous post about “Penas y Alegrías“
When: Saturday, June 16- 8pm
Where: La Grande Poste, 7 Rue du Palais Gallien, 33000 Bordeaux
How much: Prices – 16€ / 20€
Still some time left to see the Street Color Exhibition
This is the last chance to see the excellent art exhibition that is being presented from April 5 to June 24 at the Institut Bernard Magrez. The expo includes some well known street artists (mostly French ones), such as MAD C (GER), Seth (FRA), d’Alexöne (FRA) and more.
Street Color Exhibition in Institut Bernard Magrez
When: until June 24 Where: 16 rue de Tivoli, Bordeaux How much: 8 €
Speedy Graphito – Urban Fever at Institut Bernard magrez
An exhibition by the famous French street artist, Speedy Graphito, will be presented at the Institut Bernard Magrez until July 15. The artist uses many forms of art – painting, sculpture, photo, video and more to express his innovative and sometimes political ideas.
Check out the website of Speedy graphito to explore the works of the artist and the website of the museum for more information about the exhibition.
When: April 19– July 15
Where: 16 rue de Tivoli, Bordeaux
Chromatic Shadow Exhibition
La Galerie D.X will be presenting the works of the French- American painter until July 13.
When: June 8– July 13
Where: 10 Place des Quinconces, 33000 Bordeaux
Hope you enjoyed the list! Now don’t be shy, share it with your friends!
Do you have other events to add to the list? Please share them in the comments so all of us can enjoy them 🙂
As we’re approaching the summer, the cultural and gastronomic scene in Bordeaux seems to get hotter and hotter. This month there are so many events, festivals and concerts that you will find it hard to choose from this long list of things to do. The great Bordeaux wine festival is almost here, the Bordeaux food truck festival is about to begin this month, three music festivals and the Fête de la musique with free concerts all over the city. I can go on and on, but let’s just jump right into it.
Here you will find the 20 most interesting and entertaining events that are about to begin or happen during the month of June. I divided them into two groups (events and art exhibitions), where they appear in a chronological order. As usual, during this month, I will publish my weekend things to do lists where I will add some of the smaller events, so stay tuned.
Meanwhile, this is the list of the best things you can do in Bordeaux in June 2018:
Festivals and Concerts
1. Les Epicuriales
This event has become an early summer Bordelaise tradition. For its 24th edition les Epicuriales festival transforms Allées de Tourny (next to the Opera) to a gastronomic heaven with about twenty restaurants set up especially for the event. During the 16 days of the festival, the restaurants will be open to the public for lunch and dinner. The highlight of the event is”Les Étoiles d’Épicure” , a restaurant that will host a different Michelin star chef every evening. Discover the full list of the participating chefs and their bio.
The event takes place May 25 to June 9. See more details here.
When: May 25 – June 9 Where: Allées de Tourny 33000 Bordeaux
2. Festival Echappée Belle in Blanquefort
Echappée Belle festival is a very entertaining event for the whole family that includes many forms of art for both kids and adults including theater, dance, circus and more. The festival will take place from May 31 to June 3 in Blanquefort, starting in Parc Majolan and continuing for the weekend in Parc de Fongravey. This edition of the festival is promised to have a great focus on musical activities with many cross genre shows and creations.
The prices of the shows are between 11€ and 16€ (depending on the amount of tickets purchased), the entrance to the parks and to many activities are free and the access is very easy from the center of Bordeaux (on tram A). See the full programhere.
When: May 31 – June 3 Where: Different locations in Blanquefort (see the program)
3. Millesime Electronic music festival
This is a great event for all electronic music lovers who want to enjoy the unique atmosphere of an electronic music festivals and still stay in the region of Bordeaux. Festival Millesime will take place on June 1-2 in La Réole (between Bordeaux and Toulouse) and will have 3 stages, more than 30 artists, a chill out area and many other activities, all in the open air on the banks of the Garonne – sounds like a perfect event! (I’m an electronic music kind of person, so I’m not very objective here 🙂 )
The ticket price is 16,73 € and the access is quite easy – by car or by train from Gare Saint Jean.
When: June 1-2 Where: Hippodrome de La Réole, lieu dit Mijéma, 33190 La Réole
4. Fête de la Morue
For more than two centuries, Bègles has been an important center of morue (codfish) in France. Today, this unique expertise of this little town is celebrated every year at la Fête de la Morue, a popular culinary and culture festival that also gives a stage young artists. la Fête de la Morue, will take place on June 1-3 in Bègles, with a rich program of concerts, cooking workshops, exhibitions, tastings, conferences and more. For more details follow thefacebook page of the event or check our theprogram.
When: June 1-3 Where: Different locations in Bègles (see program).
5. AHOY music Festival
AHOY is a music festival, taking place on June 1-3 in Bassins à Flot in the Bacalan neighborhood, it proposes day and night experiences in three central cultural venues in the neighborhood – Dalle du Pertuis, Base Sous- Marine and Iboat. This festival is a journey of 36 hours, adapted for any age, where visitors are invited to explore the musical village and enjoy concerts, workshops for kids and adults, a creators’ market, food and wine and many other entertaining activities. Check out the fullprogram of the event.
When: June 1-3 Where: Bassins à flot – Bacalan
6. Bordeaux Food truck Festival
This is the biggest gathering of food trucks in the region of Nouvelle Aquitaine, with around 60 food trucks registered to participate in the five events of the festival, which are spread in different dates until the end of September this year. This festival aims to mix street food with the finesse of the wine world. As part of this gastronomic event, visitors can taste the wines of the hosting châteaux and the specialties of food coming from all corners of the world: French, Italian, Brazilian and many more. The program of the festival also includes free concerts, exhibitions, escape games, activities for kids and a wine and chocolate workshop with the famous Bordelaise chocolatier Hasnaâ.
The first food-truck weekend will take place on June 2-3 in Château de La Dauphine in Fronsac. To purchase tickets for the different events in Château de la Dauphine click here.
See the all the details about the five weekends of the Bordeaux food truck festival here.
When: June 2-3 Where: Château de La Dauphine, 5 Rue Poitevine, 33126 Fronsac
7. “Les Forains, Ballet Urbain” in Bordeaux Opera
The amazing urban dance spectacle of “Les Forains, Ballet urbain” will be hosted by the Opera house of Bordeaux for seven consecutive nights from May 31 to June 7. For more details and tickets click here. Hurry up as the tickets are running low and some of the nights are already full.
When: May 31- June 6 Where: Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux, Place de la Comédie, 33000 Bordeaux
8. Big Bang- Air and Space Festival
The Big Bang festival in Saint-Médard-en-Jalles will take place on June 5-10. The third edition of the air and space festival is dedicated to art and science and is promised to be both educative and entertaining. The program includes art and science exhibitions, conferences, planetarium, flight simulator, films, concerts and much more. Check out the full program of the event.
Picture by: Big Bang
When: June 5-10 Where: Le Carré des Jalles, Place de la République, 33160 SAINT-MEDARD-EN-JALLES
9. Bordeaux Open Air #1
Another music festival, and this time much closer to the center of Bordeaux! The first part of the third edition of the Bordeaux Open Air festival will take place June 10 in Parc Palmer in Cenon. Bordeaux Open Air is a series of summer free electronic music events, all set in different locations and with a great city vibe to them. The dates and locations of all the other events will be announced shortly.
When: June 10 Where: Parc Palmer , 1 rue aristide Briand, 33150 Bordeaux, France
10. Bordeaux Wine Festival
This is the 20th edition of this magnificent feast of wine. Like every year, the banks of the Garonne are hosting wine lovers for five unforgettable days of events all dedicated to discovering the wines of Bordeaux and its region, Nouvelle aquitaine. For the five days of the Fête le Vin (June 14-18), 30 tall ships will be docking along the banks of the river, arriving from many different European destinations. Learn more about these special ships and their storieshere. The ships are a key theme in this festival and a lot of the activities will revolve around them, among them sailing trips on the Garonne, tours on the ships and evening deck parties on some of the boats. This festival is certainly not only about ships, other events and venues include an open air wine road on the riverfront, fireworks, ships crew parade, concerts and much more, clickhere to discover the full list of activities.
To participate in the Bordeaux Fête le Vin you will need to purchase a wine tasting pass for five days which includes 12 wine tastings in the many booths of the festival. The price is 16€ for a ticket,buy one here.
When: June 14-18 Where: The banks of the Garonne
11. Grand Crus Weekend
One of the most interesting events accompanying the Bordeaux wine festival is the Grand Crus Weekend that will take place June 16-17. This event, organized by the the Union des Grands Crus (regional wine classification), aims to create an international meeting of wine lovers. The highlights of this weekend will include tasting wines from over 120 Grand Crus and meeting different chateaux owners as part of pre-organized dinners in these châteaux.
Read more about the event and the full program here.
When: June 16-17 Where: many locations, see the program
12. Classic Ballet by the Bolshoi of Minsk
The prestigious Bolchoi of Minsk ballet company will perform parts taken from some of the best classics of ballet, such as the Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and Don Quixote, a beautiful event to take the kids to. The show will take place on June 17 (4pm) at the Bordeaux Métropole Arena.
When: June 17 Where: Bordeaux Métropole Arena, 48-50 avenue Jean Alfonséa, 33270 FLOIRAC
13. Fête de la musique 2018
La Fête de la musique is a French national day, dedicated to the celebration of music, with free concerts and street parties happening on the same day (June 21) all over France. This is an extraordinary day where you have the chance to walk around the city and enjoy an endless amount of small and big concerts from any genre of music. Like every other city in France, Bordeaux too will celebrate La Fête de la musique with its own street concerts and activities.
In the following video you will see the famous chef Philippe Etchebest and his band performing at the Fête de la musique.
When: June 21 Where: All over the city of Bordeaux
14. The biggest artists are coming to Bordeaux
Since the opening of the Bordeaux Métropole Arena we have seen some impressive acts coming to perform in Bordeaux. This month is definitely one of the peaks, with two of the biggest names in the music world taking the Bordeaux stage.
Shakira
Shakira will perform at the Bordeaux Métropole Arena on June 24 – buy ticketshere.
Guns and Roses
The legendary Guns and Roses will make a stop in Bordeaux as part of their tour and will take the stage on June 26at the Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux (Cours Jules Ladoumègue, 33300 Bordeaux).
15. Dance show by three famous choreographers
A co-production of the National Opera of Bordeaux and the Opera of Limoges presents an evening of three works by three famous choreographers: Petite Mort by Jiří Kylián, Le Chant du compagnon errant by Maurice Béjart and Le Concert (ou Les Malheurs de chacun) byJerome Robbins. The dance show will be performed in the Opera of Bordeaux, during nine nights from June 27 to July 6.
When: June 27 to July 6 Where: Grand Théâtre, place de la Comédie, 33000 BORDEAUX
16. Trajectoires
Trajectoires is a unique cultural event where talented students of music, theater and choreography will perform their works of art to pass their diploma. Around 50 different performances of theater, comedy, dance and music will be put on stage in different locations in Bordeaux.
Take a look on the full list of performances and details about all the events here.
When: Many dates in June (see program) Where: different locations in Bordeaux (see program)
ART
17. Claude Monet at the new Musée Mer Marine – the event is cancelled for now
The Musée Mer Marine is a new museum, based in the bassins à flot (Bacalan),which is scheduled to open its door in the beginning of 2019. While we are waiting for the full experience in this interesting new place, a temporary exhibition of the works of Claude Monet has been put in place and will run from June 15 to December 31. See more details on the website of the new museum.
When: June 15- December 31 Where: Musée Mer Marine,89 Rue des Étrangers How much: 15 €
18. Last chance to see the Street Color Exhibition
This is the last chance to see the excellent art exhibition that is being presented from April 5 to June 24 at the Institut Bernard Magrez. The expo includes some well known street artists (mostly French ones), such as MAD C (GER), Seth (FRA), d’Alexöne (FRA) and more.
When: until June 24 Where: 16 rue de Tivoli, Bordeaux How much: 8 €
19. Urban Legends Exhibition
La Base Sous Marine, one of the most unique places in Bordeaux, will host the “Legendes Urbaines” exhibition from June 21 to September 16, which will host the works of more than 50 street artists.
When:June 21 – September 16 Where:La Base Sous Marine, Boulevard Alfred Daney, 33300 Bordeaux
20. Last chance to see the Wine and Music Expo
The art exposition at la Cité du Vin, named “Le vin & La musique, accords et désaccords“, reveals the relationship between wine and music through a visual journey that alternates between paintings, music and stage art. Around 150 pieces of art will be put in place from French and European collections: ceramics, paintings, music books , instruments and more. The exposition has been running from march and will be presented at the museum until June 24. For more details and tickets check here.
When: until June 24 Where: 134 – 150 Quai de Bacalan, 33300 Bordeaux How much: 8 €
If you know of any other interesting events in and around Bordeaux, please let me know in the comments below and I will be sure to add them to my weekly list of things to do in Bordeaux.
Hope you enjoyed this list! Now don’t be shy, share it with your friends 🙂
