Bordeaux Christmas Market

The Allées de Tourny dressed for winter

Bordeaux goes for elegance rather than alpine folklore. The market sets up on the Allées de Tourny, a tree-lined esplanade linking Place de Tourny to the Grand Théâtre. One hundred and fifty chalets line up under the lights, with a constant view of the UNESCO-listed 18th-century façades.

The single central aisle makes it easy to get around: no scattered districts as in Strasbourg, everything happens along 600 metres. Allow 1 to 2 hours for the full loop, more depending on tasting stops.

Bordeaux's food angle

This is probably what sets the market apart. Producers from Nouvelle-Aquitaine hold most of the stalls: winegrowers from the Côtes de Bordeaux, oyster farmers from the Bay of Arcachon, foie gras makers from the Périgord, historic chocolatiers. Oysters are shucked and eaten on the spot with a glass of white wine, for €6 to €12 a dozen depending on size.

The mulled wine is made with generic Bordeaux, more tannic than the Alsatian versions based on Pinot. Stronger too, so pace yourself. For something sweet, Baillardran's canelés are the local benchmark. Maison Lemoine sells its dunes blanches (choux buns filled with mascarpone cream) by the cone.

Entertainment

On Place de la Comédie, a 5-minute walk away, a 35-metre illuminated Ferris wheel gives a panoramic view over the historic centre. An open-air ice rink is set up in front of the Grand Théâtre every year, paid entry but with a reduced rate for under-10s.

Gospel concerts and children's choirs fill the weekends on the central stage. There is no sound and light show on Saint-André cathedral as there is in Reims, but the illuminations on Place de la Bourse (10 minutes on foot) with its water mirror are a detour worth making at nightfall.

Going further afield

Bordeaux is a central base for the markets of the South-West. Sarlat (Périgord Noir, foie gras and truffles) is 2h30 away by car. Saint-Émilion (Christmas cellars open at weekends) 45 minutes. Arcachon and the Dune du Pilat an hour, for a lungful of sea air between two market evenings.

Mérignac airport is 30 minutes from the centre on tram A, which makes Bordeaux easy to reach for European visitors too (flights from London, Brussels, Barcelona).

When to come

Bordeaux's climate is mild in December (8-12°C in the daytime), sometimes wet. The window from 27 November to 8 December is the quietest. Mid-December weekends draw shoppers from Toulouse and the Basque Country. The week between Christmas and New Year stays busy without being saturated, and hotels drop their prices.