The Chartrons district of Bordeaux !

Of course, this is my favorite district of Bordeaux and for only the history of wines started here, we love it. I like to tell you a bit more on the wonderful city and for sure the Chartrons district of Bordeaux! Sit back and enjoy it as I.

The district of Chartrons is name as such because the convent of Chartreux founded in 1381 while the 100 years war by the Chartreux of Perigord coming to take refuge in the marshes of this area , the place was connected to the city by the current cours Xavier Arnozan.  The Chartrons district was once the hotspot for foreign wine merchants. A little away from the center of the time, English, Dutch, Irish etc. settled in this area to develop their activities. To dive back into this period, head to Rue Boirie at the Wine and Trading Museum.(see post).

bordeaux bas st michel and pont st pierre afar aug08

High mast sailing ships founded on wine and slavery, the port de la lune (moon) is today a huge and beautiful promenade.  Three km long, the development of the Chartrons and Bacalan quays started in the 1990s is one of the most spectacular in the city and undoubtedly the most appreciated by Bordeaux residents.  A curve in the shape of a crescent, hence its name port de la lune. On your way you will greet the Bourse maritime and the Lainé warehouses where exotic foodstuffs were once stored, now a museum of contemporary art, then the Cité du Vin, an organic market on Thursday mornings , sheds transformed into chic boutiques and sunny terraces. You can admire the Dutch twins, Flemish-type residences, the only witnesses of an older past at nos 28 and 29. You can continue to the bassin à flot and the Pleasure marina. The rue Notre Dame for antique dealers and its provincial charm. At the Place du Marché des Chartrons for its trendy bistros that invite you to take a break.  Discover the Cours Xavier Arnozan and dream in front of the marvelous 18C mansions in the image the Fenwick mansion built in 1795 for the United States consul, so the entrance is decorated with ship’s prows. 

I recommend you take a walk either as above or following beginning of rue Notre-Dame. First stop, the Chartrons temple. Closed to the public for more than 30 years, it recently opened its doors to reveal a superb exhibition on the environment. Notre Dame Village; you are now in the heart of Les Chartrons. See the halles des Chartrons at the village. A beautiful square that is mostly overrun with chairs and people enjoying the sunny days. Many restaurateurs are set up around the square. Look up and admire the tallest church in Bordeaux, the Church Saint-Louis-des-Chartrons. Cross the Cours de la Martinique to explore another side of the Chartrons. Near the Gymnase des Chartrons, there are fewer shops but street art lovers will be amazed! The quays of Chartrons, take the opportunity to pass rue Barreyre and admire the typical super porch. See the  splendid Chaban-Delmas bridge, and discover the Cité du Vin. It’s an amazing place but it’s better to have some time to fully enjoy the visit. The Chartons market which is held on the quays. Local producers, cheese makers, florists… you can find very good products there. Awesome district,the Chartrons!

Of course you cannot missed the Jardin Public or public garden! I found me an older paper pic and will add here, sorry for the quality it is old but brings many memorable moments for my family: You can walk along the very chic Cours Xavier Arnozan  to the old paves of the Chartrons one of the green spaces of the city of Bordeaux. The garden was created in 1756 on the French style and later arranged in the 19C more on the English style. On one side of its entrance you have the wonderful Champ de Mars the terrace with a basin of the old shipbuilders . By here in a mansion from the 18C, there is the Natural History Museum!  Enjoy the walk.

Bordeaux jardin public barque

The Bordeaux Tourist office on Chartronshttps://www.bordeaux-tourism.co.uk/district/chartrons.html

The city of Bordeaux and its wineshttps://www.bordeaux.fr/p63304/vin-et-vignoble

The Gironde dept 33 tourist office on Bordeauxhttps://www.gironde-tourisme.fr/decouvrir-la-gironde/nos-destinations/bordeaux/

There you go folks, a dandy district area of pretty tasty Bordeaux. The Chartrons is a must while in town, we love it; hope it helps you enjoy it too. And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all!!!

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out /  Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out /  Change )

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

%d bloggers like this: