Médoc, Margaux & Graves wine tours

You can go by train: regional trains from Bordeaux Saint-Jean take roughly half an hour and the station is a walk from the village. A tour adds transport between the estates and tastings arranged in advance. If you only want the village and one winery visit of about an hour, going on your own is simple; for two or three estates in a morning, a tour saves the logistics.

Not a sea beach. The city lies on the Garonne, and the Atlantic coast with the Arcachon basin and the Dune du Pilat is roughly an hour away by car. The listings on this page include a few day trips there, but they are long days compared with a city tour.

Saint-Émilion is a walkable medieval village on the right bank with estates around it; the Médoc is the left bank, with famous châteaux spread between vineyards. On several Médoc half-day tours the best-known château is only passed on the road. Choose Saint-Émilion for a village and tasting, the Médoc if you want the left-bank landscape and classified growths.

It depends on the operator. Listings name a pontoon by the Pont de Pierre, the Quai des Chartrons and a spot near the Cité du Vin. Read the meeting point on the booking page before you go, because the places are not close to each other.

The listed ticket combines entry to the exhibition with a tasting at the belvedere. The official site gives opening hours of 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM every day, longer on some Saturdays, with an early close on 24 December and no opening on 25 December. Allow time for the exhibition as well as the tasting.

By review numbers the strongest choices are the Cité du Vin, the Garonne river cruises and the half-day wine trips to Saint-Émilion, followed by guided walks and bike tours of the Old Town and Chartrons. Rainy days are covered by the museums, the Bassins des Lumières and the escape games.