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Walk through 18th-century Bordeaux: a city of trade, classical architecture, Enlightenment thinkers, and revolutionary fervor. Meet the characters who shaped its golden age and upheaval.

Highlights

• Admire Place de la Bourse, Bordeaux’s Enlightenment symbol
• Discover the merchant mansions of the colonial golden age
• See the Grand Théâtre, a temple of 18th-century arts
• Walk in Montesquieu’s footsteps where he penned the Persian Letters
• Reflect at the Monument to the Girondins, tragic heroes of 1793

Description

Step into the age when Bordeaux rose to glory as a hub of commerce, philosophy, and revolution. This 2-hour walking tour reveals how the city of wine became a city of ideas. Begin at the monumental Place de la Bourse, masterpiece of royal architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel, symbol of Bordeaux’s openness to global trade. Follow the river quays, once animated by wealthy merchants such as François Bonnaffé, whose fortunes linked prosperity with colonial slavery. Admire the Grand Théâtre, built by Victor Louis as a “temple of the arts,” and stroll along the Cours de l’Intendance, where opulent mansions still whisper stories of the merchant elite. Explore the Allées de Tourny, visionary urban planning by Bordeaux’s “18th-century Haussmann,” and the lively Place du Parlement, a center for cafés and revolutionary debates. Visit the streets where Montesquieu wrote his Persian Letters, and the Palais Rohan, former episcopal palace turned City Hall after 1789. The tour concludes at the Monument to the Girondins, a powerful reminder of the tragic orators and reformers who fell victim to the Revolution. Literature, politics, architecture, and ideals all converge in this exploration of Bordeaux’s Enlightenment and revolutionary spirit.

Includes

Live-tour guide

Easy cancellation

Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund