If you’re one of the many Maltese people who visits Italy almost every year, you’d be happy to know there’s now a new destination to add to your list: Bordeaux. And because it’s not in Italy, it could give you a much-needed break from Tuscany, Sicily, or wherever else you usually venture to for good food and wine in the countryside.

Flying to the French city of Bordeaux is now easier and cheaper than ever before thanks to a direct flight connection from Malta International Airport by the low-cost airline Volotea. And once you get there, you’ll wonder why you you never thought of it. In a nutshell, it’s everything you could expect from a great Italian city – wine, food, coffee, countryside – but at least, it’s not Italy again. 

The spirit of Bordeaux was embodied by our tour guide Bruno, a wonderfully flamboyant and super-stylish man who walked around looking like he owned the place. And there’s a good reason for that too. He actually feels like he owns the place. People from Bordeaux have a great sense of ownership of their city that’s manifested in the way they treat it. The streets are spotless, the facades all nicely restored, and the customer service is impeccable. 

Bordeaux hasn’t been spoiled by tourism. On the contrary, the city earned its destination status through lots of hard work and, apparently, a very long-serving mayor who has done wonders for the place in the past few decades. And that includes the introduction of a cable-less tram all over the city which is so good it convinced almost all inhabitants to stop using their cars in the now largely-pedestrianised areas.

You can divide Bordeaux in two: the old part that looks like the lovechild of Valletta and Paris; and the countryside that’s made up of sprawling vineyards and beautiful cottages. 

The old part is great for a few days. Within a few hours you could walk through all the main streets – including the main shopping street Rue Ste Catherine that’s the longest pedestrian shopping street in Europe. (Basically Republic Street on steroids.) There’s also a beautiful river to enjoy by riverboat and it’s lined with magnificent historic buildings that have been perfectly renovated. Apparently the city’s buildings were all black until the mayor insisted they all get a facelift which has really brightened things up. 

One magnificent building that can be enjoyed from the river is the Wine Museum, built to look like a swirling decanter. It really is something to behold both inside and out.

The other part of Bordeaux is the countryside – equally exiting but in a very different way. Once you hop into a car – or a memosine, as we did – just drive for about half an hour and you’ll soon find yourself among rolling hills and perfectly kept roads. And lots and lots of vineyards.

This is where you could spend hours wine tasting, touring the vineyards, eating delicious French cuisine and tasting more wine. You could also stop at the nearby towns for a nice stroll before trying more wine. One such town is St Emilion, which is synonymous with wine the world over, particularly Grand Cru, which is wine lingo for very fucking good. 

If you’re stuck for accommodation in Bordeaux, you’ll certainly feel at home at the Intercontinental Hotel which is set in a beautifully historic building in the city centre overlooking a majestic theatre. It even has its own Michelin-starred Gordon Ramsay restaurant, though in Bordeaux you’re not going to have much trouble finding the finest of restaurants. If you really want to go all out, try Le Chapon Fin. 

How do you get there?

Volotea currently flies on Thursdays (between April 13th to October 26th) and Mondays (between June 26th to August 28th). Next summer should see even more direct flights available. But if you want to fly there at different parts of the year, it’s only a two-hour train ride from Paris.

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Chris Peregin

Christian is an award-winning journalist and entrepreneur who founded Lovin Malta, a new media company dedicated to creating positive impact in society. He is passionate about justice, public finances and finding ways to build a better future.