what excursion to do from Bordeaux?

Bordeaux is one of the stops on our cruise in September. My husband and I enjoy wine, but aren%26#39;t especially interested in %26quot;tastings%26quot; and that kind of tour. We do, though, love to explore handsome old towns (not shoppers) and see wonderful scenery. I%26#39;m in a quandary about what to sign up for on the ship%26#39;s excursions. Or should we just do a walking tour of Bordeaux on our own? (not usually interested in touring insides of things, churches, etc) If we do one of the wine excursions so that we can simply enjoy the secenery, which should we do-- St Emilion or Medoc? In other words, which is nicer not in terms of the wine but in terms of the other aspects of experiencing the area? Thanks very much!

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See my reply to another similar query just below - Bastille Day in Bordeaux.

You don%26#39;t say how long you will be in Bordeaux but it does have plenty to see in its own right. Trouble with the wine tours (I may be a bit cynical here) is that they are designed to get you tasting and of course buy a crate or two of the stuff.

I have to say that the some of the scenery around Bordeaux isn%26#39;t all that wonderful. I take the train that runs up into the Medoc and it%26#39;s a run of maybe 90 minutes, through the usual dismal collection of suburban sprawl, then some low hills and woodland and past a few chateaux and vineyards, a huge oil depot then some open farming country beyond the wine-growing area. Most of the chateaux are of course miles from anywhere.

Going inland eg St Emilion without a car under your own steam is a bit complicated, as trains and buses are rather sparse in this area outside the city. St Emilion is about 35-40 minutes out of Bordeaux with only a couple of trains out before lunchtime and a couple back in the afternoon. I once went all the way to the very handsome old town of Sarlat.That%26#39;s close to a 3 hour journey but some nice scenic bits along the river etc.

Hope that gives you food for thought.

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