A taste of Bordeaux & Aquitaine

The tourism boards of Bordeaux and Aquitaine and their travel partners from France’s southwestern regions met with the Canadian travel industry this week, during a workshop and presentation showcasing what this part of the country has to offer travellers.

Representatives from a range of hotels and attractions were on hand to meet with Canadian travel consultants, seeking to draw more travellers from Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area. While Paris is a likely attraction for travellers on their first trip to France, Celine Boute of Visit Aquitaine told PAX that the country has much more to offer.

“We know that in Ontario and Toronto, the southwest of France is not so well known,” Boute said. “We know that many people here are first-timers in France – they go first to Paris and then onto Provence. We want to tell them that there are other regions where they can have a nice experience and go off the beaten track and discover the best of France.”

According to Sophie Gaillard-Mairal of Bordeaux Tourism, river cruising in the region has also brought in a lot of travellers with five river cruise lines currently operating in the area, including Viking and Scenic, which just launched a Bordeaux cruise this year.

Synonymous with wine since the eighth century, Bordeaux’s many wineries draw plenty of tourists looking to learn about the history and processes of the industry. Bordeaux’s reputation as a wine destination will be literally set in stone upon the completion of the Cite des Civilisations du Vin next June, an interactive attraction where guests can learn about the international history of winemaking while sampling various vintages in one of three tasting rooms.

According to Boute, a typical traveller to the region from Ontario will often couple a three-day stay with a trip to Paris, opting for four- and five-star accommodations while taking a private tour of local wineries. Conversely, she said that travellers from Quebec are more likely to stay longer while seeking out accommodations such as bed-and-breakfasts.

Ultimately, unique experiences are what North American travellers are looking for in southwestern France, Boute said, from the cultural to the culinary and all points in between. For example, before travellers even experience the region, many opt to take the three-hour train ride over the one-hour flight from Paris for the trip through the countryside, she explained.

“What we find more and more in the North American market is that they want to live like locals – they want to go to the market and buy the produce, understand how the wine is made and take cooking classes. These are experiences that people are really looking for. They are very interested in what they don’t have at home, namely gastronomy, history and the wine heritage.”

PHOTO: Celine Boute, marketing, Visit Aquitaine; Sophie Gaillard-Mairal, communications manager, Bordeaux Tourism.