Viking Longship - Chateaux, Rivers & Wine

Where this cruise calls, day by day

8 ports over 7 Nights.

1. Day 1

   Bordeaux

   FranceDepart

   River ships sail up the Garonne and tie up along the Port de la Lune, the crescent of 18th-century stone quays that gives Bordeaux its UNESCO listing. The whole centre was scrubbed of soot and traffic in the 2000s and is now one of the largest pedestrian zones in Europe. Wine is the obvious draw, but the city works perfectly well as a walking day on its own.

   • Place de la Bourse and the Miroir d'Eau reflecting pool
   • La Cite du Vin and its tasting belvedere
   • The Grand Theatre and the Rue Sainte-Catherine shopping street
   • A run out to Saint-Emilion for the monolithic church and Grand Cru tastings

   Getting ashore

   River vessels moor on the central quays - Chartrons or Richelieu - and you walk straight into the city; ocean ships use a berth slightly further downriver.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest activity in late Sep)

2. Day 2

   Bordeaux

   FrancePort

   River ships sail up the Garonne and tie up along the Port de la Lune, the crescent of 18th-century stone quays that gives Bordeaux its UNESCO listing. The whole centre was scrubbed of soot and traffic in the 2000s and is now one of the largest pedestrian zones in Europe. Wine is the obvious draw, but the city works perfectly well as a walking day on its own.

   • Place de la Bourse and the Miroir d'Eau reflecting pool
   • La Cite du Vin and its tasting belvedere
   • The Grand Theatre and the Rue Sainte-Catherine shopping street
   • A run out to Saint-Emilion for the monolithic church and Grand Cru tastings

   Getting ashore

   River vessels moor on the central quays - Chartrons or Richelieu - and you walk straight into the city; ocean ships use a berth slightly further downriver.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest activity in late Sep)

3. Day 3

   Cadillac

   FrancePort

   A small fortified town on the right bank of the Garonne, walled in the 14th century and still entered through its old gates. The dominant building is the Chateau des Ducs d'Epernon, begun in 1599 and unusually early as an example of French classical style. Cadillac gives its name to a sweet white appellation, and the Sauternes vineyards lie just across the river, which is why river ships stop here at all.

   • Chateau de Cadillac, the Duc d'Epernon's residence and later a women's prison
   • A Sauternes tasting at one of the estates across the Garonne
   • The bastide street grid and remaining town gates
   • The Cadillac Cotes de Bordeaux cellars in and around the town

   Getting ashore

   River vessels tie up at the town quay and passengers walk off into Cadillac, with coaches waiting for the Sauternes vineyard runs.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest in Sauternes runs late, often into Oct)

4. Day 4

   Pauillac

   FrancePort

   A small quayside town in the middle of the Medoc, which for wine purposes means it is surrounded by some of the most expensive vineyard land on earth - three of the five First Growths sit within a few kilometres. Pauillac itself is modest: a waterfront, a few restaurants, and a wine tourism office on the quay that arranges tastings. Ships stop here purely as the gateway to the chateaux.

   • Chateau Mouton Rothschild and its museum of wine-label art
   • The estate roads past Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Chateau Latour
   • The Maison du Tourisme et du Vin on the quay for regional tastings
   • A drive north to the Medoc's oyster shacks or the estuary lighthouses

   Getting ashore

   River ships tie up at the quay in the centre of Pauillac, so you walk off into the town and coaches leave from the waterfront.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest is usually late Sep into Oct)

5. Day 5

   Blaye

   FrancePort

   A small town on the right bank of the Gironde estuary, dominated by a Vauban citadel that is part of the UNESCO-listed group of his fortifications. The fortress is essentially a walled village on a bluff, with ramparts you can walk for estuary views across to the Medoc. Wine here is the less famous Cotes de Blaye, and it is priced accordingly.

   • The Citadelle de Blaye ramparts and the Porte Dauphine gate
   • A Cotes de Blaye tasting at one of the small chateaux inland
   • The prehistoric engravings at the Grottes de Pair-non-Pair near Bourg
   • A crossing to the Medoc bank for the classified-growth estates

   Getting ashore

   River ships tie up on the quay directly below the citadel and you walk off and up into the fortress in about ten minutes.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct

6. Day 6

   Libourne

   FrancePort

   A 13th-century bastide town at the point where the Isle runs into the Dordogne, with an arcaded central square and a Wednesday and Sunday market that is genuinely local. Libourne is on the itinerary chiefly as the landing point for Saint-Emilion, about 10 km east, along with the Pomerol appellation on its doorstep. The town is pleasant enough for an hour but is not the reason ships call.

   • Saint-Emilion's monolithic church, carved down into the rock
   • Grand Cru tastings among the Saint-Emilion and Pomerol estates
   • Place Abel Surchamp and the arcaded bastide centre
   • The market at Libourne on Wednesday, Friday or Sunday morning

   Getting ashore

   River ships tie up on the quay in Libourne itself, an easy walk into the square, with coaches for the short run to Saint-Emilion.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct

7. Day 7

   Bordeaux

   FrancePort

   River ships sail up the Garonne and tie up along the Port de la Lune, the crescent of 18th-century stone quays that gives Bordeaux its UNESCO listing. The whole centre was scrubbed of soot and traffic in the 2000s and is now one of the largest pedestrian zones in Europe. Wine is the obvious draw, but the city works perfectly well as a walking day on its own.

   • Place de la Bourse and the Miroir d'Eau reflecting pool
   • La Cite du Vin and its tasting belvedere
   • The Grand Theatre and the Rue Sainte-Catherine shopping street
   • A run out to Saint-Emilion for the monolithic church and Grand Cru tastings

   Getting ashore

   River vessels moor on the central quays - Chartrons or Richelieu - and you walk straight into the city; ocean ships use a berth slightly further downriver.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest activity in late Sep)

8. Day 8

   Bordeaux

   FranceArrive

   River ships sail up the Garonne and tie up along the Port de la Lune, the crescent of 18th-century stone quays that gives Bordeaux its UNESCO listing. The whole centre was scrubbed of soot and traffic in the 2000s and is now one of the largest pedestrian zones in Europe. Wine is the obvious draw, but the city works perfectly well as a walking day on its own.

   • Place de la Bourse and the Miroir d'Eau reflecting pool
   • La Cite du Vin and its tasting belvedere
   • The Grand Theatre and the Rue Sainte-Catherine shopping street
   • A run out to Saint-Emilion for the monolithic church and Grand Cru tastings

   Getting ashore

   River vessels moor on the central quays - Chartrons or Richelieu - and you walk straight into the city; ocean ships use a berth slightly further downriver.

   Best months

   May-Jun and Sep-Oct (harvest activity in late Sep)