Handpicked experience · Bordeaux
★ 4.7Bordeaux, France
A digital sightseeing pass for Bordeaux running on a rolling clock, which is why the hour you activate it matters more than the number of hours you buy.
A choice of 24, 48 or 72 hours of validity to match the length of your stay
A digital pass shown at participating museums and sites for entry or reductions
Validity beginning at first use, so you choose when the period starts
A voucher listing which venues need their own timed reservation
The Bordeaux City Pass counts continuous hours, not calendar days, and the city it runs against keeps ordinary museum hours. Most sites close in the early evening and a good number close entirely on Mondays. A 24-hour pass validated in the late afternoon therefore spends much of its life while everything is locked. Start it in the morning, and check what is open on the day you begin.
Bordeaux's historic core is compact — the cathedral, the museums and the 18th-century quarter sit within a comfortable walk of one another, which is what makes a dense day realistic here. The Cité du Vin is the outlier, out along the river and worth a tram ride rather than a stroll, and it takes longer than people budget for.
Passes of this kind vary in what they cover. Some versions bundle the public transport network and some do not, and a handful of sites take a timed booking of their own on top. The list issued with your pass is what counts on the day, and it is worth reading the evening before so the morning starts at a door rather than a desk.
The water mirror opposite the Place de la Bourse, the long sweep of quays along the Garonne, the uniform pale stone of the 18th-century facades and the market mornings are open to anyone and need no pass at all. Build the day around those and let the pass cover the interiors.
Open it to pick a date and work out the price.
What the fare covers, and what to budget for separately.
The practical detail, and the answers people actually ask for.
In the morning. The validity runs as continuous hours rather than calendar days, so an afternoon start spends a large part of the period while museums are shut.
No. A number close on Mondays and most shut in the early evening. Check the opening days for the sites you care about before choosing which day to begin.
That depends on the version you have bought. Some passes of this type bundle the transport network and some do not; the pass itself lists which.
Not necessarily. Some sites admit pass holders in full, others apply a reduction, and a few also require their own timed reservation. The voucher lists which is which.
Far enough that it is a tram ride rather than a walk from the historic centre, and it absorbs more time than most visitors allow for.