Bordeaux’s Golden Triangle

Bordeaux’s Golden Triangle is at the heart of the city and includes a historic market, the Grand Theater, Notre Dame church, and top class shopping and eating.

The hub of Bordeaux’s Golden Triangle is the Place des Grands-Hommes, which is not the place of great men any more but is now a circular street at the centre of which has been built the Marché des Grands-Hommes, also called the Galerie des Grands-Hommes.

This is a striking huge iron and glass market hall that was built in 1900. It’s very reminiscent of buildings that were going up in Paris at about the same time, and despite some modernisation inside, it retains that elegant turn-of-the-century feel. The produce market is confined to the ground floor, and more modern shops now occupy the upper floors.

Even if you’re not in the mood for shopping, go inside as the dome is as impressive inside as outside. It’s an eye-catching city landmark, clearly visible from down the several streets which radiate off it.

The Three Points of Bordeaux’s Golden Triangle

The three points of the triangle are the big and busy Place Gambetta, the Place de Tourny, and the city’s real centre, the Place de la Comédie. This has been the heart of city life ever since it began its modern development in the 17th and 18th centuries, and even before that, when a Roman temple stood here.

Bordeaux’s Grand Théâtre

Today visitors and students sit on the steps of the 1780 Grand Théâtre, with its columns, statues and colonnades, or in the cafés and restaurants that dot the edges of the large square. Here is the Tourist Information Office too.

The theatre is considered to have one of the most beautiful concert halls in Europe, alongside those in Versailles and Turin. If it’s open, do see if you can take a look inside. Better still, go to a performance there. It’s home to the National Opera of Bordeaux but puts on all kinds of dance and music shows, including pop and jazz..

Opposite the theatre is the Grand Hotel de Bordeaux, which is everything the name implies. It’s a 5-star hotel with an indoor pool, spa, a bar that’s definitely worth popping into for a drink, and two top-class restaurants: Le Bordeaux and the Michelin-starred Pressoir D’Argent Gordon Ramsay.

From Place de la Comédie, the pedestrianised shopping street Cours de l’Intendance runs down to the Place Gambetta, while the Allées de Tourny leads up to the Place de Tourny. The Allées is a grand open street which runs either side of a wide cobbled and tree-lined central area that makes for a pleasant stroll.

Don’t miss walking down and around the streets inside the Triangle. There are some first classy food shops here, and a handful of good eating places too.

Notre-Dame

There is also the church of Notre-Dame, built in the late 18th century and one of the very few Baroque churches in Bordeaux. It has some impressive wrought-iron work, which was one of the arts of building in 18th-century Bordeaux and found all over the city.

Notre-Dame has some especially intricate examples, though, particularly in front of the chapels and the baptismal font. The church also has a fine 18th-century organ – try to catch it being played at one of the free concerts that are held here from time to time.