Private Vintage 2CV Sightseeing Tour of Bordeaux

Your vintage 2CV and the private experience

The 2CV is one of the most loved cars in French history. Built from 1948 to 1990, it was designed to carry a farming family and their produce along country roads in comfort, and its round shape, soft suspension and roll-back canvas roof have made it a symbol of France. Riding in one through Bordeaux turns a city tour into a small adventure, and passers-by often wave and smile as you go by.

On this private 2CV tour of Bordeaux, the car and the driver-guide are only for your party. We pick you up at your hotel or apartment in central Bordeaux, and you choose your start time from morning to late afternoon. Your guide adapts the commentary to your interests and stops whenever you want a photo, so the pace is always yours.

Place de la Bourse and the Water Mirror

The tour's first highlight is the riverside royal square of Place de la Bourse. Built between 1730 and 1775, it broke with tradition by opening wide onto the Garonne, and its symmetrical pavilions with carved stone masks and wrought-iron balconies became the model for the whole waterfront. In front of it, the Water Mirror, created in 2006, is the largest reflecting pool of its kind in the world.

When the pool is in service, a few centimetres of water turn the granite into a perfect mirror and a cool mist rises every few minutes. Your driver-guide stops nearby so you can photograph the square and its reflection, ideally with the 2CV in the foreground. Late afternoon tours catch the warm light on the stone; morning tours enjoy calmer streets.

The Grand Théâtre and the Golden Triangle

From the river the 2CV climbs into the Golden Triangle, the 18th-century district of grand avenues and limestone mansions bounded by three great avenues, among them the Cours de l'Intendance and the Allées de Tourny. At its heart stands the Grand Théâtre, inaugurated in 1780, with a portico of twelve Corinthian columns crowned by statues of muses and goddesses.

Nearby, the vast Place des Quinconces opens towards the river, dominated by a monumental fountain of bronze horses and allegorical figures. Your guide explains how the wealth of 18th-century trade transformed a cramped medieval town into one of the most elegant cities in Europe, and how the soot-blackened facades were cleaned in the early 2000s to reveal their honey colour.

Crossing the Garonne on the Stone Bridge

The tour then crosses the Garonne, a wide tidal river that changes colour and level with the Atlantic tides. The Stone Bridge, completed in 1822, was the first bridge across the river in Bordeaux; its seventeen arches of brick and pale stone are each decorated with a white medallion, and for a long time it was the only way across the river in the city.

Crossing it in a 2CV, with the roof rolled back in good weather, gives a wonderful view up and down the river. Your guide points out the old town spires, the long line of 18th-century facades and, downstream, the tall pylons of the vertical-lift bridge opened in 2013, which rises to let large ships reach the city quays.

The right bank panorama

On the right bank, the Bastide district offers the finest view of Bordeaux. From the riverside gardens, the UNESCO-listed Port of the Moon spreads out along the crescent of the Garonne, with Place de la Bourse at its centre and the old town spires rising behind. It is the classic panorama of the city and the perfect spot for a family photo with the car.

Is a vintage 2CV tour of Bordeaux worth it? If you have little time, travel with children or simply want a fun and comfortable way to see the main sights without walking far, it is an ideal choice. After the panorama, the 2CV crosses back to the city centre and drops you at your hotel or apartment, about an hour and a half after pickup.