Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Tours of St-Emilion
The TI offers two guided tours in St-Emilion: an underground tour and a city walk. The
interesting 45-minute
underground tour
makes three stops: the catacombs (sorry, no
bones);themonolithicchurch,whichliterallyrocksbelow;andTrinityChapel.Learnwho
St. Emilion was, and be impressed that it took dedicated Benedictine monks 300 years to
dig this monolithic church out of one big rock (9th-12th century). You'll also learn that
there are about 125 miles of underground tunnels in the St-Emilion area. Originally dug
as quarries, they're ideal for wine storage today. The tour is mandatory if you want to see
these sights. If time's limited and you can't get on an English tour, skip this (€7, English
tourdailyat14:00,moreinFrench,thoroughEnglishhandoutgivenonFrenchtours).The
city walking tour
takes 1.5 hours and covers aboveground sights and the back streets of
St-Emilion (€12, daily at 11:00).
Quickie Vineyard Loop by Car or Bike
This 10-kilometer loop can be done in 20 minutes if driving, and in two hours if pedaling.
Leave the upper end of St-Emilion on D-243E-1 and head to St-Christophe des Bardes.
Pass through the village (direction: St-Genès), then follow signs to the right to
St. Laurent
des Combes
. Joyride your way down through hillsides of vines, then find signs looping
back to St-Emilion's lower end via D-245 and D-122.
There are no cheap hotels in St-Emilion.
Chambres d'hôtes
offer a better value. Hotel
prices skyrocket during the VinExpo festival at the end of June, and during harvest time
(late Sept).
Hotels
The first two places are a few doors apart, at the upper end of the city.
$$$ Au Logis des Remparts***
offers top comfort in tasteful rooms, plus a pool
and a tranquil garden with vineyards to touch (standard Db-€110, nicer Db with bathtubs-
€150, Db with garden views-€150-190, suites-€250-400, air-con, pay Wi-Fi, book ahead
for limited on-site parking, tel. 05 57 24 70 43,
www.logisdesremparts.com
,
con-
$$ L'Auberge de la Commanderie**
welcomes visitors with a neon entry and
Modernist decor in its two buildings—a main hotel and an annex. Run by an amiable
owner, the hotel's 16 rooms are well-maintained. Rooms in the main building come
with interesting murals; annex rooms have more subtle stone walls and more space (Db-
€85-105, Tb-€120-150, 2-room apartment for up to 4 people-€170, closed Jan-Feb, air-
