After a series of disappointing performances at the Sheraton in Roissy and then on the Air France flight to Bordeaux, I finally arrived at my destination.

As a base, I chose a brand new hotel, the Renaissance, which opened barely two months ago.

Having lived in Bordeaux and still traveling there on occasion, I’ve always regretted that the city doesn’t have enough hotels to match its standing and the foreign clientele it wants to attract.

A major step forward was taken with the opening of the Intercontinental Bordeaux, but there was still a glaring lack of more affordable, less “luxury” high-end products. Now it’s a reality, with the arrival of a Renaissance alongside a Moxy for lovers of budget lifestyle hotels.

The journey program :

Booking

As usual, I booked a month or so in advance, using the Marriott app to guarantee the best rate.

One of the good news (because there is some) of the consequences of the pandemic is that for the time being all rates are flexible and without pre-payment, even the lowest!

The hotel offers two main categories of rooms (La Muse and La Gallerie) and one suite (Impressionist). At the time I booked, only the “La Muse” type was available, so my choice was not complicated. The rate was 120 euros per night.

Hotel location

It’s located in the Bassin à flot district, which means nothing to anyone who doesn’t know Bordeaux.

It’s a former factory district that was uninhabitable and unsanitary just a decade ago. The city’s renovation program has since extended to this area, and the neighborhood has been completely rehabilitated. From “no man’s land” it became a fashionable place: hotels, shops, activity centers like the Cité du Vin, but also places to live began to proliferate in the district.

Formerly difficult to access, it is now linked by streetcar to the city center in 10 minutes. The streetcar stop is less than 100m away.

From the airport, allow around 20 minutes…depending on traffic.

From the station, it takes about half an hour, with a streetcar connection.

Otherwise, it’s close to the banks of the Garonne and the Chartrons district, making it the ideal point for a stroll through the city center, admiring the superb façades of Bordeaux’s quayside.

Arrive at hotel and check-in.

I arrived by cab from the airport.

As I was saying, this is an area of industrial wasteland that has been totally rehabilitated. The hotel reception is located in an old grain silo!

Just beyond, you’ll see the Moxy hotel I mentioned earlier.

The reception area is a real eye-catcher, especially when you consider what it’s set in.

The welcome is fast and the staff extremely friendly. The protocol of the loyalty program is followed to the letter, and as a Titanium Elite customer they are curious about my experiences in other hotels of the brand or of the Marriott group in general.

I’m told I’ve been upgraded to a “La Muse” room (the one I chose) but with a better view of the city. I had previously checked the rooms available at the time of booking and the hotel was full, so I wasn’t expecting anything special on that side, so I’m already pleased. Moreover, as the hotel had only just opened, I wonder if all the rooms and all the categories were already available. As for suites, I haven’t asked but I don’t think there are many.

So I head for my room, giving you a chance to discover the hotel’s style on the way.

The Renaissance Bordeaux style

As is increasingly the norm today, the Renaissance are not clones of each other. They follow a common guideline that each hotel interprets in its own way.

To describe the Renaissance brand’s style, I’d say “warm, classic design“. Not too much, not too little. Personality, modernity, but without falling into bad taste (as is sometimes the case with W, for example…).

So after the reception area, there’s a huge living space where you can sit, work, buy and nibble.

I think the very nature of this place, where all the clientele meet, mingle and take a break, and its design say a lot about the place.

Now let’s go to my room.

The “La Muse” room at the Renaissance Bordeaux

Corridors in the same style as the rest of the common areas.

A word of welcome awaits me, along with a small gift to eat.

The room is the right size for a standard room.

The style is natural (lots of wood), warm and sober.

There’s an auxiliary table in one corner, but I regret that it’s too low to really use it to put a computer to work. It’s clear that the place wasn’t designed primarily for a business clientele.

I don’t think this hotel only caters to leisure guests, far from it. And even then, I think that the proportion of so-called “leisure” customers who need to plug in their computer and deal with a few professional subjects for even an hour or two during the weekend is anything but negligible. And it’s only going to increase.

Self-service tea and coffee.

The bathroom is functional and well-designed. The fact that it opens onto the bedroom through a glass wall, as is becoming increasingly common, provides natural light as well as reinforcing the sense of space in the room.

And the video tour to finish….

I might add that it also looks great at night. Very warm and welcoming.

In use, it’s a room that’s both functional (provided you don’t need to spend too much time in “office” mode) and pleasant to live in. The bedding is of high quality and the sleep is very good.

Bars and restaurants

The hotel has a sort of “deli” in the lobby, where you can buy snacks and drinks.

The top floor features a large (Italian) restaurant and bar, all with rooftop terrace and unobstructed city views.

I won’t tell you more…because I haven’t taken the time to try them out. Another time perhaps.

Gym and swimming pool

The hotel has a gym, which I won’t tell you about this time either. Not because I didn’t want to use it, but because it wasn’t yet in service, which must have been rectified by the end of August.

No spa, but a superb pool overlooking the city and river. It’s very rare to find such pools in city-center hotels in France.

I often complain about the temperature of hotel pools, and that won’t be the case here. It’s just the right temperature (which means it’s heated just right, as far as I can see).

It also features hydromassage beds.

I would, however, note one real negative point, which has to do with “logistics”.

There’s just one room (which doubles as a shower) to change for the pool.

No problem, just leave your room in your bathrobe and slippers, like everywhere else… That’s where the problem lies.

I didn’t find any of this in my room. An oversight? I ask the hotel…

Well, no, the hotel doesn’t provide any of the basics you’d expect to find in a property of this category with this type of equipment.

Is that a problem?

Let’s say it’s not blocking. You can replace the bathrobe with a T-shirt and go to the pool in sneakers.

But assuming that it’s highly unlikely that the average customer will come with his bathrobe and flip-flops in his suitcase, this creates a situation of discomfort that’s not really convenient when you’d expect something else in this type of property.

A youthful mistake soon to be rectified? We’ll see.

Bottom line

Overall a lovely property and an excellent stay. In fact, I’m already planning to return in a few weeks.

There are still a few minor flaws that I’ve noticed here and there, but nothing really noteworthy.

In any case, for those who don’t want to pay a high price to go to the Intercontinental, which is admittedly in a different category, the Renaissance Bordeaux is unquestionably one of the city’s two best hotels.

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