Planning a Trip to Burgundy or Bordeaux? 5 Websites You Need to Know

John and I are off to Bordeaux in April and I can't wait. I'm looking forward to exploring a new city, looking like a tourist, and hanging out poolside at the beautiful Les Source de Caudalie, where we'll be staying for a few days. And wine. Lots and lots of wine. (Well, maybe not so much for me, given my rather unfortunate alcohol intolerance! But definitely a bit.)

As you know, I loathe planning travel. But for some reason, I threw myself head first into helping John plan this trip and I'm really, really looking forward to it. When I told my dad that we were going to Bordeaux, he was so envious! I felt bad. I told him that we'd go and scope it out first before taking him back! He also asked if we thought about going to Burgundy, which is another great option for a vacation, so I ended up researching both.

Here are five websites I used when looking for places to stay and visit in Bordeaux and Burgundy:

The Burgundy Shop

When I told a friend of mine that we were debating a stay in either Bordeaux or Burgundy, she directed me to The Burgundy Shop's site, which turned out to be an inspiring what-to-do and where-to-stay guide to Burgundy. It's got a fantastic introduction to the history of Burgundy, plus information about their own guided wine tours and links to a crazy-gorgeous luxury holiday rental that would be perfect for a family stay. It's a fun little site to explore (with a glass of, erm, Burgundy in hand) and I loved the little section on vine art too.

Bordeaux Tourism Board

Confession: I've never consulted a tourism board website before visiting a destination. Am I the only one? But Bordeaux's Tourism Board reached out to me on Twitter when I tweeted about our plans to visit Bordeaux and directed me to a few helpful pages on their website. It's one of the most well-organized and easy-to-navigate tourist board websites I've come across and I'll definitely be consulting it frequently in the weeks leading up to our trip.

Condé Nast Traveller

Aside from interiors magazines, I'm also addicted to Condé Nast Traveller. The weirdest thing is that it's my favorite thing to read when I'm on vacation! I don't know why! I'm already on vacation - why do I need to see more beautiful places to visit? There's something that's just so relaxing about flipping through the pages though, and finding even more to be inspired by. If I'm looking for restaurants or things to do in a particular area, I consult the Condé Nast Traveller website. It was super helpful for suggestions in both Burgundy and Bordeaux.

Small Luxury Hotels of the World

I'm awful. I always sneak a peek at the hotels on this site before I book anything and it's where John and I found Les Sources de Caudalie for our upcoming trip. We've stayed in other SLH hotels before (most recently this one in Bruges) and I've always been (mostly) impressed by the quality and standard of these hotels. A lot of them make my wanderlust wishlist, for sure!

Airbnb

This one's a bit of a cheat, but hear me out: I've never wanted to use Airbnb more than when I was planning our trip to Bordeaux. Think dramatic floor to ceiling windows opening out to the most incredible balconies in the city center; impressive spiral staircases; impeccable taste in furniture and interior design. That's what the Airbnb options are like in Bordeaux, so it's no surprise that a lot of people I asked for recommendations told me to check out Airbnb in the first instance.

So, there you have it: five super helpful (and fun!) sites to trawl if you're thinking of jetting off to explore the vineyards of France.

Have you ever been to Bordeaux or Burgundy (I know one or two of you have!)? What did you think? How did you plan your trip? Please, please, please let me have your recommendations!

This post was sponsored by The Burgundy Shop. All opinions are my own.