Discover the images of the tall ships that arrived in the port of the Moon

Bordeaux is celebrating wine from this Thursday, June 27th until Sunday. In the meantime, the traditional tall ships arrived this Wednesday morning in the Port de la Lune. Among them, the Belem, returning from its voyage with the Olympic flame to Marseille.

It’s a tradition every two years. The Bordeaux wine tourism festival celebrates wine welcomes its tall ships. The arrival of the four ships launches the event, which will begin Thursday June 27. Under the eyes of the people of Bordeaux, who came to watch the spectacle, three masts and sailboats passed the Chaban Delmas bridge before mooring at the Port de la Lune. A historical and cultural journey.

Among the stars of the day, the Belem, the last of the large French commercial sailing ships of the 19th century. The three-masted steel-hulled ship returns from the La Rochelle Maritime Festival. Last May, he was the one who transported the Olympic flame from Athens to Marseille.

“It is a strong symbol because Bordeaux wines would never have been these without these boats.“, explains Olivier Occelli, director of the Bordeaux Tourist Office. From the first century, wine was exported by boat. And this continued until the 17th century. At that time, “more than half of wine exports to France passed through the port of Bordeaux.”

The Belem was moored in the port of honor in front of the Pont de Pierre around 11:30 a.m. Patrice and Florence de Candé had the chance to travel three days on board from Royan. On the way down to Bordeaux, their smile says it all: “It was an old dreamconfides Patrice. And this trip up the estuary was magnificent.“

Along the quays, three other boats join the Belem: first the Morgenster, a Dutch ship and the French, a grandiose three-masted ship from Saint-Malo. “It’s beautiful, you could almost touch it“, says a resident.

Last arrival before the wine festival: the Mutin, training ship of the French Navy, also a spy ship during the Second World War. The spectacle attracts crowds, eager to observe these majestic rigging: “We put ourselves here on purpose to see them arrive as close as possible.” Sitting on the railing along the Garonne, a little boy is won over: “This is the first time I’ve seen them and I like them because they are very big.“

It will be possible to visit each of the boats throughout the Bordeaux Wine Festival, starting this Thursday, by reservation. A journey to the origins of wine, before continuing the tastings along the Garonne.

Highlight of the weekend, Friday and Saturday evenings. Already present in 2023, the Dronisos company has created a new drone show for the occasion, 500 devices will fly over the Bordeaux sky for the duration of a choreography.