Apartment/ flat - Bordeaux

Superb host and lovely apartment.

Our most friendly host, Alexandre, greeted us upon arrival to his lovely spacious apartment. We stayed for a week and everything was perfect. The apartment is in great place on the river with the trams and the river boardwalk on the doorstep. There are cafes, restaurants, bars and shops within the immediate vicinity which makes this a very convenient property. We totally enjoyed our stay and would highly recommend Alexandre as a host.

"The apartment was very spacious, particularly the lounge room and kitchen/dining room. The views over the river from the lounge room were beautiful. The apartment''s location is ideal, across the road from the river and boardwalk with plenty of cafes, bars and brand outlets. It also has a tram stop directly in front. There are excellent food markets along the boardwalk on sundays. A good supermarket is a 10 minute walk and a boulangerie, a 5 minute walk. Despite the great location, there were no problems with noise from outside and the apartment also stayed beautifully cool on the very hot days."

The property is well located, very close to a tram stop and about an half hour gentle walk to the city centre. The immediate area has evidently been refurbished and benefited from considerable investment during recent years, providing a nice range of quality shops and restaurants within a few minutes walk on the banks of the Garonne. The main reception room (salon) has great proportions as has the kitchen / dining room with magnificent original period features. The salon has 3 pairs of doors, leading on to a balcony overlooking the river. The bedrooms and bathrooms do not work well with 2 toilets (one en-suite), separate from the two shower rooms. One of the two lower floor bedrooms is effectively a study, with a sofa bed; one upper floor bedroom has no external window; and the upper floor WC & shower room have very limited head room. The lower floor bedrooms have access to a rear terrace, which would be great outside dining space in warm weather. The upper two bedrooms are accessed via steep ladder steps, which would not be appropriate for the elderly, or infirm. So generally workable, albeit awkward if three bedrooms are used, but not if all four are required. Generally the apartment internally and the terrace externally are tired and need of a major refurbishment, which would then do justice to the grandeur of the period building. The property benefits from the use of a secure parking space a few minutes walk away for those who will be using a car. The property, very much has the feel that it is lived in, as it is by the owner for much of the time. The "lived in" feel; lack of house-keeping; overall condition; and bedroom / bathroom configuration may be off-putting to some, whereas the location and elegance will more than off-set that with others. An apartment which is spacious and has grand reception rooms in a very good location, but does have significant flaws. Whether it is right for the guests is really a matter of personal priorities, but in any event Bordeaux is a charming and cultured city which is very difficult not to enjoy.