2026: a year of festivities to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Cité du Vin in Bordeaux |
| NOVEMBER, 17TH, 2025 |
On June, 1st, 2016, the Cité du Vin in Bordeaux officially opened its doors. Since then, nearly 3.5 million visitors from around the world have passed through them to discover wine cultures and civilisations. Whether through the Permanent Exhibition, the Sensory tasting journey Via Sensoria, tasting workshops, temporary exhibitions or cultural events, visitors have been able to discover and/or deepen their knowledge of the world of wine for the past 10 years, making the Cité du Vin an unmissable cultural destination. To celebrate how far it has come since its opening and to thank everyone who has made this success possible, the Cité du Vin has prepared a programme of festivities, with events from January to December, aimed at its various audiences. Ask for the programme!
2016 – 2026: 10 years of success
Since its opening in June 2016, the Cité du Vin has stood out not only in Bordeaux’s architectural landscape, but also as a major cultural and tourist attraction. With an average of 400,000 visitors each year and nearly 3.5 million since it opened, the Cité du Vin has become an essential part of any visit to Bordeaux, demonstrating the unifying and universal nature of wine with its visitors coming from all over the world. Its modern architecture, recognisable at first glance, even led to it being one of the faces of the French government’s communication campaign “Make it Iconic. Choose France” in 2024. But it is the quality and variety of its cultural programme that has ensured its enduring popularity over time.
“The strength of the Cité du Vin is its ability to create innovative cultural activities that are accessible to all. With the Permanent Exhibition, renewed in 2023 to much acclaim, the varied tasting experiences that take visitors from Bordeaux to the ends of the earth thanks to our wine-sector partners, the original temporary exhibitions (on the link between Picasso’s work and wine, antiquity, music, glass design, bistros, etc.) and the many events we schedule each year, we have always been committed to reaching a wide audience with diverse expectations and to increasing the number of initiatives designed to convey knowledge in a simple and fun way, as well as our commitment to the environment. The excellent word-of-mouth publicity that has resulted from this, combined with the Very High Satisfaction approach we have been pursuing for several years, has enabled the Cité du Vin to become known and recognised far and wide. We are very proud of how far we have come.”
Philippe Massol, Managing Director
A year of festivities
To celebrate this symbolic anniversary, the Cité du Vin has devised a series of events for its various audiences that will run throughout the year. For the general public, a new photo exhibition dedicated to our wine-sector partners around the world will be open to visitors free of charge from February, 12th to November, 29th 2026. Bringing together fifty photographs, the exhibition will highlight each of the Cité du Vin’s wine-sector partners, Around the World in 50 Vineyards.
Via Sensoria, the Sensory tasting journey, returns in April 2026 with a 100% Bordeaux edition. The successful tasting experience will continue to stimulate visitors’ senses and emotions As the seasons pass, introducing them to the full diversity of Bordeaux wines through original wine-season pairings.
Any anniversary needs a party! Join us from the 4th to the 7th of June for several days of unmissable events! On the programme: a free evening open house to discover the Permanent Exhibition and the Belvedere (places limited), activities (tasting workshops, games, colouring, KAPLA workshop, etc.) on the theme of vines and wine, suitable for everyone including families, and a musical evening in the Gardens.
The two cultural seasons, from January to June and September to December, will also have their own “10th anniversary” flavour, with events and themes linked to the creation of the Cité du Vin. Also worth noting is the “Mediterranean Season” from September, 30th to October, 4th, when the Cité du Vin will showcase wine, food and music from the Mediterranean (Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia) with tastings, meetings and festive evenings, in partnership with leading producers.
A selection of products to celebrate the 10th anniversary will also be available in the Boutique at the Cité du Vin. The concept store dedicated to wine and the art of living will offer new accessories and exclusive collaborations to mark the occasion (silk scarves from Maison Petrusse and an anniversary stamp from the French post office as part of its 2026 philatelic programme).
For professionals, in connection with the photo exhibition Around the World in 50 Vineyards, a symposium on the theme “Does wine have a future without culture?” will be held on 13 February. Organised by Iter Vitis Europe, it will lay the foundations for collective thinking on the place of wine in culture and society, to inform public policy in a context of economic, climate and social change (free event – open to all). In autumn, special B2B Open Days will be held to (re)discover how the Cité du Vin can be made available for private events. The unmissable Gala Dinner in aid of the Foundation for wine culture and civilisations (which manages and develops the Cité du Vin), which every year attracts companies as well as lovers of exceptional food and wine, will be back on 29 January with an anniversary edition and an exceptional menu created by Mauro Colagreco (chef at Mirazur, three Michelin stars).
2026 is going to be a year of celebration and sharing at the Cité du Vin!
The Cité du Vin is open every day from 10 a.m.
Support the cultural seasons at Cité du Vin with the Foundation for wine culture and civilisations:
