Nouvelle-Aquitaine is France’s largest region by area, a territory that brings together the former Aquitaine of the Plantagenets, Limousin and Poitou into a single administrative entity whose scenic and cultural diversity is one of its most striking assets. From the Atlantic beaches of the Côte d’Argent to the Pyrenean peaks of the Basque Country, from the vineyards of Bordeaux to the forests of the Périgord, from the moors of Gascony to the bocage of Berry, the region offers a remarkable variety of landscapes.
The Dordogne, the heart of historic Périgord, boasts one of the highest concentrations of castles in Europe: the Dordogne and Vézère valleys, listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, stretch for dozens of kilometres with a succession of medieval fortresses perched on their limestone cliffs — Beynac, Castelnaud, Milandes, Les Eyzies, Sarlat — which tell the story of the Hundred Years’ War and the struggle between the crowns of France and England for control of Guyenne.
The Gironde offers a castle heritage of a completely different nature: here, the châteaux are first and foremost wine estates, those properties in the Médoc, Saint-Émilion and Graves whose names — Margaux, Latour, Haut-Brion, Pétrus — resonate like legends in the world of wine. The Citadel of Blaye, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site among Vauban’s major sites, has watched over the Gironde estuary since the 17th century.