Hotel La Zoologie & Spa Bordeaux ★★★★

The former Institute of Zoology

Few hotels in Bordeaux have a building with this much of a story. La Zoologie occupies the old Institute of Zoology, built between 1900 and 1903 by the architect Ernest Lacombe in the brick, stone and metal framed manner of turn of the century university buildings, with the tall windows that once lit the teaching rooms. The renovation added two new wings on a natural sciences theme and organised the whole around an interior garden that opens onto the public garden next door. The result is three wings and a courtyard, a scale you simply do not find in a converted town house.

Rooms and the natural sciences theme

The decoration follows the building rather than fighting it. Cabinets of curiosities, specimens and objects collected around the world are used throughout the public rooms, and the guest rooms carry the same restrained naturalist register, with the original window proportions doing most of the work. Categories range from doubles to family rooms, and the newer wings give quieter rooms looking over the garden rather than the boulevard.

Three places to eat and a rooftop

Le Tapir is the hotel restaurant, open through the day and used by locals as well as guests. Banksia, the cellar, works as a wine room for tastings and dinners, and it is the right place to start on Bordeaux vintages before heading into the vineyards. Above them, Le Topaze is a rooftop bar with a view across the roofs towards the city centre, and it is one of the few in this part of town.

A three hundred square metre spa

The wellness floor covers three hundred square metres and holds a jacuzzi, a hammam, a sauna, two treatment rooms designed for two people at a time, several relaxation areas and a seasonal terrace. Treatments use the French brand Origine and the menu runs from deep tissue and ayurvedic massage to facial reflexology, with options for pregnancy and for parent and child. It is open to outside visitors as well, which keeps the standard high.

Beside the station, walking distance from Saint Michel

The hotel stands on Cours de la Marne, minutes from Bordeaux Saint Jean station, which makes it the obvious choice for travellers arriving from Paris by train or continuing on to the vineyards. The Saint Michel quarter, its basilica and its Sunday market are a short walk north, the quays and Place de la Bourse a little beyond, and the tram from the station reaches the historic centre and the Cité du Vin without a change.

Why we selected it

We retained La Zoologie because it combines a genuinely remarkable listed style building, a serious spa, three distinct places to eat and drink, and the most practical location in the city for arrivals by rail. It is our recommendation for design minded travellers, for longer stays, and for anyone who wants a hotel with a story of its own.