On June 1st, the world’s first wine theme park and museum opened. Unsurprisingly located in Bourdeaux, France, the new theme park, dubbed La Cité du Vin (City of Wine), offers a range of activities, including wine tasting and educational lectures from wine experts. The main building is an architectural marvel, made to look like wine swirling around a glass.
La Cité du Vin joins a number of other similar establishments, including the California Wine Museum, but it is unique in its size and the extent of its coverage on the topic of wine. There are 20 themed areas, shuttles to vineyards, tasting sessions guided by experts, and the opportunity for visitors to get their own hands deep into the sometimes messy but always exhilarating wine-making process. While the term ‘theme park’ might be erroneous in that it conjures images of wine-themed roller coasters (of which there are none), La Cité du Vin is decidedly more titillating, and less stomach-churning, than your average amusement park.
The park delves into the history of wine and includes tongue-in-cheek ‘re-enactments’: actors playing historical figures (Voltaire, Napoleon, etc.) dish about their favorite wines and how this ambrosial drink influenced their lives.
La Cité du Vin is expecting to receive nearly a half million visitors per year. Currently tickets are available starting at $22.
