Saint-Emilion, ville médiévale au coeur des vignes

Saint-Emilion est un village girondin de caractère qui a su conserver en partie sa physionomie médiévale, entouré d’un vignoble de renommé mondiale. Fondé au VIIIe s par l’ermite d’origine bretonne Emilian, le village s’est développé comme lieu de pèlerinage autour de la tombe de ce dernier et comme étape sur le chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle. Pas moins de 4 abbayes y ont été fondées au cours des siècles, incluant un complexe de monuments souterrains creusés dans le calcaire. Il est possible d’embrasser d’un coup d’oeil l’étendue de la ville et le paysage qui l’entoure en prenant de la hauteur, soit en montant au clocher de l’église monolithe, soit depuis le sommet du donjon carré du XIIIe s. Parallèlement, le vignoble de la juridiction de Saint-Emilion planté par les Romains dès le Ier siècle a fourni les tables de la cour d’Angleterre du XIIe au XVe s et est depuis 1999 le premier vignoble classé au patrimoine mondial de l’UNESCO au titre de paysage culturel. Laissez-vous également tenter par la spécialité locale : le macaron !

Saint-Emilion, medieval town (UNESCO)

Once an important medieval town, Saint-Emilion is now a beautiful medieval village surrounded by a worldwide known vineyard. It was founded in the 8th century by an ermit called Emilian. The little village soon became a huge pilgrimage site around his tomb, and a stop on the way to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. Four abbeys were founded in a few centuries, among which the largest underground church of all Europe and an underground copy of the Anastasis chapel in Jerusalem, both carved in limestone alongside even older catacombs. It is now possible to get an oveview of the village from the top of the bell tower or the top of the 13th century keep. The vineyard around Saint-Emilion was planted by the Romans in the 1st century and supplied the English court for three centuries during the Middle Ages. In 1999, it was the first vineyard in the world to be listed as a UNESCO world heritage site. And don’t forget to taste the local speciality (which you can only find there) : the macaroon of Saint-Emilion !

Medieval town in UNESCO vineyard

An exceptionnal site

A passionate local guide

A macaroon testing !

Meeting point : place du marché. Guided tour of the underground monuments (45 min : Emilian’s hermitage, 13th c. chapel, catacombs, underground chapel, monolithic church), followed by a walking tour of the town, including the remains of the other abbeys and of the medieval town wall, and a beautiful overview of the vineyard.

– entrance fee for the underground monuments : 7,50€/pers (not included in the price of the tour) – the underground monuments can only be visited on reservation and many people want to see them : please book the tour as early as possible so that I can make the reservation and get the time you want. – for small groups only : it is possible to climb at to top of the bell tower and/or the medieval keep : 1,50€/pers/monument ; no extra guiding fee for one monument ; 15€ extra guiding fee for two monuments.