Bordeaux Airport to the city centre: tram, shuttle or taxi

Bordeaux-Mérignac airport sits about 10 km west of the city centre in a straight line, and since December 2025 it has had a tram. That changes the usual advice. For most arrivals the tram is now the cheapest way to the centre without changing, the 30’Direct shuttle is the non-stop link to the railway station, and a taxi or a booked car is for late flights, families and addresses away from the tram line.

This guide uses figures from the airport, from TBM (Bordeaux’s public transport network), from 30’Direct and from a map. Times are split by weekday, Saturday and Sunday, because they are not the same.

The short answer

Know your terminal first

Bordeaux Airport has three terminals: Hall A, Hall B and Terminal billi. Which one you use depends on your airline. According to the airport, a large majority of flights use Hall A, Hall B is for Air France, and billi, a terminal with simplified services where arrivals and departures are on one level, is for easyJet. In Halls A and B, arrivals are on the ground floor.

Two things matter for getting into town:

• The tram stop and the 30’Direct stop are on the Hall B side, while the taxi rank is outside Hall A.
• Since 16 September, you can no longer walk between Halls A and B inside the building. The airport sends passengers round the outside, following the signs.

The terminals are also closed to the public from midnight to 3 am, a timetable the airport says it may change depending on the flight schedule.

Tram F: the city centre without changing

Tram line F links the airport with the city centre. The airport gives 6 December 2025 as its start date, and TBM’s current timetable data shows it running every day. The stop is in front of the P Express car park, close to Hall B.

The tram calls at Mérignac Soleil, Hôpital Pellegrin and Mériadeck, then reaches Hôtel de Ville, in the city centre, 35 to 38 minutes after leaving the airport, and Gare Saint-Jean after 45 to 50 minutes. It is not an express: there are 18 stops between the airport and Hôtel de Ville, so allow for the full journey time.

If you have read that line A goes to the airport, that is not how it works now. In TBM’s timetable data, no line A tram calls at the Aéroport stop. The airport tram is F.

How often, by day. The airport’s own page rounds the frequency to every 10 minutes on weekdays and Saturdays and every 15 minutes on Sundays. TBM’s timetable is more detailed:

• Monday to Friday: every 20 minutes from 04:49, about every 10 minutes from 06:23 to 21:23, then every 20 minutes.
• Saturday: every 30 minutes from 04:51, every 15 minutes through the morning from 07:51, about every 10 minutes from 12:50 to 21:22, then every 20 minutes.
• Sunday: every 40 minutes from 05:07, about every 30 minutes until 10:16, every 20 minutes until 13:55, every 15 minutes from 14:11 to 20:26, then every 20 minutes.

In the evening, check the destination. Some trams end at Porte de Bourgogne, three stops after Hôtel de Ville, and do not reach the station: every other tram between 20:13 and 21:12 on weekdays and between 20:11 and 21:08 on Saturdays, and the 20:59 on Sundays. Trams that go on to Gare Saint-Jean show Gare de Bègles or, for a few, Villenave Pyrénées as their destination, not the station. The last tram from the airport that continues to Gare Saint-Jean leaves at 23:43 Monday to Wednesday, 00:44 on Thursday and Friday nights, 00:43 on Saturday night and 00:09 on Sunday night. After that, a few trams still run as far as Porte de Bourgogne: the last leaves the airport at 00:56 Monday to Wednesday, 01:56 on Thursday and Friday nights, 01:55 on Saturday night and 01:21 on Sunday night.

Tickets. A single ticket costs €1.90 and a book of 10 trips €15.70. You can buy them at the Relay shop in the airport, from the machines next to the bus stop on the Hall B forecourt and at the tram stop, or in the TBM app.

TBM timetable data published on 6 October 2026, labelled winter 2026–27 and valid to 4 January 2027. We checked the weeks before and after the clock change on 25 October and the timetable is the same.

The 30’Direct shuttle: non-stop to Gare Saint-Jean

The 30’Direct shuttle, run by Keolis, goes from Hall B (by door 7) to Hall 2 of Gare Saint-Jean, with no intermediate stop. In normal traffic, the journey takes about 30 minutes; the operator’s FAQ says 30 to 35 minutes, and warns that departure times and journey times can vary with traffic. It runs every day of the year, public holidays included. It does not stop in the city centre: it is a station link.

Timetable from the airport, valid from 9 November 2026 to 29 March 2027. The shuttle runs at fixed times, not at a set frequency:

• Monday to Friday: 15 departures, from 07:40 to 19:45.
• Saturday and Sunday: 12 departures, from 08:10 to 18:10.

In the other direction, the first shuttle leaves Gare Saint-Jean at 06:50 on weekdays and 07:30 at weekends.

Fares. An e-ticket bought online costs €9, or €8 at the reduced fare, which covers under-26s, over-60s and some families and groups. On board, the single fare is €10, payable by card (not American Express) or in cash, with notes of up to €50. Children under five travel free. Online return tickets cost €16.20, or €14.40 at the reduced fare.

If your flight is late. The ticket is valid for any departure on the day you chose, subject to space on board, so you can take the next shuttle. Tickets are not refunded if your flight is delayed or cancelled, though the date or direction can be changed up to 24 hours before the day of travel.

Luggage. Luggage travels free. Folded pushchairs, bikes, surfboards and other bulky items go in the hold, in a closed bag labelled with your name, phone number and address. The operator reserves the right to refuse luggage that is too heavy or too large, especially when the shuttle is busy.

Buses 33 and 39

TBM buses on lines 33 and 39 also stop at the airport, by door 7 of Hall B, but none of them calls at Hôtel de Ville or Gare Saint-Jean. Line 33 runs via Mérignac to Cracovie, in the north of Bordeaux, Monday to Saturday, with no service on Sundays. Line 39 crosses the suburbs via Pessac, with buses signed St Médard ZA Picot or Villenave Pyrénées, and a separate 39 Est runs to Le Taillan from Monday to Saturday. They are useful if you are staying near one of their stops; for the city centre, the tram is the direct line. TBM’s current timetable data does not match the airport’s bus page on days and hours (the airport says the 39 does not run on Sundays; TBM’s data shows Sunday buses towards St Médard and Villenave), so check TBM before relying on them.

Taxis

The taxi rank is outside Hall A, and the airport says taxis are available from the first to the last flight of the day. It gives an indicative fare of about €35 by day and €45 at night for an average trip to the city centre, adding that fares can vary with traffic. The airport also lists six taxi companies working at the airport, with their phone numbers, if you prefer to book ahead.

Picking up and dropping off by car

If a friend collects you, or you are dropped off for your flight home:

• P Express, the outdoor car park opposite Halls A and B and Terminal billi, is the one the airport recommends for dropping off or picking up a passenger. The first 10 minutes are free. Entry is limited to 3 times per 24-hour period; beyond that, each entry costs €10 extra on top of the hourly rate.
• The drop-off zone at the doors of Halls A and B is for dropping off a passenger in less than five minutes: 5 minutes free, the driver must stay with the vehicle, and number plates are read automatically. Overstays are paid by card at the exit terminal. The same limit of 3 entries per 24-hour period applies; beyond it, each entry costs €15 extra on top of the hourly rate.

Which one, depending on your trip

• One or two people going to the city centre: tram F. It is €1.90 each and runs from early morning to past midnight every day.
• Catching a train at Saint-Jean: the 30’Direct is non-stop and leaves from the same side of the airport as the tram. Compare the next shuttle departure with the next tram; the tram reaches Saint-Jean in 45 to 50 minutes.
• A family of four: that is four tram tickets, or four shuttle tickets at €9 each online (before any reduced fares), and the walk from the stop to your accommodation. Set that against one car to the door, with the luggage loaded once.
• Landing late: on Sunday night the last tram that reaches Gare Saint-Jean leaves the airport at 00:09, and the last Sunday shuttle at 18:10. A delayed evening flight can leave you with a taxi or a booked car.
• Flying out early: the first tram reaches the airport at 04:42 on weekdays (leaving Hôtel de Ville at 04:04), 04:37 on Saturdays (04:01) and 04:57 on Sundays (04:20). The first shuttle from Saint-Jean is at 06:50 on weekdays and 07:30 at weekends.
• A hotel away from the tram line: each extra change adds a wait with your bags. A car goes straight to the address.

The private transfer

On LocalsRide you post your route, date, time and number of passengers. Local drivers send offers showing the vehicle and a price, with a star rating from past passengers once the driver has completed rides. You choose one and pay by card online when you accept it, and the price of the accepted offer does not change.

The driver comes for the pickup time you booked, and airport pickups include 60 minutes of free waiting from then. A long delay can use them up, so if your flight is delayed, message your driver in the LocalsRide chat. If you ask for a name sign, each offer shows whether the driver will meet you with one. Child seats and a note about your luggage go in your request, so drivers see them before they make an offer, and each offer’s details show the vehicle’s luggage capacity: check it if you are travelling with a pushchair or several suitcases.

The gain over the tram is the last stretch and the timing. We have not found an official journey time by car; for reference, the 30’Direct shuttle takes about 30 minutes by road to the station in normal traffic. But a car goes to your door rather than to a stop, and it is booked for your pickup time rather than the next timetabled departure. For one or two people travelling light by day, the tram is the sensible answer.

Checking a transfer for your date

Whether you get offers on this route depends on the drivers available on your date. Enter your flight time and your Bordeaux address and see what offers arrive, then compare them with the tram and the shuttle above before you decide. For more on this airport, see our Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport transfer page.