Saint-Michel is a Gothic basilica built over three centuries (14th to 16th) in the working-class quarter south of the old town. It is larger than it looks from outside, with a fine Gothic nave and a detached bell tower — the Flèche Saint-Michel — that at 114 metres was the tallest structure in the south of France when completed in 1492. The tower can be climbed for views over the surrounding neighbourhood.
The square around Saint-Michel is one of the most authentic corners of Bordeaux — a multicultural market neighbourhood with a flea market on Sundays, African and North African shops, and a genuinely different character from the polished tourist centre to the north. The basilica has excellent stained glass, though parts of the building are sometimes under restoration.