The Vatéliades: An Innovative and Unifying Third Edition at Vatel Bordeaux
For the past three years, the Bordeaux school and the Student Council have been organizing the Vatéliades to liven up student life with a focus on the hospitality and restaurant industry.
What are the Vatéliades?
The Principle of the Vatéliades
The Vatéliades is a competition inspired by the Olympics, tailored to the hospitality and restaurant industry. Launched by Clément Brochier at Vatel Bordeaux, in collaboration with Chloé Cassagne and the Student Council, the event combines professional challenges with festive activities.
Over the course of three weeks, students compete in five challenges that assess their skills in service, hospitality, sales, marketing, wine studies, event planning, and organization. After-work gatherings and evening events also punctuate the competition, fostering interaction between students and the faculty.
At the end of the Vatéliades, participants are evaluated based on specific criteria, and the top teams are recognized with prizes provided by partners.
The purpose of the Vatéliades
The Vatéliades aim to bring together the entire Vatel Bordeaux community: students, professors, and teaching staff. This competition seeks to invigorate student life and encourage interaction by offering a break from the daily routine. The event is designed to be as accessible as possible in order to attract as many participants and spectators as possible, from all programs.
The Vatéliades combine entertainment and teamwork to strengthen bonds among participants while engaging their professional skills through challenges related to the academic curriculum.
Partners
Les Vatéliades rely on numerous partners to organize events, liven up the weeks, and offer benefits to participants.
After-work gatherings and parties take place at venues popular with students, such as bars and nightclubs in Bordeaux.
Some partners even help host the events, such as eDOG, Red Bull, and Limk, which were present at the Guerre des Stands, for example. Several brands have also offered prizes and rewards for participating teams and the winners of the final standings.
How do the Vatéliades take place?
This year, the Vatéliades competition took place from Monday, March 16, to Friday, April 3, 2026. The five events are held weekly to ensure that the competition is accessible to all classes at Vatel Bordeaux.
Challenge 1: Creating a Cocktail and a Mocktail
This first challenge involves creating a cocktail and a mocktail using grape juice produced by Château Roc De Calon, our partner for the past two years in this competition.
Teams must create two drinks and prepare their technical specifications while adhering to cost and retail price constraints. They have access to a wide variety of ingredients to craft their signature drink. After 15 minutes of preparation, they present their creations to a jury composed of industry professionals and members of the teaching staff, who will evaluate their creativity, technique, and presentation skills.
Challenge 2: The War of stands
The second challenge, held in the Marco Polo space at the Vatel Bordeaux Hotel, requires each team to set up and manage a booth to attract customers. Students draw on their sales, marketing, and communication skills to present and promote their product with the goal of selling it. Each booth is evaluated by a panel of judges composed of industry professionals and members of the school staff.
Challenge 3: Wine Tasting
The third challenge, which is particularly emblematic of the Bordeaux region, takes place in the tasting room at the Les Halles campus. The purpose of the wine tasting is to assess the students’ knowledge of oenology acquired during the academic year. Indeed, this area of study is a hallmark of Vatel Bordeaux.
Challenge 4: The Bar Boys Relay
The fifth and brand-new challenge takes place at the Hôtel Vatel Bordeaux. The teams must identify as many mistakes as possible hidden in one of the hotel rooms within the allotted time. In this way, the students put to use the housekeeping and hospitality skills they have acquired throughout their academic program.
Challenge 5: The Room master
The fourth event, the most physically demanding, takes place in front of the Les Halles campus on Place des Millésimes. Inspired by a relay race, it has been adapted to suit the hospitality industry. Participants are evaluated on the quality of their service in a fast-paced, team-based relay format. The race is officiated by the Student Union and members of the school staff.
The Closing Ceremony
After three intense weeks of Vatéliades, a closing ceremony marks the end of this must-attend event. During this festive evening, the winning teams are honored and recognized for their achievements. All participants then learn about the prizes they’ve won, before coming together to celebrate the success and camaraderie of Vatéliades.
Testimonials about the Vatéliades
Feedback from the organizers
Chloé Cassagne
Head of Student Affairs at Vatel Bordeaux
“For this third edition of the Vatéliades, it’s always a pleasure to see the participating teams having fun, thriving, and putting their skills to full use. I was also pleasantly surprised by some of them, and it’s particularly rewarding to support the student organizing team, whom we see growing, gaining confidence, and developing their skills.”
Christina Succarieh
Co-president of the Student Council at Vatel Bordeaux –
3rd-year student in the international class of the Bachelor’s program
“Organizing the Vatéliades was a challenging but extremely rewarding experience that required meticulous coordination and a great deal of perseverance to pull off successfully. This process allowed me to develop strong skills in planning, organization, and problem-solving. Despite the difficulties, it was an enjoyable experience, and the end result made all the effort both rewarding and worthwhile.”
Feedback from participants
Juliette
2nd-year student in the MBA apprenticeship program at Vatel Bordeaux
“I think it was a great idea to organize team activities, it helps students from all the different classes get to know each other better, and there’s a real sense of team spirit! Everyone came up with different projects, and you can tell that everyone put a lot of effort into them.”
Sarah
Member of the school staff at Vatel Bordeaux
“The Vatéliades help break down barriers between students and faculty members. I was thrilled to participate alongside motivated students and to be immersed in the atmosphere and organization of the Vatéliades. I was no longer just a spectator but an active participant in this 2026 edition, and I had only one goal: to win!”