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Travel guide
Béarn
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: June to September
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Welcome
Béarn, in a few days
From the Boulevard des Pyrénées in Pau, the whole mountain range unfolds like a stage set, and that is where Béarn begins. Henri IV's homeland, wedged between the Basque Country and Bigorre, has two valleys, Ossau and Aspe, that climb towards Spain through pastures, Tour de France passes and peaks of nearly 3,000 metres.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Château de Pau · about 1 h 30Henri IV was born here in 1553; his supposed tortoiseshell cradle is still shown, alongside a fine collection of Gobelins tapestries.
- Afternoon · Boulevard des Pyrénées free · about 30 minA palm-lined promenade whose viewing table names the peaks from the Pic d'Anie to the Vignemale, with the Pic du Midi d'Ossau at the centre.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Bristol€110 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · The Jurançon vineyards free · half a dayHillside vines facing the Pyrenees south of Pau make dry and late-harvest sweet whites from petit and gros manseng, tasted at the estates.
- Afternoon · Col d'Aubisque free · about 1 hA 1,709-metre Tour de France pass climbed from Laruns through Eaux-Bonnes and Gourette, ending on open grassland marked by three giant painted bicycles.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Alysson Hôtel€120 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · The Artouste mountain train · half a dayA narrow-gauge line built in the 1920s for a dam, now running ten kilometres along the mountainside near 2,000 metres, reached by cable car.
- Afternoon · Lac de Bious-Artigues free · 2 to 3 hA reservoir at 1,416 metres with Béarn's best-known view of the Pic du Midi d'Ossau, and the start of the Ayous lakes loop.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Roncevaux€95 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Cirque de Lescun free · 2 to 3 hA grey stone village at 900 metres at the head of the Aspe valley, in a bowl of meadows under pale limestone peaks.
- Afternoon · Salies-de-Béarn · half a dayA half-timbered town built on a spring far saltier than the sea, whose salt still cures Bayonne ham and whose spa lets you float effortlessly.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Le Vieux Logis€105 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €95 a day, mid-range
Best seasonJune to September
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
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Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.