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Travel guide
The French Basque Country
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to October (June and September are best)
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Welcome
The French Basque Country, in a few days
The French Basque Country plays two parts at once: Atlantic rollers at Biarritz and green hills climbing towards La Rhune. You surf in the morning, ride a rack railway in the afternoon and spend the evening in the pintxo bars of Petit Bayonne, with Espelette's chilli-hung façades somewhere in between.
- 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 · Grande Plage, Biarritz free · half a dayBiarritz's seafront since the Second Empire, facing the Art Deco casino and the Hôtel du Palais, with striped tents for hire by the day.
- Afternoon · Rocher de la Vierge free · about 45 minA rock reached by an iron footbridge attributed to the Eiffel workshops, topped since 1865 by a white statue of the Virgin watching over sailors.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Les Almadies€150 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Côte des Basques free · about 1 h 30Where surfing arrived in France in 1957: a long, gentle wave below the cliffs, ideal for learning on a longboard, with around ten surf schools.
- Afternoon · Old Bayonne free · half a dayHalf-timbered houses, arcades and chocolate makers around the cathedral, then the Basque Museum and the best pintxo bars across the Nive in Petit Bayonne.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel La Marisa€160 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Espelette village free · about 1 hHome of the protected Espelette pepper, its white façades hung with strings of drying red chillies from late summer into autumn.
- Afternoon · Ainhoa free · about 45 minA 13th-century one-street village on the Santiago pilgrim route, lined with some of the best-preserved red and white Labourd houses in the Basque Country.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Maria Christina€140 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · La Rhune rack railway · about 2 hA wooden rack railway running since 1924, climbing from the Col de Saint-Ignace to the 905-metre summit past ferns, sheep and free-roaming pottok ponies.
- Afternoon · Saint-Jean-de-Luz bay free · half a dayClosed off by three sea walls begun under Napoleon III, the bay has calm water that is rare on this coast and suits young children.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Saint-Julien€170 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
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
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 €125 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to October (June and September are best)
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.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/french-basque-country
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.