Baptized the French Little California, Biarritz, and its neighbor Anglet, with its kilometers of beaches, have something to delight more than one.
Whether it is surfing, the flagship activity of the region, or others, more original, such as a poetic course or coastal rescue training, there is something for everyone.
We have put together a small selection for you to discover this summer.
To discover
France: the Figaro travel guide
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Basque Country: the
Figaro
travel guide
Learn about water sports
Surfers at sunset on the beach in Anglet.
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START SURFING
With its 11 spots spread over 4.5 km of beaches, Anglet is considered a surfing mecca by all fans.
About fifteen schools offer surfing lessons, as well as stand up paddleboarding, bodyboarding and bodysurfing.
Rather than a particular school, it is better to choose its beach according to its level.
Marinella, les Sables d'Or and the Petite Chambre d'Amour for beginners, la Madrague for medium, Ocean, Dunes or Cavaliers for experts.
In July and August, it is advisable to book your course as early as possible.
All the schools are listed on the Anglet tourist office website.
Book online at
anglet-tourisme.com
or by phone on 05 59 03 77 01. Allow € 35 per person for a 1h30 lesson.
GET INTO THE SKIN OF A RESCUER
Imported from Australia, coastal rescue is a favorite activity for local youth.
The Association des Guides de Bain Angloys offers introductory sessions as well as internships.
You will learn to know the sea and its dangers, the currents, to swim with fins, to handle the lifebuoy and the paddleboard.
contact@guidesdebainangloys.fr
LEARN TO SWIM IN THE OPEN SEA
Who has never dreamed of swimming like a mermaid and braving the waves without any apprehension?
Ophélie Aspord, specialist in open water swimming and four times world champion, offers to share her passion and her knowledge of the ocean.
We learn to breathe well, to recognize the direction of the swell and for the more seasoned, Ophélie offers challenges with mythical circuits such as the tour of Villa Belza or the crossing of the Bay of Saint-Jean-de-Luz.
Private lesson: € 60, € 30 in groups. Phone. : 06 82 71 61 83. E-mail: o.aspord@gmail.com. All the information on
the Anglet tourist office website
.
Read also: 48 hours in Biarritz, the city where surfing and bistronomy combine
GO TO SEA TO MEET THE DOLPHINS
Embark aboard the Saint-Ann to go dolphin watching.
Press photo
For a day, you embark on the Saint Ann, a Rhéa 900, for a sea trip.
The captain and his team know all the habits of these famous cetaceans and will share their knowledge with you.
The boat is equipped with hydrophones to listen to the sounds that the dolphins produce.
Saint-Ann,
port of Brises-Lames, pontoon C, 118 avenue de l'Adour, 64600 Anglet.
Phone.
: 06.06.85.22.40.
Price: 95 € per person.
Seven participants maximum on the boat.
Day trip.
Plan a picnic for lunch.
Don't forget your cameras.
Inland excursions
The Imperial Chapel in Biarritz.
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DISCOVER THE BASQUE COUNTRY BY ELECTRIC BIKE
The agglomeration of the Basque Coast offers a park of free-access electric bicycles spread over 12 stations between Hendaye and Tarnos. Reservations are made via the Vélibleu application (€ 2 / hour), which also allows you to check the availability of bikes. Several cycle paths have recently been developed, such as the one which connects Biarritz to Bayonne along the ocean, or the towpath which goes from Bayonne to Ustaritz, along the Nivelle or the one which joins the small village of Urt . For those who want to swallow up miles, the Vélodyssée route, which connects Roscoff to Bilbao, will take you, to the north, to the Landes and their flat tracks. Some rental companies organize guided or themed outings, such as a sunset aperitif in Guéthary.
To rent a bike, count a minimum of € 19 for half a day, at
Les Roues de Lilou
or
Velektrix
, which has the particularity of renting electric bikes made in the region and offers sophisticated models such as beach cruisers or fatbikes.
SEE THE FILE -
Cycle tourism and cycle travel: advice and itineraries
ON THE TRACK OF MISSING POETS
About ten quotes from famous artists with a link with the city of Biarritz are integrated into the urban space.
It's up to you to discover the footsteps of Sarah Bernhardt, Victor Hugo, Jean Cocteau or Romy Schneider during a poetic journey in the form of a treasure hunt.
Who therefore wrote “To know, to think, to dream.
Everything is here ?
», The answer is in the Biarritz Poésie booklet to download.
YOGA WITH CHILDREN
A yoga session rocked by the sound of the waves, the dream.
The Anglet tourist office offers special family sessions with a qualified teacher.
Soft sessions to understand the first postures and share a moment of relaxation with the family.
Lessons take place two to three times a week in the open air from July 3 to August 29 on the deck of the Petite Chambre d'Amour, Promenade des Sources, facing the ocean.
The must ?
A session at sunset.
Yoga activity facing the Ocean
: formula 1 adult + 1 child (8 to 17 years old), € 22.
Mandatory reservation.
Phone.
: 05 59 03 07 76.
SURF VIRTUALLY AT THE CITY OF THE OCEAN
An interactive museum dedicated to the marine world, the Cité de l'Océan offers a multitude of activities such as surfing equipped with a virtual reality mask to ride the biggest tubes on the planet. This summer, novelties in the ludo-scientific space with two new documentaries and a 3D film on the beauty of the oceans. The Seaborg, the thrilling immersive attraction, offers an eventful 4-minute flight over the neo-Aquitaine coast. Breathtaking images of Biarritz! Finally, the City of the Ocean has co-produced a series of six popular underwater exploration videos called “Mental Walk” on life underwater, the abyss, the waste that pollutes our oceans, the consequences of melting ice, etc. A way to discover the fragile underwater world which plays a key role in thebalance of our planet.
City of the Ocean
, 1 avenue de la Plage, 64200 Biarritz.
Admission: 9 to 13 €.
DISCOVER THE IMPERIAL CHAPEL
Few people know it, yet the Imperial Chapel is worth a detour.
Nestled close to the Hôtel du Palais, this chapel was built in the Second Empire at the request of Empress Eugenie.
If it goes unnoticed from the outside, the interior is a festival of extravagance harmoniously blending Byzantine Romanesque and Hispano-Moorish style.
The choir, enhanced with gilding, is dedicated to the Mexican black virgin Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Open from June to September Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 2 to 6 p.m. and the first Sunday of the month from 10 to 1 p.m. Guided tours every 30 minutes. Free entrance. Phone. : 05 59 22 37 10.
Read also: In Biarritz, the imperial renovation of the Hôtel du Palais
To gain strength between two activities
TASTE AT THE HOTEL DU PALAIS
The lounge of the Hôtel du Palais.
@ Maité Photo
The Hôtel du Palais has just received a complete facelift, the opportunity to (re) discover the splendor of this palace built by Napoleon III for his wife, the Empress Eugenie.
To kick off the new season, the hotel offers Eugenie's snacks in the lounge next to the Rotonde.
Discover a selection of pastries, including some local specialties such as Fou d'Eugénie, a delicious cream puff or even pastries made with sea fennel, a perennial plant collected on the rocks just in front of the hotel.
The Hôtel du Palais, 1, avenue de l'Impératrice 64200 Biarritz.
Phone.
: 05 59 41 12 34.
LUNCH AT THE CAFÉ DE PARIS
The restaurant room of the Café de Paris, decorated by Sarah Lavoine.
@ 364communication
Whether in the pretty dining room decorated by Sarah Lavoine or on the large terrace overlooking the ocean, the Café de Paris allows you to have a quiet gourmet stopover.
The menu, concocted by the starred chef Cédric Béchade, offers simple and 100% local cuisine according to the seasons.
“The real seasonality for me is Nature and the producers who decide!
»
Cédric Béchade likes to say.
It's hard to choose between the
ocean croque
with tuna ham or the croquettes with pig's trotters.
A word of advice, save room for dessert, the burnt and vanilla tart, Basque chestnut sativa is to die for.
Le Café de Paris
, 5 place Bellevue, 64200 Biarritz.
Phone.
: 05 59 24 19 53
.
TASTE A HOT CHOCOLATE AT PUYDEBAT
You will soon no longer need to go to Bayonne to feast on their chocolates because Christophe Puydebat, master chocolatier, will soon be opening a chocolate shop and salon in Biarritz.
The opportunity to try out the art of chocolate tasting with a mustache mug that once allowed men to drink while keeping their mustache clean.
On hot days, taste their very refreshing cocoa juice, or their selection of chocolate and praline ice creams.
Opening scheduled for mid-July.
Puydebat, 29 place Clémenceau, 64200 Biarritz.
Phone.
: 05 59 59 48 42.
