The light has an incredible quality on Biarritz’s seafront, which bathes this town all-year round. Indeed, Biarritz is one of those rare holiday resorts that can look just as good in the winter as it does in the summer. It also has a notably mild climate, and can enjoy warm sunny days in winter while the rest of France is shivering.

The seafront of this historic holiday and surfing resort on France’s Atlantic coast is situated in a bay of rare beauty, stretching from the lighthouse at the northern end to the Sea Museum aquarium at the other.

First and foremost, Biarritz is known today for its beaches and above all its surfing. Surfers come from around the world to ride the waves here, and this town was the first in France to adopt this water sport in the 1960s. The main beach is the Grande Plage (‘Big Beach’) which is regarded as one of the best surfing beaches in Europe thanks to the large waves that roll in from the Atlantic Ocean. Another fine surfing spot is the Côte des Basques beach, while the four other beaches are Miramar (not a surfing beach), the Port Vieux (small and family-friendly), the Marbella (nice but slightly harder to get to) and the Milady (good parking nearby). (See our guide to surfing here.)

What to See and Do

Visit on of the Three Seawater Therapy Centres

Biarritz isn’t only about beaches and surfing. Its life as a resort began as a place where the well-heeled went for seawater therapy or thalassotherapy (thalassothérapie in French) and there are three seawater therapy or spa centres where visitors can come to relax and reinvigorate themselves.

Go Golfing at the Historic Golf Course “Golf du Phare”

There’s also a golf course close to the town centre, the Golf du Phare built in 1888 and the second oldest in continental Europe, while at nearby Bidart there is the Ilbarritz International Training Center and Golf Course, a unique training area with a nine-hole course where beginners and accomplished golfers alike can practice their skills. What’s more there are ten other courses within 50 or so kilometres of Biarritz, at Chiberta, Fontarabie, Seignosse, La Nivelle, Moliets, Hossegor, Chantaco, Arcangues, Bayonne-Bassussary and Souraïde. Try out the Golf Pass Biarritz Côte Basque which gives you preferential rates at four different courses in the area.

Go for a Stroll or Go Shopping

Walking and shopping are two popular pastimes in Biarritz. Visitors can take advantage of the wonderful climate, great views and not too strenuous hills to take a stroll around the resort, while also taking sampling some of the upmarket stores that populate this fashionable resort. The best place to start is undoubtedly along the seafront next to the Grande Plage where you can admire the Hotel du Palais, surely one of the best-sited hotels in Europe and a symbol of Biarritz’s illustrious past. Then carry on south past the casino – a striking Art Deco building built in 1929 by architect Alfred Laulhé and worth a look even if you’re not interested in a flutter – and come to the fishing port, or Port des Pêcheurs. Its nineteenth century heyday as a fishing port is well behind it now, but it’s a pleasant place to stroll around and, of course, a great place for seafood restaurants. Further on, from near the Sea Museum, you get an elevated view of the bay.

Near the museum is a little park called the Esplanade de la Vierge where you can stop and enjoy these stunning views. From here, too, you can walk across a bridge – called the Eiffel Bridge because it was once mistakenly believed that Gustave Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame had designed it – and onto the emblematic Rocher de la Vierge (‘Rock of the Virgin’). In the past fishermen used to use this vantage point to look for whales and it offers a wonderful view of the coastline and the mountains, and even Spain on a clear day.

Meanwhile if you’re into shopping and French food then try out the main town market, Les Halles de Biarritz. It’s open from 7am to 1.30pm everyday, including Sunday and bank holidays. During July and August there are also regular night markets that run from 7pm to midnight.

Main attractions in Biarritz

The Aquarium – well worth a visit

This recently-modernised and extended Art Deco building – which incidentally has great views of the sea – houses one of the largest aquariums in France. But it doesn’t stop there! France loves brands and grandiose themes and, under the umbrella concept of ‘Biarritz Océan’, the town now also has what’s called ‘City of the Ocean’ (‘Cite de la Océan), which is a sister site to the aquarium and just a short trip away. Read more …

Museums

Another well-known attraction in Biarritz is the Chocolate Museum (‘Planète Musée du chocolat’) which overlooks the Côte des Basques beach. Here you receive a chocolate drop on your way in followed by a short film on the story of chocolate and the cocoa bean, plus exhibitions and a cup of hot chocolate made the traditional way. Learn more.

Other attractions include the Oriental art museum Asiatica, which has a large collection of Asian art and artefacts, the late 19th century Russian Orthodox church on 8 Avenue de l’Impératrice, which was built for visiting Russian nobility, and the Imperial Chapel on (perhaps appropriately) Avenue de la Reine Victoria, which was built at the request of Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III.

The history museum (Musée historique de Biarritz) which is based in the former Anglican church of St Andrews on Rue Broquedis, is an excellent place to learn about the history of the town from its days as a fishing village and whaling station to current times. See reviews and images at TripAdvisor.

It is also worth visiting the lighthouse (‘Phare de Biarritz’) on Cape Hainsart, which gives great views over the town, sea and coastline. But you need to be in reasonable shape as there are 248 steps to the top of the structure, the top of which stands 73 metres above sea level!

Eating out and nightlife in Biarritz

Biarritz is influenced by (at least) three different cultures, French, Basque and Spanish. The good news for visitors is that this is also reflected in the cuisine on offer at restaurants in Biarritz. So on top of beach food and restaurants offering world food from Japan, China and Italy there are places offering the best in French cuisine, tapas and other Spanish specialities, plus Basque cooking too. See our guide to restaurants here.

As you’d expect there are places to eat which have great views situated just behind the main Quai de la Grande Plage on the seafront. This is certainly a good place to start to look for places to eat. But don’t restrict yourself to the seafront. Some of the best restaurants in Biarritz are to be found scattered throughout the town. Try, for example, rue du Port Vieux, rue Gardères, avenue Édouard VII (yes, that Edward!), the part of avenue de la Marne nearest the seafront and the rue des Halles.

As for nightlife, well, it’s a surfing resort! There’s plenty of late-night bars and clubs around. Try rue du Port Vieux, rue Gambetta, rue des Halles and rue Mazagran for bars. The clubs include Déjavu on boulevard Général de Gaulle, Le Duplex and the well-known Carré Coast on avenue Édouard VII, Le Caveau on rue Gambetta and the Play Boy Club on place Georges Clemenceau.

History of Biarritz

Little is known of Biarritz before the 12th century; it was probably then what it was to remain for many centuries to come – a small settlement and whaling village. (The first documented record of whaling in the area dates from 1059 AD at nearby Bayonne.) In the 12th century the English – who had married into the region via Eleanor of Aquitaine – had a small fort built on the Atalaye plateau, near where the aquarium is today. But essentially the village – known in the Middle Ages as Beariz – remained unchanged. True, by the 17th century the number of whales in the Bay of Biscay had been drastically reduced and so local whaling ended. But Biarritz remained a simple fishing village until the 19th century whose charms were know just to a handful of outsiders. In 1843 the famous French writer Victor Hugo visited the village and wrote: ‘I know of no more charming and magnificent place than Biarritz.’ But the author of Les Miserables also feared that its secret would leak out and that one day it would become a ‘fashionable’ bathing resort. In that he was quite right.

Eugénie, Countess of Montijo, who was born in Spain in 1826, had visited Biarritz as a child and it obviously retained a special place in her memory. Soon after their marriage in 1853 Eugénie and Napoleon III went to stay near the village and in 1854 the couple had a palace built there – this was known as Villa Eugénie and is now the Hôtel du Palais. It is said Napoleon III wanted his wife to have a place in Biarritz because it was close to her native Spain and he did not want her to become homesick.

The presence of French royalty encouraged others and over the coming years Biarritz attracted royalty and nobility from across Europe, including Britain’s Queen Victoria and Edward VII, after whom streets in the town are still named. The building of a casino at the turn of the 20th century boosted the town’s appeal still further and it was a fashionable and lovely resort right through the 1920s. After the Second World War Biarritz once again became an upmarket resort where European royalty and nobility rubbed shoulders with the cream of Hollywood celebrities, such as Gary Cooper, Frank Sinatra and Rita Hayworth. Then in the 1960s came surfing, once more ensuring Biarritz’s status as one of Europe’s best-known holiday destinations.

Getting to Biarritz

By air
There are regular flights to and from Biarritz Airport (sometimes known as Biarritz – Anglet – Bayonne Airport ) which is 5 km southeast of Biarritz. There are regular flights from Biarritz Airport to Paris Charles de Gaulle (easyJet) and Paris Orly (Air France), London Gatwick (easyJet) and London Stansted (Ryanair) as well as Geneva, Stockholm, Helsinki, Brussels and Copenhagen.

There is a shuttle bus connection provided by Chronoplus from the airport to Biarritz. This is on ligne 14 which goes from Bayonne Gare to Biarritz Cité Scolaire. Take the Biarritz Cité Scolaire direction and get off at Biarritz Mairie for the town centre. There are also airports at Pau (approx. 1 hour 15 minutes) and at San Sabastian across the Spanish border (about half-an-hour).

By train
Biarritz is a major rail destination and is two hours by train from Bordeaux, one hour from Pau, two hours 30 minutes from Toulouse and five hours 30 minutes from Paris Montparnasse. Biarritz railway station is on the red A1 bus line; take the bus in the direction of Bayonne Navarre and get off at Biarritz Mairie for the town centre.

By car
Biarritz can be reached by two motorways; the A 63 (Bordeaux to the Spanish border) and the A 64 that links Toulouse to the east with Bayonne. Both are toll roads. Travel distances: Paris (789 km), Bordeaux (187 km), Clermont-Ferrand (555 km), Nantes (512 km), Pau (115 km), Toulouse (350 km), the Spanish border (25 km) and Bilbao (160 km). The Spanish capital Madrid is about 550 km away.

Photo 1 by Miguel Ángel García / CC BY 2.0 image cropped; Photo 2 by thierry llansades / CC BY 2.0 image cropped; Photo 3 by Paolo Bergamaschi / CC BY 2.0 image cropped