Nice, Cannes and Antibes are familiar to lovers of vacations on the Côte d’Azur, but there are other seascapes in France, no less enchanting.
It is mainly French, the beaches are not crowded, and local delicacies such as oysters and exceptional wines are a pleasant bonus. This is the New Aquitaine region in the southwest of the country.
I’ll tell you in detail where to vacation, what to try and what’s important to know if you go to the French Atlantic coast.
Best beaches in New Aquitaine
The Atlantic – the word alone sounds majestic, what to say about the scale of the water element in reality. On the southwest coast of France there are several places of incomparable beauty, one unlike any other. You’ll find them on the beaches of the Gulf of Arcachon and the Atlantic Ocean. Here’s a list of the main spots on the map.
Arcachon and the Sawtooth Dune
Less than an hour by comfortable train from Saint-Jean station in Bordeaux and you’ll find yourself in the oyster capital of France, Arcachon.
Since its foundation at the end of the 19th century, the town has not lost its elegance. It is still a favorite destination for French bourgeois, mostly of retirement age, so it is always quite quiet and peaceful.
Arcachon is divided into the so-called Winter and Summer Town. The first is a magnificent XIX century villas, Catholic churches, belvedere, or St. Cecile’s observatory, which offers a panorama of the surroundings worthy of a painting. The summer town is a promenade with restaurants, a string of beaches and, of course, the shoals where oysters are farmed. Oyster farming is the second industry that defines New Aquitaine, after wine-making.
The photo shows nets in the shoal of Arkashon Bay, where oysters are farmed. The light spot of the Pila dune can be seen in the distance against the background of a malachite ridge of pine forest. Oysters are eaten strictly following the rule of “p”: only in months with this letter in their names.
The central beach is the main attraction for vacationers: you can try your luck in the casino, ride the Ferris wheel and dine on sea delicacies or rich Arcachon bouillabaisse while drinking a bottle of white wine from the Bordeaux terroir.
If you’re a fan of water sports, check out Abatie-Arbusier beach. Moulot beach offers spectacular views of the Pyla dune and the lighthouse of the Cap Ferré peninsula, which can only be reached from Arcachon by water during the May-October season.
The foot of the Pyla dune is easily reached by buses 101 and 3 from the center of Arcachon. To diversify your route, it’s better to return via Cap Ferré, which is accessible by boat from the beach behind the dune. From the peninsula you can take a bus to Bordeaux or stay overnight.
How to get there: the train schedule from Bordeaux to Arcachon can be found on the website of the French national carrier SNCF. You can buy tickets directly at the station, trains run quite often, but you need to watch out for strikes of railroad workers, which often occur in France.
Lacano
A trip to Arcachon is a good idea, but doesn’t quench the desire to see the open ocean. To realize this plan, you can go to Lacano. The bus ride here takes only an hour and a half, taking into account all the stops.
Lacano’s promenade resembles the concept of any seaside resort: a huge number of restaurants where you can eat sea delicacies, provincial stores with clothes of local or small brands. If you arrive by chance and don’t have a swimsuit with you, take a look in one of them – you’ll find everything you need for swimming at reasonable prices.
The ocean at Lacanau is a popular destination for surfers. Students from Bordeaux’s universities even come here to train, as part of their physical education course.
How to get there: bus number 702 runs from Bordeaux to Lacanau. It makes several stops within the city, but it’s best to get on at the Saint-Jean train station, where you’ll have a better chance of getting a comfortable seat. All buses are equipped with wifi.
Cap Ferré
But it is better to get acquainted with the real scale of the elements in Cap Ferrat. It is a uniquely shaped peninsula, a long sandy spit, washed by the waters of the Gulf of Arcachon on one side and the waters of the free Atlantic, or rather its part – the Bay of Biscay – on the other. If you take a bird’s-eye view of Cap Ferré, it looks as if it is gently hugging the Gulf of Arcachon.
The beaches of Cap Ferré are wild. There you will not find the usual equipment – sunbeds, umbrellas and even changing cabins. This is where man comes face to face with the elements.
It’s hard to imagine a better place than Cap Ferré for a vacation: quiet streets with rows of villas and one-story houses, oyster farms, restaurants with freshly caught seafood.
At lunchtime, from noon to 2:30pm, head to one of the restaurants near the marina (Plage de Belisaire) or by the central beach. Tasting an oyster from the Gulf of Arcachon is like drinking the whole ocean.
Don’t miss the opportunity to capture a photo of a view that often appears on tourist postcards from Cap Ferré – it’s the so-called Bird Island. Île-aux-Oiseaux, a tiny bit of soil inside the Gulf of Arcachon, can be explored by rented kayak or boat, then hike up to Pointe aux Chevaux, take photos and descend to the village of Petit-Piquet.
The coast of the Cap Ferré peninsula is a fantastic place. A strip of dunes stretches into the distance, and the white color of the whipped caps of sea foam seems to dissolve, merging with the horizon line. On Plage de l’Horizon you can simultaneously see bathers, surfers, photographers and just vacationers.
How to get there: by rental car or by bus number 601, which leaves from Saint-Jean station.
Biarritz
Another amazing beach destination in the southwest of France is the Basque Country. It is a well known Spanish region of the same name, with which the French region borders. The Basque Country includes cities such as Bayonne, Biarritz and Anday.
Biarritz is a bright city with an unusual relief: the sandy coast is replaced by rocky cliffs, bays – spacious beaches, where in some places in a perfectly smooth sandy surface cut into the huge boulders.
In the recent past, Biarritz was a place of rest and treatment for high-ranking tourists and even royalty, such as Napoleon Bonaparte. Today, it is also a thalasso resort and a popular training ground for surfers.
How to get there: the train from Bordeaux to Biarritz takes about two hours and stops in Bayonne. These trains most often do not have seat assignments and tickets are valid all day, so you can get off halfway in Bayonne, see the city and continue on your way.
Andai
If you go a little further towards Spain, you will find yourself in charming Andaya. This place is right on the Schengen border, which exists only nominally in the Schengen area.
Anday is nestled between the raging Atlantic and the majestic Pyrenees. It is a paradise for water sports enthusiasts: kayaking, surfing, sailing, etc. are common here, while the terrain lends itself to hiking, golf and cycling. Beach vacations in Andaya are great, but don’t forget the cultural immersion: for example, don’t miss the Abbadia Castle-Observatory.
Thalasso resort Andai is famous for its wonderful three-kilometer beach with fine sand and legendary twin rocks, tapas bars and ancient villas with magnificent facades.
How to get there: by train about three hours, by car about two hours.
When is the best time to travel to the southwest coast of France
The ideal season to travel to Aquitaine and the adjoining Basque Country is early fall. In September, the debilitating heat recedes and the ocean waters are most suitable for swimming. The air temperature is around 25-30 degrees and the ocean temperature is just over twenty degrees.
In addition, the grapes ripen towards the end of summer and by early October, the Gironde hosts traditional end-of-harvest celebrations.
What is a must-do in Aquitaine:
- to climb the highest dune in Europe, Peel Dune;
- Taste oysters seasoned with onion sauce, eating them with the freshest baguette with Breton butter and drinking a glass of white dry wine – ideally from St. Emilion wineries;
- take a couple surfing lessons at high tide;
- In Biarritz, walk along the path on the crest of the Vierge cliff to the statue of Our Lady on its promontory;
- climb 258 steps to reach the top of the Cap Ferré lighthouse for a dizzying view of the Pyla dune and the Gulf of Arcachon, on which white-skinned boats and yachts sail in large numbers;
- Tour any winery, ideally come to St. Emilion, a medieval town surrounded on all sides by vineyards.
Travel Tips
1. There are tide clocks on the ocean. You can follow the tide schedule on this website. At low tide, you can neither swim nor surf. The water recedes a few dozen meters from the shore.
2. The third weekend in September is the European Heritage Days in France and several other European countries (Les Journées européennes du patrimoine). All museums are open free of charge during this time.
3. From Aquitaine it is very convenient to go to neighboring Spain, for example, to its north – to the cities of Bilbao and San Sebastian. They are not as popular as touristy Barcelona or Valencia, but all the more interesting.
4. For convenience of payments in France, get a card of a bank of Belarus, Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan.
5. In France, the so-called covoiturage is very common, where you can get into a car with a driver with whom you are traveling for a small fee. Spending on travel is significantly reduced, as French rail transport is expensive. The most common site to use is blablacar – choose drivers with experience and good ratings.
