French Basque coast, the coast of Iparralde.

French Basque coast, a paradise of more than 30 kilometers in the north of the Basque Country.

The French Basque coast, also known as the coast of Iparralde (north in Basque), gives us really impressive spaces. Villages, towns, beaches and cliffs that make everyone who decides to visit this impressive tourist destination fall in love. For this reason, today we would like to recommend a route by car that starts in Hendaye and ends in Bayonne, the capital of Lapurdi. An unforgettable adventure that we encourage you to do at any time of the year.Iparralde, surprises the traveler with its incredible popular architecture, its traditions and its gastronomy. In this case, its coast, adds new attractions, its beaches and cliffs. Spaces, that in summer hang the sign of complete of habitual form. We encourage you to read all the sections of this article so that you can discover all the aspects related to the Basque-French coast. Ready?

The stretch of coastline that we present today is one of the most striking of all Euskal Herria. 30 kilometers of coastline, where we find some of the most beautiful urban centers of our coast. Remember, that you can extend the information that we offer you in this publication with the reading of the articles that we dedicate to each one of these urban nuclei. We hope it will be of help to you.

French Basque coast.

There are many people who have asked us about the entire coast of the Basque Country, so in addition to the French Basque coast (Hendaye, Saint Jean de Luz, Guéthary, Bidart, Biarritz and Bayonne) we thought it would be interesting to extend the route along the entire coast of the Basque Country. From Baiona to Muskiz, from north to south. We hope you like it.

BayonneBayonne, the capital of Lapurdi, is undoubtedly the great city of the north. It is a reference point. We encourage you to discover this incredible urban center walking through the streets of its main neighborhoods: Grand Bayonne, Petit Bayonne and Saint Esprit. And it is in these areas of the city, where we find some of the major attractions of Bayonne. Clear examples of this are the cathedral of Santa Maria, the old castle, the town hall, the market, the botanical garden, the Basque museum, the new castle or the door of Spain.

BiarritzBiarritz is the most elegant city of the French Basque coast. An urban center, which thanks to its history, its gastronomy and its architecture has become one of the most visited destinations in the area. Among the most emblematic areas of the town are the Virgin’s Rock, the casino, the hotel du Palais, the lighthouse, the port or the Aquarium. All these places are close to the sea, which allows us to enjoy its beaches and cliffs during practically all our trip.

BidartBidart, Bidarte in Basque, is a small and charming town that attracts the visitor with its 6 beaches and its magnificent cliffs. We must also highlight its urban center. A space formed by the town hall, the church and the fronton, in which a formidable atmosphere is created. If you have the opportunity, we encourage you to watch a pelota match. It is quite a spectacle. Along its coast runs the so-called coastal path, a route that connects Bidart with Donostia San Sebastian showing us some of the most incredible corners of our coast.

GuétharyGuéthary is the smallest town on the French Basque coast. An urban center located by the sea, it is visited by thousands of surfers throughout the year. We encourage you to enjoy its harbor, its church, its museum and its viewpoint. In summer, the market, the beach and the port attract many people, reason why we recommend you to get up early to avoid parking problems.

Saint Jean de LuzThe iconic town of San Juan de Luz, Donibane Lohitzune in Basque, encourages us to enjoy its fishing port, its beach, its promenade and its old town. Places that, together with its gastronomy and history, offer us a very complete tourist destination. We strongly recommend you to visit the interior of the church of San Juan Bautista, even if you are not believers. It is well worth it. You can watch the video we dedicated to it on our YouTube channel to decide if you want to visit this great Basque temple. We leave the link to the video here.

HendayeThis is the first locality that we find after crossing the muga, the border. It is also one of the most striking cities in the list that we present today. Its long beach, its cliffs and the possibility of going from Hondarribia to Hendaye by boat in just a few minutes, makes Hendaye a very attractive town.

From this point we would enter the coast of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Leaving behind, the French Basque coast. We leave you some of the most outstanding places of this stretch of coast in case you want to extend your route. Remember that you can click on each of these names to obtain more information.

Map of the French Basque coast.

We have created a map of the French Basque coast so that you can follow the route we recommend. Although the entire journey has been indicated as a “car route” we encourage you to adapt it to your tastes and needs. Our only objective is to show you some of the most emblematic places in the area. In fact, you will see that the road runs along the coast visiting some of the places we have indicated.

Route by car along the French Basque coast.

The stretch of road that separates Hendaye from Bayonne can be easily covered in about 30 minutes. However, if we use the road that runs between the coastal villages, the duration increases. In fact, we recommend enjoying all these areas for at least 3 or 4 days. And we must keep in mind that it is not the same to travel the road, stopping to enjoy all the charms that we find on our way. In this route there are places that we can easily contemplate in a couple of hours, however, urban centers such as Bayonne, Biarritz or San Juan de Luz, require a greater dedication. In any case, know that there are 30 kilometers that separate the town of Hendaye from Bayonne. A stretch of the Basque coast that we are sure you will like.

Video.

In our Youtube channel you can find a video for practically each of the spaces we have mentioned in this article. We encourage you to take a look at them. If you like this kind of videos, we recommend you to subscribe to our YouTube channel to discover all the places and experiences that we recommend in the Basque Country. We are waiting for you! We leave you the video about Bayonne as an example.

Interior of the French Basque Country (Iparralde).

If you have time to spare, we recommend you to visit the interior of Iparralde, it is as beautiful as its coast. It is well worth it. Remember that in most cases, the inland villages are less than an hour’s drive away. A clear example of this is the train to Larrun or San Juan Pie de Puerto (Donibane Garazi). We recommend you to read our article on the most beautiful villages of the French Basque Country.

Experiences in the Basque Country.

If you are looking for experiences or activities to enjoy Euskadi, we encourage you to take a look at our reservation center. We are sure that you will find an activity that is to your liking. We leave you a list with some of the most demanded experiences.

The French Basque coast is one of the most impressive stretches of the Basque coast. A tourist destination that we highly recommend. In case you have any questions, we encourage you to use the comment system that you will find below these lines to let us know. We will try to respond as soon as possible. Ondo pasa!