My family is planning a trip to London, Paris, and a beach destination in France for late June of 2025. I am looking for suggestions on a beach town that is teen friendly and would be a reasonabe train ride from Paris. We plan to stay for 3-4 nights. We are hoping to go to a beach where the weather is warm enough to sun bathe, and the water is warm enough to swim and surf. We would prefer an area that will not be overly crowded in late June. I'd also like to know if we'd need to rent a car once there. Thank you for any suggestions!
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23731 posts
First off, you really need to re-think your beach priorities. And while you doing that, check a map. Remember Paris is about as far north as Canada's border and beaches closer to what you would find in Maine and further north. Beaches you are looking for would be more likely in the Algarve area of Portugal. You will find better beaches on the Mediterranean side than the north Atlantic especially at that time of year. Beaches around Cote D'Azur (Nice, Villefranche) would be more in line with your requests. And, yes, if explore small seaside villages you will need a vehicle.
Posted by
Ontario, Canada
5877 posts
...would prefer an area that will not be overly crowded in late June.
if you want to sun bathe and swim, then you are looking at the south of France. If you are looking for such a beach that isn't crowded in late June, then you are going to have to look waaaaay off the beaten path. And to find such a beach that is sandy rather than pebbled? Best of luck. Yes, for such a thing, you would want to rent a car once you get there.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23731 posts
Ya, CJean, I wasn't going to mention that the beaches will be more gravel like and less fine powder sand. However, another wrinkle is that most of the French beaches will be topless. The beaches around Nice are more sandy than a lot of other beaches.
Posted by
Bend, OR
1251 posts
It sounds like Hossegor is the place in France for the surfing and sand beaches. Unfortunately it looks to be a 7 hour drive from Paris and very crowded during the summer months. If you google surfing spots in France they name some different spots.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10848 posts
School is still in session in June, so your teen is going to be alone on the beach. The Mediterranean doesn’t have the surf of an ocean. Lots of rocky beaches. Just to clarify, the topless trend is pretty much over but nobody cares either way.
Posted by
Panguitch, Utah
2789 posts
You can take the TGV to Nîmes, then transfer to a local train which will take you to the sandy beaches at le Grau du Roi. It's on the Mediterranean and will be warm in June. There is also a water park and a sea aquarium to visit, not to mention great sea food restaurants. If you like beaches with as much sand as the Sahara, l'Espiguette is just next door.
Posted by
Lake District, England
8856 posts
Hossegor may be 7 hours drive from Paris but Dax and Bayonne are only about 4 hours by TGV train.
From Dax or Bayonne a little bit of googling shows that there is a bus from both stations to Hossegor, for two euros a ride.
Also local buses (including to various other local railway stations in the area) so it does not look like you need a car at all- https://www.yego.fr/fileadmin/Ressources/docs/YEGO_guide_voyageurJANV2025web.pdf
There are also rental bikes.
Posted by
Royaume-Uni nul points, pas plus
2634 posts
St Jean de Luz and Biarritz come to mind
Go to Cap D'Age, and you'll get bottomless as well as topless (and more besides.....)
Posted by
Michigan
514 posts
We visited Saint-Jean-de-Luz one summer in June, and found the beach to be beautiful and calm when we were there. I think Biarritz may be more surf-like. Nice does not have a sandy beach - it is pebbly.
Laurie