We want to see some of this coast having visited most other parts of France. Would staying in Arcachon be a good option . Parts of the bay looks like marsh rather than beach and the coast further south looks almost without feature . We chose Arcachon as Bayonne looks like a day trip. Furthest south we've been is Sables d'Olonne . Appreciate helpful advice . Ideal would be sand beach and pine forest with commerce nearby .
Posted by
169 posts
You say that "Bayonne would be like a day trip." A day trip from where? From Paris? I would have to have to go from Paris to Bayonne and back in a day. And I think Bayonne is worth more than a few hours visit. It is a charming town, has the famous tapestry, has some nice restaurants, and of course is hear the Normandy beaches. These beaches are not great for swimming/sunbathing, but they are full of history. So I would not rule out Bayonne. Peter Dodd
Posted by
Seattle, Washington
681 posts
Adodd, I think you're confusing Bayeux with Bayonne. They're at opposite ends of the country. I've been to Bayonne, but not to Arachon, but Bayonne certainly looks like a good option for a day trip from there.
Posted by
Portland
3601 posts
The Dune du Pilat, the largest sand dune in Europe, is a few minutes from Arcachon. Beaches and pine forest stretch for miles. Not sure what kind of commerce you want, but Arcachon has restaurants and shops.
Bayonne* is an interesting city, with a quite good Basque Museum. Biarritz is very close to Bayonne; and, of course, Bordeaux , even closer to Arcachon.
*I just checked viamichelin, which shows the drive to Bayonne as taking over 2 hours. Most people advise adding up to 25% to vm's estimates. For me, that wouldn't be a day trip. You haven't indicated a time frame; however, if you have enough time, you could split it. Staying a couple of nights in Bayonne would give you a chance to see some of the charming small towns nearby.
Posted by
OP
6 posts
Thanks Rosalyn
Posted by
Huntington Beach CA
1116 posts
It's so weird to see your post on Arcachon because I just finished watching an episode of Anthony Bourdain's "A Cook's Tour" in which he devoted an entire episode to Arcachon. Apparently his dad is from there and they used to spend summers there when he was growing up. It's available on Hulu or netflix in case you want to watch it.
Posted by
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
8293 posts
We stayed one year at a hotel in Bidart, a bit south of Bayonne, where hotels are much less expensive. Our hotel was steps, literally, from a sandy beach and we took day trips to Biarritz, Arcachon (love Arcachon) the Dune du Pilat and further down the coast. We continued our road trip as far as San Sebastien, Spain for a few days, and then drove back to Bordeaux. That whole Basque region is beautiful.
Posted by
IJzendijke, The Netherlands
1983 posts
The southwest coast between Arcachon and Bayonne is more for camping and beach tourism. Well that was the impression I had some 30 years ago there, and guess it has not changed much in the meanwhile. Arcachon is a nice place for relaxing and well known for the seafood like oysters from the bay and a bit further south Dune du Pilat. Actually Les Landes is a huge manmade pine forest and did not invited us much for sightseeing as also the weather in July was too hot to go more inland there. Bordeaux and the Médoc region with the famous vinyards offered more for a visit and driving around.