I recently took a trip to Basque country, visiting San Sebastian in Spain and Biarritz in France. Less than an hour’s drive lies between the two cities, even though they are in different countries. I thoroughly enjoyed the holiday – there is a magic to that stretch of coast and I felt very at home there, for some reason.
I saw a lot of different places while I was away, including two locations used for Dragonstone in Game of Thrones (I blogged about them here and here), so will be writing a few Wednesday Wanders about the various locales. This week, I’m wandering to Biarritz, and the beautiful main beach at dusk. We spent a lot of time walking along here, both day and night, as it was the direct route into the town centre. With the beautiful view, the combination of rocks and sea and sky coupled with Art Deco architecture, it was a pleasure every time.
One of the buildings along the seafront at Biarritz is the Casino. Built in the 1920s, it was opened only a few weeks before the Stock Market crash that marked the end of the glittering art Deco era. It is a beautiful reminder of that decadent time, nonetheless, and a survivor – plans to knock it down in the 90s were thankfully scuppered, and the building restored and designated a historical monument. Nowadays it contains a pool, restaurants and a casino, and was full of people every time we passed by.
The walk along the beach also passes this lovely islet, connected by a stone bridge to the mainland. It seemed like something out of a fairy tale (so I loved it, obviously). There was also a lovely church, as well as the old fishing village, which I’ll write about in more detail soon.
But for now, let us look at the gold and violet sky, the shimmer of ocean against dark sand, the clean lines of the Art Deco building, the warm lights of the coastline against the dusk sky. It is a supremely romantic coastline, with a warmth in the air that filled me with joy.
I can’t wait to go back one day.
Thank you for coming on another Wednesday Wander with me – see you next time!
If you enjoyed this post and would like to read more, you can find me on Twitter @AuthorHelenJ, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Plus my latest book release, A Thousand Rooms, is now available on Amazon. Visit my Amazon Author Page to see more.
Helen Glynn Jones 
A very good post and nice pictures. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks, Henrietta!
You are welcome!
Beautiful pictures, Helen!
Thanks so much, Claire! I loved it there 🙂
This looks absolutely stunning!
It was gorgeous, one of the nicest places I’ve visited in a long time. There was something about it I just loved 🙂
Reminds me of 007!
It was a bit! 😀
Gorgeous photos. I love Biarritz.
My best french friend used to live near Bayonne so I learnt how to flirt in French along those gorgeous beaches. We’d always have to get home in time for family dinners though, so i have never seen it like this in the evening. 🙂
Ooh, I love your comment about flirting in French 🙂 I speak french not too badly, though with hubby in tow not too much flirting going on ;-D I simply loved that coastline, and would love to spend more time there.
Lol I don’t think I could flirt in French anymore. My brain cannot seem to hold many languages at once so the more Japanese I learnt, the more French I forgot. 😦
BUT as a teenager I found most other teens in the South of France learnt Spanish rather than English…so if I wanted to communicate with the hotties then I had to learn to speak!
Well, a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do, right? 😀
Hi Helen, I found you through Sarah Brentyn. I too love Biarritz. We’ve holidayed there for the last five years and can’t imagine going anywhere else. Thanks for all the photos. Great memories of beautiful places. Well done for all your writing achievements. Félicitations!
Juliet, Glaswegian blogger, now living in Angers, France
Hi Juliet (or should I say bonjour!) Thanks so much for finding me, and for your lovely comment 🙂 Biarritz was such a surprise to me, I loved it so much I could imagine living there – it’s funny how a place can just take your fancy, isn’t it? I’d been to France several times before but never to that part – lucky you that you get to holiday there every year. I know I’ll be heading back there one day 🙂
We would love to live there too one day. Maybe I’ll see you there! Thanks for replying. Good luck with your books.
Thanks, Juliet! And congratulations on being published – how exciting! 🙂
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