One of France’s most charming and picturesque beach towns, Saint Jean de Luz is a quiet Basque seaside community located about 24 km southwest of Bayonne in southwestern France near the Spanish border. Located in the heart of Basque country and hugging the coast along a sheltered bay, St Jean de Luz boasts a beautiful, long sandy beach as well as a great pedestrian shopping area, Basque architecture, delightful towns squares and superb surf conditions. There is also a small, but very active fishing port here, where you can watch fisherman pull in large catches of sardines, anchovies and tuna.
When not hanging out in one of the great bathing tents along the sandy beach here (one of the Best Beaches in France), visitors to Saint Jean de Luz can spend hours (if not days) shopping in the covered markets, checking out France’s largest Basque church or people watch in the bustling Place Louis XIV.
What to Do in St Jean de Luz
Hang out at the Beach
St Jean de Luz has a lovely, long sandy beach along the sheltered bay bearing the same name. Here you can rent beach tents to get out of the hot sun June through September you can rent these bathing tents for about €7 for the day. There is also a smaller beach 2 km from nearby Socoa, which you can reach by bus.
Visit the Eglise St-Jean Baptiste
Although the façade on France’s largest Basque church is rather plain, it only hides a magnificent interior. Here you can check out the splendid Baroque altarpiece where Louis XIV and Marie Therese of Spain were married in 1660.
Check out the lighthouse
Walking out on the Pointe Ste-Barbe at the northern end of the bay provides some fantastic views of the St-Jean de Luz and if you further and climb to the lighthouse via Rue du Phare, you’ll get a glimpse of some stunning coastal views.
Go Surfing
Although St-Jean de Luz is a lesser known surfing area than nearby Biarritz, it is nonetheless a great place to catch waves year-round. There are many great surf shops in town where you can rent boards, sign up for lessons or even commit to a week-long surfing school. The best surfing can be found about 5 km north-eat of St-Jean de Luz at the Plage Lafitenia.
Go boating
As a beachside town, it is not hard to imagine that many of the popular activities in St-Jean de Luz center around the ocean. The Espace Voile International in town offers windsurfing and yachting courses, but also rents out motorboats and sea kayaks for those interested in hitting the high seas on their own.
Eat Fresh Sardines (and other local seafood dishes)
Sucking down the succulent sardines by the dozen that come from the waters near St-Jean de Luz makes for a fantastic meal. Stop by Buvette de la Halle next to the town’s fish market, where diners sit in plastic chairs under a canopy of white lights.
Hang out in Place Louis XIV
A pleasant pedestrianized square in town, here you will find La Maison Louis XIV, where the famous monarch spent the last few days of his bachelorhood before marrying Spanish princess Marie Therese in the nearby Eglise St-Jean Baptiste. You can take half hour guided tours of the house, or simply sit and people watch in the square on a sunny afternoon.
Hunt down French soccer star Bixente Lizarazu
This surfing soccer legend from Saint-Jean-de-Luz actually has an entire stadium named after him in the French Basque country. Affectionately called Liza by his fans, Bixente is one of France’s most celebrated and decorated French players in history. He also made my list of Sexy French Footballers and surfs in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, so trying to hunt down Liza and his rock hard abs probably wouldn’t be a total waste of time.
Go shopping on rue Gambetta
This pedestrianized street in St-Jean de Luz is home to shops and boutiques selling everything from tackier tourist wears to salt water taffy and stylish clothes.
Festivals and Events in St-Jean de Luz
Fetes de la St-Jean, nearest weekend around June 24
This is the biggest and probably best of the summer festivals that take place in St-Jean de Luz. Centered around the summer solstice (and longest day of the year) this festival is celebrated with beach bonfires, music and dancing. Residents will be dressed in tradition red and black garb.
La Nuit de la Sardine, Saturday in early July and Saturday nearest August 15.
This festival, which translates literally as Night of the Sardine, might sound like simply like a fishy event having to do with these small sea creatures, but this festival is actually a night of music, folklore and dancing in honor of one of the areas biggest fishing catches.
La Fete du Thon, July
Translated as the Festival of Tuna, this is yet another celebration based around the fish coming from the sea near St-Jean de Luz. The streets fill with Basque music and dancing and best of all, lots of stall selling sizzling hot tuna steaks. Yum.
Bastille Day, July 14
While there are celebrations all over France commemorating the national holiday, St-Jean de Luz features a fireworks over the ocean and lots of dancing and celebrations.
>>Read more about Bastille Day: Where and How to Celebrate the French National Holiday
Weather in St-Jean de Luz
The weather in this part of France tends to be temperate and warm year round, so whether you find yourself in St-Jean de Luz in July or October, you should have pleasant and realitvely mild weather. The summer months tend to be hotter, with average temperatures in July and August hovering around 86 degrees F (30 C). Fall and spring tends to be slightly cooler, with average temperatures around 70 and winter temperatures usually fall down into the 50s.
>>Read more about Weather in France
Where to Stay
Because Summer in France is definitely high tourist season, especially along the coastlines where people flock to the beaches during the warmer months, you’ll want to make sure you reserve a room well in advance as hotels and hostels can book up months ahead of time. You may be best off getting a comfortable room in a chambre d’hote (bed and breakfast type accommodations).
Getting to St-Jean de Luz
Traveling by train in France is almost always the best way to go, as the TGV (high-speed train) can whisk you from Paris to southern France in just a few short hours. Saint-Jean-de-Luz is on the main Paris-Madrid line and there are 5 high-speed TGV trains a day leaving from Paris.
photos by mikeyb50, one day in my garden, cacahouette
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