The Basque Country front door

“ In the South West of France, Bayonne is the perfect start to tour our region”.

• 10 mn away from the Atlantic ocean
• 30 mn from the Pyrenees and its little villages which are the heart of the Basque Country.
• 30 mn away from Spain, so close to its culture and tradition.

“With a lovely and exceptionally mild weather, an authentic and unspoilt culture, an innate mood for festivities, a passionate population and breathtaking landscapes, the Basque Country is a unique destination. One cannot remain indifferent to its beauty and its diversity”.

The Atlantic Coast
Biarritz, with its lighthouse, the Basque Coast, passing by the Grande Plage and the Sea Museum… Anglet, with its long beaches and the Chambre d’Amour, Bidart, Guétary… Saint Jean De Luz and Its typical harbour, Hendaye and the Txingudi Bay…
The Basque Countryside
Espelette and its famous peppers, Itxasou, Aïnhoa and Sare, listed among “the most beautiful villages in France” … Cambo-Les-Bains and its Arnaga Museum… Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, on the Pilgrim’s road to Santiago de Compostella… La Rhune, the Basque Country mythical mountain… the “ventas” (Spanish shops on the border), the prehistoric caves…

So close to Spain

San Sebastian, the Kings Station … Bilbo and the Museum Guggenheim… Pamplona and the San Fermin Ferias, in the heart of Navarre, the Rioja Wines…

Bayonne - Basque Country

With an exceptionally rich heritage, Bayonne is proud to be classed as an Art City, which defines it as the Basque Country’s cultural capital city. From the ramparts, defending the old town, the beautiful cathedral and the cloister, listed by UNESCO as worldwide heritage the protected architectural zone, the medieval cellars and castles, let our tour guides reveal the history and character of this unique town !

The Basque Museum

The biggest ethnographic museum about the Basque Country with more than 2 000 items and works of art, 20 thematic rooms about the basque culture and tradition. The visit progressively follows a beautiful trip through the Basque identity.

The Bonnat Art Museum

Ancient sculptures and paints from Gréco, Ingres, Goya, de Rubens, Van Dick, Géricault or Degas share this splendid edifice dating from the end of the 19th century. The Bonnat Art Museum proposes more than 5 000 works of art from the Antiquity and Middle Age, from the Renaissance till the beginning of the 20th century.

Bayonne

River port in the French département of Pyrénées-Atlantique in southwest France, situated at the confluence of the Adour and Nive rivers, 5 km/3 mi from the sea; population (1999) 40,100. Historically a centre for the making of swords and knives, the town claims the invention of the bayonet. Bayonne is a centre of Basque culture, and lies in an important tourist area. Industries include the manufacture of leather, fertilizers, steel, and aircraft. It also has distilleries and ham-curing factories, and trades in timber.

Bayonne is the seat of a bishopric and has a cathedral, Ste Marie, part of which was built in the 13th century, and a citadel built by the 17th-century military engineer Vauban. The painter Leon Bonnat was born here in 1833, and left his art collection to the city when he died in 1922.