Jul 21, 2012

Review for Vacation Rental in Biarritz

On Homeaway.com, we booked our vacation rental for the most recent holiday. Our vacation home, a renovated fisher home, was in the best location we could have hoped for.

We had the one with the blue doors and shutters. What might look like weeds in front of the houses are actually wild flowers. They do look prettier on sunny days. There is a little sign above the door – Suliko (little soul) – which is the name of the house.

Everything was in walking distance – the beach, the town centre, the market, and cafés and restaurants. Sitting on the little terrace, I only had to turn my head around the hedge to see the ocean across the street.

Biarritz beach – one minute away from 9 rue Cité Cany

Our landlady, Anne, was most forthcoming in everything we needed. And she was still kind after we had to report a minor damage caused by one of our children. She was most helpful in helping settling this, like a friend.

The home had most amenities except a hair dryer. I guess we could have asked for one. We had good internet connection, plenty of coffee and wine on our arrival, and the house, though centrally located, is in a very quiet neighborhood.

Parking is a challenge during this time a year. We flew into Bilbao/Spain and had to get a rental car. The rental car lady tried to sell us all kinds of stuff, such as an upgrade to a station car (we could hardly find one parking space in Biarritz, let alone two!), she tried to sell us navigation for 99 euro a week (by golly, we are on holiday, I do not need to know where I am going) and she tried to sell us full-coverage insurance (we had the car parked 12 out of 14 days).

We used our legs most of the time. There is a lot of up and down walking and we felt it in the evening. Free exercise.

A couple of evenings, my husband and I grabbed a bottle of wine and just walked across the street to the beach to enjoy the sunset. There is nothing better than that.

Biarritz is a lively little town and actually, I could have stayed a bit longer.

For more photos and information about this rental home, visit Homeaway.com. Highly recommendable.

Jul 10, 2012

Things to do on Sunless Days in Biarritz

Mornings on the Biarritz coast are often overcast with some rain showers. With a bit of luck, the sun comes out during the afternoon. Yes, you should have sun glasses and an umbrella with you at all times.

But there is plenty to do around here even on sunless days.

Children enjoy fishing with a net.

Others are surfing at all times.

Water surfing in Biarritz

Some just enjoy the view. There are plenty of benches everywhere.

Biarritz promenade

Others still go for the beach.

Biarritz, La Grande Plage

Yesterday afternoon was also overcast, so we went to the Musée De La Mer (euro 45 for two adults and two students). Along the way, we enjoyed crêpes and ice-cream, sat on benches, took photos and had all the time in the world.

One of the many specimens we saw at the ocean museum was the seiche (cuttlefish or Bobtail squid). All explanatory signs around the museum are in French. I had to note the French names of the more unusual ones, so I could look them up later.

Bobtail squid

There is plenty to do and see around here, even on bad weather days.

Jul 9, 2012

Review for Restaurant Le Crabe Tambour in Biarritz

Yesterday evening, we came upon the Restaurant Le Crabe Tambour by chance. Well, most other restaurants were still closed and this one offered us a place to sit down in the sun, while serving drinks until the cook came in at 19:30.

We had a very efficient and friendly waiter. Not only did he have the time to talk to us and give us some tips, but he proved to be efficient later on as well when the restaurant was really full.

He was very helpful answering our questions about the menu, the wine was good, and the food was served in a timely manner. We had the menu for 25 euro, from which we could choose one each (three selections in each category) for the entrée, main dish, and dessert.

To help ease the wait, we got some tortilla and olives.

tortilla

As we were the first ones to arrive, we had the board menu all to ourselves.

Restaurant Le Crabe Tambour in Biarritz

Then our appetizer came. Our eyes got so big, but the deliciousness of these prawns and sauce made us close our eyes again…

crevettes flambées au whisky

One of the main dishes – white fish and mussels.

For dessert, we sampled all three choices: apple pie with ice cream, Crème Brûlée, and the Coup Colonel. The latter one made us all go Oh, la, la.. after taking a taste of it. It was like a Caipirinha with a bit of sherbet in it. We walked home, by the way.

This was a grand culinary experience in terms of  food quality, service, and ambience. Very recommendable.

Address: 49 Rue d’Espagne in 64 200 Biarritz

Tel: 05 59 23 24 56

Note: The restaurant was named after the famous 1977 film Le Crabe Tambour, where the owner was the cook for the film set.

You can also leave a comment/review about the restaurant here or on Lonely Planet.

Jul 8, 2012

Biarritz and Bayonne

These little tents are quite useful on a hot day at the beach (euro 9,70 for the day rental).

At the beach in Biarritz

There are many good restaurants in Biarritz, among them the Restaurant Des Terrasses, where they serve mussels for appetizer.

Another view overlooking the ocean just before sunset.

Just about 15 km northeast of Biarritz lies the city of Bayonne, which is also the cultural capital of the northern Pays Basque. We spent a couple of hours walking around the historic center, lined with shops, restaurants, bars, and a Subway Restaurant (our children were ecstatic at this point!)

Cathédrale Sainte-Marie, a.k.a. Notre-Dame-de-Bayonne

Half-timbered houses, traditionally with red or green shutters in the Basque style, face each other separated only by a narrow alley.

Bayonne Basque style houses

There are still many other towns to explore around here.

Check out DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Dordogne, Bordeaux & the Southwest Coast from Amazon.de, or DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Dordogne, Bordeaux & the Southwest Coast from Amazon.com

Jul 3, 2012

A Walk through Biarritz

We do a lot of walking around here, which is excellent for photo taking opportunities. This neighborhood cat caught my eyes, with hers.

Our rental vacation home is situated next to some locals’ homes. How do I know they are regular residents? Well, for one, they have a wash line in front of their window, and we don’t.

A glimpse into somebody’s open dining room as we were walking by. An elderly woman doing the washing up and the table set for a small dinner. How did that merry-go-round horse get in there..?

Walking by the beach is a very social event in the evening. Water surfers returning to the pier, young people sitting on the walls, seniors on benches, and a sand sculpture (including the blue plastic for our coins) for us promenaders.

Sand Art

The Hôtel du Palais (since 1893) was made famous by its celebrity patrons, such as Charlie Chaplin, Ernest Hemingway, Frank Sinatra, etc. More about the hotel and its history from Historic Hotels of the World.

Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz

… and the typical sundown photo of a camera-happy traveller.

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