An Escape to Biarritz: Sunshine, High Tide, and Surfers Galore

It was my miracle trip.

The first was that I made my train with only two minutes to spare, the cut off for any TGV (high-speed train) departure in France.

At 9:46 a.m., I had six minutes to climb to Voie (track) 6 from the barrels of Gare Montparnasse, which involved sprinting up escalators, across moving walkways, and around throngs of commuters until I propelled myself through the gate, as the train attendants yelled, “Vite!”

I jumped onto the first-class train just as it pulled away from the platform only to be informed by the conductor, “Madame, you’re on the wrong train. This one is going to Bordeaux.”

From my muddle of sweaty winter layers and tangle of luggage, I looked at him stunned. It was the first time I learned that trains in France, even though they are listed as “direct” on the ticket, can split before a destination. After Bordeaux, the first part of the train I had jumped onto would go in one direction, and the second half of the train, where I was supposed to be seated, would continue to Biarritz.

The conductor led me through the connecting cars of the train to the farthest one possible. “At Bordeaux, jump quickly off the train and run to Car 15,” he said in French. Two hours later, I began my sprint again, and stepped up to Car 15 with a minute to spare before we zoomed off again.

Biarritz Arrival

The Gare de Biarritz was a ten-minute taxi drive to La Maison du Lierre, a cute boutique hotel with a friendly staff, just a few blocks from the beach. I opened the doors to my balcony and stepped out to look above the leafless branches of the winter-hewn Tamarisk trees and over the rustic stone rooftops that stacked above the city.

Where sunshine was missing in Paris, it beamed down over Biarritz (my second miracle), so I stood in a much-needed shower of Vitamin D and turned left towards a view of the sea.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Shines Brightly in Biarritz

My first stop in Biarritz was my most surprising find — a retro coffee shop on Rue du Helder with a cheerful, “Hey There” painted on the front door and a pink bicycle hanging on a stone wall on the other side. The pastry display case was not filled with delicate French sweets, but with hearty American-style cakes and desserts. I requested a slice of the “Happy Cake,” a generous two-tiered tower of banana and roasted pineapple with a one-inch smear of cream cheese frosting and a hot flat white, then slid into my seat to plan the afternoon.

Frothy Waves off the Coast of Biarritz

I wasn’t prepared for the view at the edge of the city from La Grande Plage. The sand had been flattened by the tide and was filled with polished rocks in cream, black, brown, and gold. (I chose two for good luck and slipped them into my pocket). The lighthouse, a hazy white in the mist, was at my right, and I looked ahead towards one of the many giant rocks that jut above the ocean with blue and white crashing violently around it.

Biarritz from the Sky

Each view of the Biarritz shoreline was breathtaking, until I climbed to a higher elevation and reached an even more awe-inspiring sight.

I ascended the stairs that bordered the cliffs on the edge of the city and approached Rocher de la Vierge, a rock formation with a statue of Mary overlooking thick splashes of water swirling below. The sea was covered in a glistening web of gilded green under the almost moon.

I descended back down to the shore, now a sudsy collection of collapsed eight-foot high waves that pushed towards my toes. I spotted one shiny white rock and picked it up. Good luck goes well in threes.

The rock was soft and white and etched in gold with a darkness buried at its depths. The high and chaotic tides had polished it to beauty, washed ashore to bring me luck.

I felt its cool, smooth imprint in my palm, then curved my way back up to the city center for Biarritz’s other miracles: savory tapas, given its proximity to the Spanish border, with a glass of crisp wine to wash them down.

Milwaukee Café
2 Rue du Helder
64200 Biarritz

Il Giardino (for an Italian interlude)
5 Rue du Ctre
64200 Biarritz

La Belloteka (for delicious thinly-sliced charcuterie)
8 Rue du Ctre
64200 Biarritz

Monsieur Txokola (to pick up a special blend of hot chocolate next to the Les Halles food hall)
7 Rue des Halles
64200 Biarritz

Les Baigneuses de Biarritz (a sea-inspired lunch with a view of the coastline)
14 Rue du Port-Vieux
64200 Biarritz