Things to do in Bayonne
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Bayonne
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Sweet spot with warm weather, open terraces, surfable seas and prices and crowds below peak.
Peak season, hottest and busiest and priciest, with the Fêtes in mid July and everything needing booking.
Shoulder secret, mild with warm sea into early October, La Rhune still running and crowds gone.
Worst stretch with short days, Atlantic rain and reduced hours, though Carnival and food weekends still work.
What's on
- Fêtes de Bayonne Five days in mid July each year
France's largest festival, five days of white clothes, red scarves, bandas and fireworks, book beds 6 months out.
- Foire au Jambon Easter week, Thu-Sun around Easter
Ham producers compete and sell on the quays, the food lover's festival with a fraction of Fêtes crowds.
- Carnaval de Bayonne February
Traditional Basque carnival with San Pantzar and street theatre, smaller and more local than summer festivals.
- Christmas in Bayonne December
Lantern releases, Christmas market and chocolate shops at full glitter, a food and lights city break.
- Espelette Chilli Festival last weekend of October
Inland food festival in Espelette when village facades are strung red with peppers, about 35 minutes away.
Best things to do in Bayonne
Cathédrale Sainte-Marie de Bayonne
Soaring Gothic cathedral on the Camino routes with one of the largest Gothic cloisters in France, free to enter.
Musée Basque et de l'Histoire de Bayonne
The richest collection on Northern Basque life, from farmhouses and pelota to the ham and chocolate trades.
Chocolat Cazenave
Grand old chocolate house from 1854 under the Rue Port Neuf arcades, famous for hot chocolate and toasted brioche.
Monsieur Txokola
Bean to bar maker producing tablets, spreads and pralines from the bean on site.
L'Atelier du Chocolat
Workshop museum where you watch chocolate being made and taste as you go, strong on a wet day or with kids.
Pierre Ibaialde
Last traditional ham workshop in the old town, with a drying loft tour and a tasting of jambon de Bayonne.
Remparts de Bayonne
Green ring walk over Vauban bastions and moat gardens past the old Château-Vieux, with river views throughout.
Jardin botanique de Bayonne
Small Japanese influenced garden with a pond and waterfall tucked into the ramparts themselves.
Where to stay in Bayonne
Grand Bayonne
first trip, all-round base
Historic heart with the cathedral, chocolate row, Les Halles and the best restaurants, walkable everywhere.
Petit Bayonne
nightlife, food value and younger travellers
Basque Museum, Trinquet and student bars at slightly lower prices, five minutes from Grand Bayonne sights.
Saint-Esprit
train-based day-tripping and budget
Station quarter handy for early trains and coastal connections, cheaper but plainer and less charming.
Think twice about
- A63 motorway junctions and BAB2 retail zone
Soulless commercial strips with cheap chain hotels, roundabouts and no evening life, plus a bus ride to dinner.
- Immediate station forecourt blocks in Saint-Esprit
The one part of town that feels transient after dark, worth avoiding for light sleepers or nervous late arrivals.
- Festival perimeter during the Fêtes de Bayonne
The whole old town becomes an open-air party until very late, so base elsewhere if you need sleep before 3am.
Best restaurants in Bayonne
Nuance
Acclaimed tasting menus from small Basque and Landes producers, the fine dining reservation to make.
Germaine
Chef's counter bistro serving a single market menu at dinner only, credited with revitalising Bayonne dining.
Cantine du Musée
Best reviewed restaurant in Bayonne, precise seasonal French Basque cooking at prices that shame bigger cities.
Cidrerie Ttipia
Full cider house ritual of poured cider, cod omelette, hake and T-bone to share, convivial and noisy.
Le Chistera
Long running Basque classic by Les Halles serving piperade, axoa, duck and chipirons where locals still eat.
Bistrot Le Guernika
Cheap tier gem cooking a class above its price point, one of Bayonne's best value lunches.
Xurasko
Halles quarter fixture that works as bar or grill house, the starting point for a pintxos grazing evening.
Restaurant Bajadita
Dependable central French Basque house known for truffle sauce dishes, a strong fallback when headlines are full.
Best bars in Bayonne
Bar Basque
Rue d'Espagne bar on the Halles quarter grazing circuit, pairing a glass with pintxos before moving on.
Best coffee in Bayonne
Café Muxu
Brunch and specialty coffee cafe named for Basque cream, with vegetarian and vegan options and Sunday brunch.
Outdoor things to do in Bayonne
Plage des Cavaliers
Anglet's pro level beach break, less polished and better value for lessons and hire than Biarritz.
Plage de la Côte des Basques
Cliff backed beginner and longboard icon that works at low to mid tide and vanishes at high tide.
Petit Train de la Rhune
1924 wooden cog railway up La Rhune for Pyrenees and coast panoramas, pottok ponies and griffon vultures.
Makila Golf Club Bayonne Bassussarry
Bayonne's home course through old oaks, forgiving from the middle tees and a real test from the back.
Golf de Biarritz Le Phare
One of continental Europe's oldest courses from 1888, short, tight and immaculate in the heart of town.
Ilbarritz Training Center
Spectacular ocean view 9 hole and practice complex, cheap to enter and ideal for rusty or mixed ability groups.
Golf d'Arcangues
Pyrenean view course in the Biarritz golf pass, a scenic round inland from the coast.
Golf de Seignosse
Robert von Hagge course regularly ranked among France's best, worth the drive for serious golfers.
Best hotels in Bayonne
Hôtel des Basses Pyrénées
Bayonne's grand address by Place de la Liberté, a historic building with a noted restaurant and courtyard.
Hôtel Villa KOEGUI Bayonne
Best reviewed full service hotel in Bayonne, with restaurant terrace, sauna, gym and individually styled rooms.
OKKO Hotels Bayonne Centre
Smart modern hotel by the station with a generous shared Club lounge, ideal for train heavy itineraries.
Mercure Bayonne Centre Le Grand Hôtel
Classic grand hotel on the old town edge, big, central and dependable with a proper hotel bar.
Le Bayonne Hôtel & Spa
Adour riverside hotel with pool and spa facilities most old town hotels lack, the summer family pick.
Un Appart en Ville
Central self catering apartments with kitchens and space, best for stays of four nights or more and families.
Hostel 20 Bayonne
Well run social hostel with dorms and privates plus a communal kitchen, where solo travellers meet people.
ibis budget Bayonne
Reliable cheap chain on the station side, small clean air conditioned rooms walkable to the centre.
Is Bayonne expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | €65 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | €130 a person |
| Splurge | €340 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Pierre Ibaialde: a few days ahead
- Stade Jean-Dauger: weeks ahead
- Office de Tourisme de Bayonne: a few days ahead
- Plage des Cavaliers: a few days ahead
- Plage de la Côte des Basques: a few days ahead
- Petit Train de la Rhune: a few days ahead
- Makila Golf Club Bayonne Bassussarry: weeks ahead
- Golf de Biarritz Le Phare: weeks ahead
- Book Fêtes de Bayonne accommodation 6 or more months ahead, and central summer weekends 2 to 3 months ahead.
- Reserve Nuance and Germaine as soon as dates are fixed, and Cantine du Musée and Le Belzunce days ahead in season.
- Book the La Rhune train online days ahead in summer, big rugby fixtures on release, and surf lessons 2 to 3 days ahead.
Is Bayonne safe?
- Watch for pickpocketing and phone theft in Fêtes crowds, use front pockets and cross-body bags.
- Surf and swim only in patrolled zones, respect rip currents and never surf La Barre as a beginner.
- Stay off quay walls and do not swim in the rivers at night during the Fêtes, and use standard city awareness near the station late.
Bayonne travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Riverfront terraces on Quai Galuperie and Quai des Corsaires charge for the view with variable cooking, eat one street back.
- Do not pay for a pre-booked private airport transfer at high prices for the short Biarritz airport hop.
- Avoid generic coast mega-tours that give Bayonne only an hour when you are already based there.
Getting around Bayonne: public transport and more
- Walk Grand and Petit Bayonne, which are compact and largely pedestrianised.
- Use Txik Txak Tram'bus T1 and T2 for Anglet and Biarritz, and trains from Gare de Bayonne for coastal day trips.
- Biarritz airport is about 5 km away, reached by Txik Txak bus to the station in about 15 to 26 minutes.
- Park in paid car parks on the old town edge and walk in rather than driving the historic core.
Who Bayonne suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Great |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Great |
Make Bayonne your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App Store