Surfing Guéthary & Hendaye

Left Reef · Best Oct-Mar · 4-15 ft · Crowd 3/5

Big SW-NW swell, mid tide

Avalanche is a big-wave left that breaks well out to sea off the jetty at Guéthary, on the Basque coast. It only starts working on very big swells, around 4 metres and up, and can hold waves of 6 or 7 metres.

The paddle out takes about 20 minutes, and on big days most surfers are towed in. It's a spot for big-wave specialists only. On a big day, the terraces in Guéthary village are a good place to watch.

It breaks only a few times a year, usually in mid-winter. When it does, it's a big event in Guéthary, and the village terraces fill with people watching. On normal days, Parlementia and Alcyons are the waves to surf here.

Left Reef · Best Oct-Mar · 3-10 ft · Crowd 3/5

Solid N-NW swell

Les Alcyons is a left that breaks off the jetty by the small port at Guéthary, a few kilometres south of Biarritz. There's only one peak, so the lineup is competitive.

It starts working when the swell is over about 1.5 metres and holds up to 3 or 4 metres. It's best on a rising tide. At low tide the currents are strong and the bottom is rock, so it gets dangerous. It's for experienced surfers.

It's at its best in autumn and winter on a solid north to north-west swell. Guéthary is a small village with cafés above the harbour, a good place to watch it from. If it's too crowded, Parlementia and Lafitenia are close by.

Right Point · Best Sep-Apr · 2-8 ft · Crowd 4/5

SW-W swell

Lafitenia is a fast right point just south of Guéthary, breaking off a small headland into a cove. The point shelters it from cross-shore wind, so it often stays clean when the open beaches are messy.

It has long, lined-up walls and works from fun size to quite powerful, best on a south-west or west swell. Because it's so good and so reliable, the local crowd is strong and surfs it well.

Autumn and winter are the main season, on a south-west to west swell. There's a small car park above the cove, which fills up fast on good days, and a path down to the beach. Saint-Jean-de-Luz is a few minutes south for food and places to stay.

Beach Break · Best Year-round · 1-5 ft · Crowd 3/5

Small-mod swell, low to mid tide

Hendaye Plage is the long, wide beach at the southern end of the French coast, on the Spanish border at the mouth of the Bidasoa. The waves break over sand in soft, forgiving peaks, much easier than the reefs and jetties further north around Guéthary and Biarritz.

The bay gives it some shelter, so it's often smaller and calmer than the open Landes beaches, which makes it a good choice on big or windy days. It's best from low to mid tide on a small to medium swell, and it's popular with beginners and families. Spain's Basque Country is just across the river.

Right Reef · Best Oct-Mar · 3-10 ft · Crowd 2/5

Clean SW-NW swell

Sainte-Barbe is a big-wave right in the bay of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, breaking off the sea wall at the north end of the bay. It only starts working on a large west to north-west swell, around 4 metres or more, when most other spots on the Basque coast are too big.

On those days it gives long, powerful rights. It's for experienced big-wave surfers only, and the local crew knows it well.

It only works a few days each winter. Saint-Jean-de-Luz is a pretty town with a fishing harbour and plenty of places to stay, and on a big day the sea wall is a good place to watch. The rest of the time, the bay is calm and good for swimming.

Right Reef · Best Oct-Mar · 4-15 ft · Crowd 3/5

Big W-NW swell, E-SE offshore wind, all tides

Parlementia is the big-wave right off Guéthary harbour. It breaks over a deep reef a long way out, and it only starts to work properly when the swell is overhead.

On a big west or north-west swell with a south-east wind it produces long, powerful walls, more like a Hawaiian point than a French beach break. The paddle out is long and the currents are strong, so you need a bigger board and good fitness.

People watch it from the harbour terrace above. It's for experienced surfers only.

It needs a big west or north-west swell, so it only really works on a handful of days each winter, usually between November and February. On smaller days the reef doesn't break at all.

The harbour at Guéthary is the best place to watch it, and the village is small, with a few cafés and restaurants above the water. If it isn't big enough, the beaches of Bidart and Biarritz, a few minutes north, are usually the better choice.

Reef Break · Best Oct-Mar · 2-8 ft · Crowd 2/5

W swell, ESE offshore wind, mid tide

Cenitz is a small cove just south of Guéthary, below a car park and a beach restaurant. The waves break over a rocky reef, with a right and a left.

It doesn't work very often, but on a west swell with an east-south-east wind and mid tide it can be good and far less crowded than the reefs in Guéthary. The bottom is rock, so booties help.

It's worth checking on winter days with the right wind, when Guéthary is crowded. In summer the beach restaurant above is busy and the waves are usually small. Lafitenia is just south if it isn't working.