i will be traveling with my brother and parents to arcachon on the atlantic coast at the end of august. i would love to hear from anyone who has visited the area including nearby bordeaux and biarritz.
we are looking for things to do in order to take the best advantage of the region.
also, i am flying into charles de gaulle. what%26#39;s the best way to get to the atlantic coast quickly. take a domestic flight or tgv?
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CDG to Bordeaux by rail there are two choices: direct or with a change in Paris. The direct route takes a little over four hours.
My favorite destination on the coast is the little town of St Jean de Luz, just south of Biarritz. Great beach, nice shopping district and plenty of good restaurants.
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I have spent several summers in Arcachon.
The town itself is a typical resort town with nothing ancient about it. the main waterfront beach is so-so, but there are many magnificent sand beaches just south. In Arcachon, however, do visit the Ville d%26#39;hiver, home of many fine villas from the late 1800%26#39;s. The other local attraction is the huge sand dune at Le Pilat. Lots of posh villa neighbourhoods around (Cap Ferret, Le Pilat).
The area around Arcachon feels quite %26quot;uneuropean%26quot; , a sandy plain with sparse villages, huge pine forests, nice coastal lakes, sand dunes and swamps. You will like it if you are into nature and outdoors.
If you like architecture/culture/wineyards better, you will have to drive to the Bordelais region with its wine areas (Médoc, Graves, Sauternes...). The city of Bordeaux is very worthwhile visiting, and reachable by train from Arcachon on a day trip.
Of course south you%26#39;ll have the Basque country (French and Spanish), with nice villages, the typical towns of Bayonne, Saint-Jean-de-Luz, and San Sebastian (Donestia).
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Here are the train connections from CDG to Arcachon : some involve a transfer in Paris (quite messy with luggage), I%26#39;d prefer those with a transfer in Bordeaux
***************************************************************************
De : AEROPORT CDG A : ARCACHON
___________________________________________________________________________
Départ Arrivée Cor. Durée Départ le Calendrier Corail/ter
___________________________________________________________________________
-%26gt; 07h39 13h03 1 05h24 Lun 17/07/06
-%26gt; 07h55 13h03 1 05h08 Lun 17/07/06
-%26gt; 08h55 14h14 1 05h19 Lun 17/07/06 blanche
-%26gt; 10h52 16h14 1 05h22 Lun 17/07/06
-%26gt; 13h45 19h22 1 05h37 Lun 17/07/06 bleue
-%26gt; 15h42 21h17 1 05h35 Lun 17/07/06 bleue
-%26gt; 19h11 00h26 1 05h15 Lun 17/07/06 bleue
***************************************************************************
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h24
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
07h39 AEROPORT CDG TGV 5200 normale 1-2 HAND
11h56 BORDEAUX ST JEAN TGV
12h26 BORDEAUX ST JEAN 8415 pointe 1-2 BAR HAND
13h03 ARCACHON TGV
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h08
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
07h55 AEROPORT CDG 2 TGV 2
08h25 GARE DU NORD RER B D BAN
08h25 GARE DU NORD RER B D
09h15 PARIS MONTPARNASSE 1 2 (Autre mode de transport)
09h15 PARIS MONTPARNASSE 1 2 8415 pointe 1-2 BAR HAND
13h03 ARCACHON TGV
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h19
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
08h55 AEROPORT CDG TGV 9802 normale 1-2 BAR HAND
13h03 BORDEAUX ST JEAN TGV
13h26 BORDEAUX ST JEAN 66255 1-2 VELO
14h14 ARCACHON TER
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h22
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
10h52 AEROPORT CDG 2 TGV 2
11h22 GARE DU NORD RER B D BAN
11h22 GARE DU NORD RER B D
12h10 PARIS MONTPARNASSE 1 2 (Autre mode de transport)
12h10 PARIS MONTPARNASSE 1 2 8427 normale 1-2 BAR HAND
16h14 ARCACHON TGV
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h37
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
13h45 AEROPORT CDG TGV 5221 pointe 1-2 BAR JVS HAND
18h00 BORDEAUX ST JEAN TGV
18h21 BORDEAUX ST JEAN 66237 1-2 VELO
19h22 ARCACHON TER
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h35
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
15h42 AEROPORT CDG TGV 5205 normale 1-2 BAR HAND
20h00 BORDEAUX ST JEAN TGV
20h35 BORDEAUX ST JEAN 66259 1-2 VELO
21h17 ARCACHON TER
===========================================================================
===========================================================================
Départ le Lundi 17/7/2006 Durée : 05h15
Heures Parcours Train Période Assi CC Services
___________________________________________________________________________
19h11 AEROPORT CDG TGV 5240 normale 1-2 BAR HAND
23h12 BORDEAUX ST JEAN TGV
23h46 BORDEAUX ST JEAN 66209 1-2 VELO
00h26 ARCACHON TER
===========================================================================
Nota : ces renseignements sont donnés sous réserve des modifications qui pourraient avoir été
apportées depuis la réalisation de ce document.
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I go to the Basque contry every year and it is the best place in the world to visit. Definitely do both the French and Spanish parts of the Basque Country as the Spanish feels more Basque than Spanish (due to the autonomy enjoyed on the Spanish side) but the French side is just as good. On the Spanish side must visits are Hondarribia (just a short 5 min boat ride from Hendaye on the French side), DONOSTIA (also called St Sebastian), Bilbao and Iruna (also called Pamplona). On the French side there is DONIBANE LOHIZUNE (also called St-Jean-De-Luz), BIARRITZ, Baiona (also called Bayonne), Anglet, et. al. Have a blast (and have some Gateau Basque and Txakolina for me). Must visits are in CAPITALS. You can take the hour flight from CDG to BIQ or about a 4 - 5 hour train ride from CDG to Biarritz train station.
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