Where is Biarritz located?
The city stretches across hills in a bay on the southwestern coast of France, in the Aquitaine region. The resort is washed by the waters of the Bay of Biscay in the Atlantic Ocean. Biarritz lies close to the border with Spain. Cape Saint-Martin marks the boundary between the Silver Coast and the rocky Basque lands.
The population of Biarritz is over 25,000 people, most of whom are French and Spanish.
History of Biarritz
The French Atlantic coast was already inhabited in the 11th century. Poor fishing villages, home to whalers, clustered here. In the 15th century, the English built a fortified castle on the cape to watch for whales and control maritime navigation.
Biarritz as a resort was founded only in the mid-1850s. The imperial couple — Napoleon III and his wife Eugénie — came here for a holiday. They spent about two months on the ocean shore. The Empress was so impressed by the healthy air and the local scenery that she suggested creating a wellness retreat for the bohemian elite. The monarch gladly supported his wife’s idea and first of all built a luxurious villa for her (today — Hôtel du Palais). Since then, European aristocracy started flocking to Biarritz, and the city came to be known as the “beach of kings.”
In 1957 another turning point came in the city’s history. American screenwriter Peter Viertel happened to stop in Biarritz. Around that time, a friend sent him a surfboard as a gift. As a joke, Viertel decided to try it out on the local waves. His ride marked the beginning of the surfing era in Biarritz. Today, the resort is considered one of the world’s major centers for this water sport.
