Visit Saint-Jean-de-Luz in two days

The town's Halles

The day gets off to a great start with a visit to the Halles de Saint-Jean-de-Luz, located on Boulevard Victor Hugo, right in the heart of the village. Open between 7am and 1pm every day of the year, they are sure to delight the taste buds of visitors, who can take home typical products from the Basque region. With 37 local producer stalls, you'll find products mainly from short distribution channels, such as the fishmongers who get their supplies from the Saint-Jean-de-Luz-Ciboure fish auction.

On the forecourt of the Halles, there is also a food market on Tuesday and Friday mornings (Saturday mornings in July and August), where over 70 traders sell their wares. The forecourt is also home to the Sunday designer market, from 1 June to 15 September. You can buy clothes, jewellery and other objects that showcase the inventiveness of local artists. Finally, on the third Sunday of each month, you'll have the chance to attend professional cookery workshops. Chefs prepare recipes, and the public can watch the cooking demonstrations live on screen.

Between noon and midday, make the most of your shopping trip to have a bite to eat or a drink in or around the Halles, where you'll find some excellent wine and oysters! After your morning of food and drink, it's time for culture.

The Récollets convent

Just 10 minutes from Les Halles, you'll come to a monument well worth the diversions. After taking the avenue Joachim Labrouche and the rue du Maréchal Harispe, you'll find yourself in front of the Récollets convent. This architectural gem was built in 1619 by the Franciscan monks of the Récollets branch, on a small island in the middle of the River Nivelle. The chapel in particular is remarkable: here you can see several paintings by Brother Luc, a 17th-century monk and painter who was a pupil of Poussin and Simon Vouet. These bright, colourful works illustrate episodes from Holy History and the life of St Francis of Assisi. The painter is internationally renowned. You will also have the chance to see a cistern built in 1662 thanks to the generosity of Cardinal Mazarin, on the occasion of the marriage of Louis XIV.

Savour local ingredients at the Ekaïtza restaurant

To round off the day, why not grab a bite to eat at theEkaitza restaurant, just a minute away from the convent. Opposite the marina, on the Quai Maurice Ravel, this restaurant offers refined cuisine, based on local and seasonal produce: hake from Saint-Jean-de-Luz, red tuna in summer, lamb from the Basque country...

Chef Guillaume Roget, renowned for his expertise, is also a former sommelier who makes it a point of honour to match wine and food. In fact, his "Arnoa" menu is a surprise and is built around a bottle of wine of your choice.

👛 Price

Three-course menu: €49 (excluding drinks), "Arnoa" menu and five-course "confidence" menu: €84 (excluding drinks).

To get a panoramic view of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, and at the same time visit a place that is part of the town's identity, we're heading for the Pointe de la Sainte-Barbe, a hill overlooking the town on the edge of the ocean.

From the town centre, head for the Digue aux Chevaux beach. From here, you can take the coastal path up to the Pointe de la Sainte-Barbe. Once you've climbed the hill, you can enjoy one of the most beautiful views of the Basque coast (Spanish and French). From this vantage point, you can see the Socoa fort and its sea wall, the bay of Saint-Jean-de-Luz and, on the other side, the Pyrenees.

Ducontenia Park

In the Parc Ducontenia, families will love the playground, the guinguette and the shady lawns for relaxing. Throughout history, this site has served as a stronghold, a place of worship and a pilgrimage site for sailors. A little further on, you can see a 19th century lantern, a large lantern used as a signal.

See the chapel of Firmin Van Bree

If you still haven't had enough of your walk, make a diversion to the Firmin Van Bree chapel. Situated at the top of the hill of Sainte Barbe, this site houses the crypt of Chevalier Firmin Van Bree, an engineer with a degree from the University of Louvain (Belgium) and a great industrialist, who was made an honorary citizen by the town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz for his help in developing the town. Wishing to be buried in this much-loved town, he commissioned the architect André Pavlovsky to design a chapel and crypt. In accordance with his wishes, he is laid to rest there. Incidentally, the crypt is a reproduction of the one where Saint Firmin was buried in Amiens, for whom Van Bree had a real devotion.

Taste seafood at the Ilura restaurant