Hi Jill - I am also considering this route (or else the nearby Tours Route) in April of this year. My main concern is accommodation, as I don't have a tent. Did you go? How did you find it?
Hi, I posted the flowing on another thread, but no harm in posting it again. Hope it's useful!
Jill
Bordeaux to Irún on the Voie Littorale to connect with the Norte
I walked this route at the end of Sep / beginning of Oct, and I thought I would post my itinerary on walking it in the off-season, when many places have closed for the winter. There are no albergues, so the choice of accommodation is usually hotel or campsite.
I arrived in Bordeaux late on 21 Sep, stayed overnight at an airport hotel (Hotel F1), and took the airport bus next morning into the city centre.
The first train from Bordeaux to Le Verdon-sur-Mer, to get onto the Voie Littorale, didn’t leave until 13:13 (well, actually 07:11, but I don’t do early morning starts if I don’t have to). I jumped off the train at Soulac-sur-Mer about 3pm. It seemed a bit pointless to go on another 8kms to Le Verdon, only to have to walk
back to Soulac in the late afternoon.
So this is how it went:
22 Sep Visited the Basilica in Soulac-sur-Mer, and got the first stamp in my credential at the tourist office. Walked 5kms to L'Amelie where a single room for pilgrims costs E13 at Les Oyats campsite. There were about 10 rooms in the hostel, and I was the only one there. I was told off for not making a reservation! But she had a good point: if I don’t phone to book ahead, there may be nobody there when I arrive to let me in.
23 Sep Walked 15kms to Montalivet-les-Bains on cycle tracks through pine forests. The Soleil d’Or campsite was open, and I paid E12.60 for a piece of ground, where I pitched my poncho using my walking poles as tent poles.
24 Sep Walked 18kms dead straight due south to Hourtin Plage, where there was nowhere to stay. Walked on a further 5kms to Contaut, where there is a fabulous walk on a boardwalk around the lake. Nowhere to stay in Contaut either, so I hitched a ride into Hourtin-Ville and stayed at the Hotel Hourtin for E53.66.
25 Sep I hitched a ride back to Contaut, and then it was a lovely undulating walk through forests alongside the lake to Maubisson, about 19kms. I stayed in a cabin for E45 at the municipal campsite.
26 Sep A really lovely walk of 13kms to Lacanau-Ocean. I stayed on the cycle track as the official path meanders around a lot through sand. Got a dorm bed at Villa Zenith surf hostel for E20.
27 Sep A long day of 36kms to Ares. The first 9kms to Longarisse were easy going, and then there was a very pretty path by the lake. It was then due south alongside the canal with thick sand sometimes making it very heavy going. I then took the cycle track into Ares and stayed at the Hotel Le Grain de Sable for E68.88.
28 Sep 25kms to Biganos. Started off with a nice walk alongside the salt flats in the mist, and through small oyster ports. It was then a boring cycle track for 6kms into Audenge, and, not for the first time, I wondered why I was walking this and not cycling. It was then a quiet country road into Biganos. I tried two campsites that had cabin accommodation, but neither would rent one out for one night only. The hotel at the railway station was full, so I walked on to the Hotel du Delta, which had a bathtub (yeay!), and a (cold, but good) buffet breakfast, all for E64.15.
29 Sep A very boring 25kms to Sanguinet, first parallel to the freeway, and then on a track through forests, but thankfully not sandy ones. The tourist office was open, so I asked about pilgrim accommodation, and they gave me the keys to the annexe next to the church. It was very spacious with 4 beds, a large table, kitchen and fridge. It was donativo, and there was no box inside, so I made up an envelope and popped it into the parish letter box outside when I left in the morning. The keys I had to put into the box on the wall outside the municipal office next to the tourist office.
30 Sep Another boring day – 37kms of yet more pine forests to St Jean-en-Born. I’d read that there was a “refugio” next to the Mairie, but I couldn’t see it. I probably didn’t look very hard, as the Hotel Le Regale was calling me in for a long cold beer. I then checked into a room there for E45.
1 Oct 15kms, first on a cycle track to Mimizan, and then a forest track to Bias, where I stayed at the Hotel Le Tilleul (The Lime Tree Hotel). The previous hotel had kindly phoned ahead for me to check it was open. It was E45 for a single room, but I treated myself to dinner, bed and breakfast for E65, and had the best crème brulee in the whole of France. I told the chef so, and he proudly told me that he makes an essence, for the flavour, with the flowers from the big lime tree outside.
2 Oct It was about 21kms to Aire Lassalle, a campsite just past Lit-et-Mixe, where they have a caravan for pilgrims at E10 per person per night. It was a bit grim, but OK. She kept my credential overnight (in case I tried to do a runner?), and she sat opposite me in the morning, at the table in her kitchen, while I had breakfast for E5, but she was really quite nice.
3 Oct A long 32kms to Moliets-et-Maa, where I met up with a friend, and we shared a twin bed room at Hotel Ecureuils for E65.
4 & 5 Oct We walked 22kms to Seignosse-le-Pen, where we hoped to stay, but there was a surfing competition in the area, and everywhere was full. The tourist office phoned around for us, but nothing. She phoned Alain Hontanx in Hossegar, who puts up pilgrims, and he first said “yes”, but only if we could arrive after 7pm (we agreed), but then he changed his mind, and said “no”! The tourist officer was as confused as we were. So we took a taxi to Labenne-Ocean and stayed at the Municipal Les Pins campsite, where they have old chalets for pilgrims at E10 per person per night. It was so nice (and cheap) that we stayed 2 nights, and we walked back to Hossegar to watch the surfers, 10kms along the cycle track. We had a good lunch and walked the 10kms back to our chalet!
6 Oct Easy and pleasant walk of about 20kms into Bayonne, and we stayed at the Hotel Les Genets in Anglet (about 3kms further) for E49 for a twin-bed room.
7 Oct It was about 23kms to St Jean de Luz via Bidart and the coastal path. Stayed at the Ibis Budget in Ciboure for E44 for the room.
8 Oct We continued along the coast path to Hendaye, and took the ferry from France to Spain, where (in Hondaribbia) we discovered we were already now on the Camino del Norte, so we just followed it to the albergue Capitan Tximista, and spent the night there for E19 per person, bed and breakfast.
9 Oct – 20 Nov The Camino del Norte, from Irun to Santiago de Compostela.
Jill
That's a shame, and seems a missed opportunity for everyone - but useful to know. Thank you so much for responding (and so quickly!).
www.compostelle-bretagne.fr
