Spring in Hossegor, France

 

Barrels, Baguettes and Bikinis in the South -West corner of France is the place to be this spring. Hossegor to be exact. 

Where: In the South of France, Capbreton,Hossegor and Segnosse is the premier surfing location in the country. It’s just a short drive from both Biarritz and Bordeaux airports and 1 hour to the Spanish border and the Basque country to the South.

What: Beach break waves serving up some of the meanest sand-bottom barrels you’ll ever surf. When it’s pumping, the revered lineups from Capbreton VVF , La Graviere in Hossegor and the sunset sessions in Seignosse have some insanely round barrels and surfable peaks. 

When: Aim for the French spring or autumn, meaning March/April/May or September/October/November. The summer months can offer weeks of super crowded or flat conditions, and winter will have you running across snow-covered beaches to get into the water. So think about March and April spring sessions before the summer season. 

Why:  Best surf travel experience there is in Europe: a first-world style trip that can see you getting sick barrels, sipping fine wines, tasting good cheese, staring at beauties on the beach, sampling the finest European cuisine and even border hopping into Spain all in one day. 

How: Fly into Biarritz, which is just 20 minutes or so from Hossegor. A rental car is a virtual necessity in this area given the distances between the various beaches and the short windows that the waves are at their best. Travel time and being mobile can be key here. 

Places To Stay: If you’re looking for surf-oriented accommodation for the family and friends then Kevin Olsen’s Surf House which is located about 500m from the beach of Penon (Seignosse) is a good bet. Seignosse Surf Villa is open all year round and Kevin Olsen can provide private surf school and surf guiding to the best spots on the day. Kevin's villa is available out of high season at a reduced rate and with a bunch of you sharing - it can be affordable. If you really want to go on the cheap, you can stay at one of the local campsites or just sleep in a rented car or camper van. Kevin also offers Shapers Workshops to shape your own surfboards from start to finish. 

Places To Eat: Wow, too many. The likes of Le Napoli or the surfers’ staple that is Rock Food. Also woodie's spot in Estagots. A massive burrito from Le Surfing is mandatory.

The main strip in Capbreton has plenty more to offer with a good variety of seafood, pizza, pasta, and burger joints to satisfy whatever you’re amped for on the day. 

 

Crowd Factor: In spring the numbers in the sessions can be relatively low as there are actually 'no tourists' in March, April and May (even June can be quiet).  However in summer there is a downside to this surf paradise, unfortunately. Visiting surfers from around Europe visit Hossegor during the best months, and the good sandbars that pop up get swarmed in no time.

Stuff To Bring:  Spring comes with sunshine and a couple extra degrees in the air and water temp. So be ready for a chill.  In terms of boards, bring whatever you need to charge some solid barrels, and your Plonka surfboard for the smaller days. During autumn , a 3/2 to be comfortable and be prepared to get tubed. In the winter months, the full head-to-toe kit is required as it can get absolutely icy.

More Information: You probably want to try picking up at least a little Frenchie language. It’s not the easiest language to learn, but the locals appreciate someone who’s trying to speak French but sounding like a fool over someone who can’t be bothered to make an effort at all. Give it a shot and try learn a few words in French. OK

Travel Tips

-It always goes flat before a trip. Keep in shape by swimming a few days a week at a local pool.

 

Hossegor Surf Consistency

Chances of getting over head surf in the months:

March  84%

April   78%   

May    65%

June   50%
July 40%
August 46%
September 72%
October 80%
November 84%

 

That said, you can score perfect waves in France. With a little luck, you could be surfing green beachbreak barrels, solid rock shelf peaks in Basque country to the South. And perhaps the best river mouth left in the whole freaking universe Mundaka best surfing in Spain . Couple that with fine wine, gorgeous women, hundreds of years of history and architecture, and you've got the potential for the surf trip of a lifetime. 

 

Spring

Spring is a quirky time on the Atlantic coast. The water starts to warm back up and a few sporadic residual North Atlantic swells stagger down the coast. The sandbars are ragged from the winter's onslaught; the wind doesn't really know which direction to blow , but mostly offshore in the morning dawn patrol and evening sunset sessions. 

Crowds are low as the tourists only arrive nearer to summer months starting in July really. 

 

Summer

Where else can you surf completely butt-ass naked (if you like) all morning, walk up the beach and grab a cafe creme and a pain au chocolate for breakfast, smile at perhaps the most genetically perfect women on the face of the planet. Welcome to Hossegor- the fantasy of South-West of France. 

 

While the fantasy most definitely happens, the reality tends to be different. The Atlantic has an annoying tendency to go completely dead flat for days on end mainly in summer months July August and it can rain for days on end in summer too. 

 

Fall

Fall is why you came to the Bay of Biscay. The weather patterns begin to shift sometime in September -- low-pressure systems start forming up in the North Atlantic and send lines of swell marching straight into France's beach breaks, the water starts to get a little chillier, the tourists have all pretty much left and the summertime sea breeze starts to clock around offshore. 

 

Winter

Up until fairly recently, only cold-water hell men and crazy people surfed in France in the winter. With water temps hovering in the 11 degree range and giant, shifting beach break on a good day is just as fun as in summer just add the cold factor and a bit of Biscay power sets. The last couple of years have been really good in Winter consistent as ever.  

 

But with the advent of new wetsuit technology and a steadily increasing local surfing population not content to surf just eight months a year, crowds have increased. At spots with defined peaks and channels like Guethary and Lafitena and La Piste, you will be surfing with others on any given midwinter's day.

From November to February, size will not be an issue -- strap on your 5/3mm, grab your weapon of choice drive around till you find a perfect peak to surf.