FRANCE incentive
Biarritz and the Basque Country
A 4 day/3 night cultural break for corporate groups.
Base: Biarritz
Accommodation: central hotel
Activities: gastronomy
Basque country discovery
Guggenheim Museum visit
cruise in outrigger canoe
Extras: possibility of golfing, casino evening, seminar/meeting facilities
Access: direct flights into Biarritz airport (15 mins hotel) from London-Stansted and Dublin
Biarritz is the Monte Carlo of the French Atlantic coast. A 19th century seaside resort where the crowned heads of Europe would jostle for space on the broad promenade, taking in the bracing Ocean air and admiring the breakers crashing on to la Grande Plage in front of the Empress Eugénie's Grand Palais.
Nothing much has changed in the past hundred years except that it's now the surfers jostling for a go at the big breakers while uncrowned heads try to win their fortunes back in the Art Déco casino.
But Biarritz is more than just an historical anomaly; its the gateway to the Basque Country, a swathe of territory stretching from the SW corner of France round the corner into N Spain – a rugged green turbulence of ocean-washed coastline, a tapestry of pasture-land with incredibly neat red and white houses of the interior reaching up to the Pyrenean peaks. Three other fine towns are dotted along the coast – St-Jean-de-Luz, San Sébastian and Bilbao, all worth a visit for their colour and architecture.
Our relaxed 'Biarritz and the Basque Country' programme (as opposed to our 'Biarritz surf and rafting' programme) concentrates on the cultural and historical aspect of the Basque Country ... as well as the local gastronomy and wines.
Access is relatively simple from UK and Ireland: there are daily flights from Stansted into Biarritz and thrice weekly flights from Dublin.
We suggest a 3 night formula giving participants two complete days (as well as arrival and departure day) in which to get to grips with this fascinating region.
A typical visit has participants arriving in late afternoon at Biarritz airport and settling into their city-centre hotel before exploring the immediate surroundings and dining at the hotel.
The second day is for discovering the immense variety of topography, architecture and gastronomy of the Basque Country. Participants will discover the village of Espelette, home to a pungent red pepper much used in Basque cuisine, la Rhune, sacred mountain of the Basques and St Jean-de Luz, jewel of the Basque coast where a trip across the bay in outrigger canoe is organised.
The following day the group explores the Spanish side to the Basque country with highlights in Bilbao – visit to the astonishing Guggenheim Museum – and a leisurely trawl through the old quarter of San Sebastian.
The final day has free time for meetings, a round of golf or more sight-seeing in Biarritz itself.
All enquiries and reservations to:
+33 561 120 794
Biarritz and the Basque Country
