The beloved coastal town of Arcachon, adored by the French, is located an hour’s drive from Bordeaux. The pine forest, sandy dunes stretching almost three kilometers between the forest and the sea, and a few fishermen’s cottages – this is how Arcachon remained until 1823, when the first hotel with SPA procedures appeared here.
The discovery of the thermal spring of Saint Anne in these areas, the healing properties of seawater and the air of the pine forests, which help treat respiratory diseases, tuberculosis, and other ailments, began to attract wealthy people to Arcachon, resulting in the establishment of a railway line connecting Arcachon with Bordeaux. Its creators, the Pereire brothers, laid the foundation for a new city by building the Winter City, the Moorish Casino, the Chinese Buffet, and the Grand Hotel. Within a few years, Arcachon gained worldwide fame and was flooded with healthy and wealthy tourists.
You can relax in this cozy seaside town at any time of the year. It is often called the city of four seasons, each of which corresponds to its own part of the town.
“Summer” city – this is the clean sandy sea beaches stretching for five kilometers. Here you can swim, stroll along the promenades, sit on the open terraces of restaurants, sipping Bordeaux wines and indulging in oysters and other seafood delicacies just delivered to the table… For those who find such leisure boring, the city offers a casino, yacht trips, horse racing, golf, a water park, and other vacation pleasures.
“Winter” city has been and remains a meeting place for famous politicians, writers, and artists. Here, in the pine forest, stand numerous villas from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. This place has a calming and relaxing effect on those who are tired of the crazy pace, noise, and hustle of the cities.
“Autumn” city – this is a port with a huge number of yachts and pleasure boats. The liveliest place is the area around the Thiers pier. From here, you can take sea trips to any place in the Arcachon Bay: to Bird Island Uazo, to Cape Ferret, to the Dune of Pilat, to the oyster farms of Gujan-Mestras, and to the Ornithological Park. Autumn is the fishing season, and at this time, you can observe an entertaining spectacle at the dock – the unloading of fish.
“Spring” city is inextricably linked to the Pereire Park, where the awakening nature enchants with its landscapes and spring scents.
In Arcachon, you will find attractions such as the Observatory of Saint Cecilia (Observatoire Sainte Cecile), the Moorish Park (Parc Mauresque), the Bremontier Square (Place Bremontier), and the chapel of St. Virgin of Arcachon (la-Vierge-d’Arcachon).
But of course, the most remarkable is the Arcachon Bay, filled in the warm season with yachts with colorful sails gently swaying on the gentle, tamed waves of the shore.
Arcachon knows how to charm tourists at any time of the year, how to make them dream of returning here again and again.
