Since the 1er March 2022, the signage relating to swimming has been reworked. The shapes and colors of the flags are changed to match international standards. The objective: to ensure better security and to be better understood by foreigners. But how is it going this season? What is changing in Bidart?
Our team tells you everything!
A new signage
From the start of the season we will see new flags (aka flames) appearing on our 6 supervised beaches, here are some illustrations to show you the small adjustments that will take place.
So that everyone can find their way around, information panels will be installed at the entrance to each of the beaches. Here is a small example below.
Daily monitoring
Bathing surveillance
And for this moment at the beach to remain a good memory, safety comes first! In season, our 6 beaches are supervised by the MNS team who watch over the beaches on a daily basis. Find the schedules and periods of accurate monitoring here !
Moreover, do you know the rules of swimming and the practice of the discipline of Coastal Rescue at Sea? We tell you more in the blog post dedicated to the Bidart Ocean Club!
Bathing water quality monitoring
Security also involves bathing water quality which is checked daily!
Indeed, the Basque Country Agglomeration Community, in close connection with the municipality, carries out daily monitoring of bathing areas, with, among other things, analyzes of bathing water.
In parallel, theARS carries out spot checks on all the beaches.
→ Information relating to bathing conditions (color of the flag and opening of the beach) on all the beaches of the Basque Coast is broadcast in real time on the free application Kalilo. (Available on Google Play and on theApple Store).
The guarantee of the European Blue Flag Label
The Blue Flag is the guarantee of finding clean beaches but also of benefiting from bathing water of excellent quality, measures in favor of sustainable tourism and actions to raise awareness of the environment. In 2021, five of our six beaches had this label, we are awaiting the result of this year's audit!
Where is the beach?
And if Bidart has the most beautiful beaches on the Basque Coast (yes, we are a bit chauvinistic), we are proud of their diversity! Whether framed by cliffs, in the immediate vicinity of the road, family-friendly, more confidential, covered at high tide, magnificent at low tide, easy to access, difficult to reach, they are all worth the detour!
And to find out a little more about our beaches, we present them to you from north to south, all you have to do is make your choice!
North of Bidart, and a stone's throw from Biarritz, it is overlooked by its emblematic castle.
It is very beautiful and easy to access with its car parks nearby. At low tide, it reveals rocky areas that make it even more .
The wildest and largest of Bidart's beaches. It is difficult to access and has no parking. You have to take a long path at the end of a dead end to get there.
It owes its name to the beautiful house which overlooks it, built for the Queen Nathalie of Serbia, which was a casino and tea room during the “crazy years".
Below a remarkable circus of nature qualified as a sensitive natural space by the department, Erretegia is also the starting point of the Coastal path.
Transformed by man a few decades ago to make it more urban and conducive to tourism, it fortunately benefited from an ambitious renaturation plan last year.
The concept: eliminate roads and invasive exotic plants, adapt to climate change and let local nature regain its rights and promote the development of biodiversity.
At the heart of the village, it is the meeting place for families and surfers. Its dike makes it recognizable among 1000, it is reduced at high tide, but you can still enjoy its promenade and the terrace of the snack restaurant. Anaia Open all day.
Playground for the children of Bidart licensed at the surf club of Bidatekko, the beach of the Center has a special place for bidartars. To learn more check out the blog post on “BKO”.
Attractive and easily accessible, it is located near many shops and restaurants. It is located at the mouth of the eponymous river and also marks the starting point of the Greenway of Uhabia, cycle path and footpath, which crosses Bidart along the river.
It is also labeled Handicap and offers a tiralo service reservation. Besides, Timothee tested for you! Click here to discover his feedback! In the summer, Allyson of Bidarte'O installs a heated swimming pool on the beach to liven up his swimming lessons!
South of Bidart, it is known to surfers for its mythical wave.
It is surrounded by rocky areas which are real small pools at low tide!
Our beaches are beautiful, and to preserve them, the municipality has set up a responsible cleaning system that varies according to the season!
Clean beaches operation
Our coastline is an asset, we must know how to preserve it. The municipality attaches particular importance to cleaning the beaches but not just anyhow, we explain everything to you 👇
- Out of season: weekly manual cleaning
the 1er October to May 31, on Fridays between 8 a.m. and 12 p.m., two teams divide up the beaches on our coast. Equipped with light collection vehicles, they travel the beaches on foot to manually pick up waste from human consumption. Natural elements, such as wood and algae, are left on the sand.
- In summer: daily mechanical cleaning
the 1er June to September 30, every day between 7 am and 10 am, mechanical collection using tractors equipped with harrows and a sieving machine is maintained daily due to the high number of visitors to the beaches. In addition, the teams also carry out the collection of trash cans and carry out the possible desilting of public spaces (in particular access ramps and pathways).
The waste collected is collected in a sorting center and then sent to various recycling channels.
- Tidal ferries available to walkers
A little over 3 years ago, the town experimented with the first tidal ferries on the Basque Coast. Given their success, they are repeated each year out of season on the beaches of Uhabia, Erretegia, Pavillon Royal and Ilbarritz. They allow everyone to collect the waste brought by the tides. They are then emptied by the association ADELI (integration site workshop).
Speaking of tide… It's always useful to know when it's high, or when it's low! And for that, nothing beats a little tide calendar ! But you can always watch what it looks like, via our live cam from the Center Beach!
Be careful, our beaches change with the rhythm of the tides, which sometimes lead to the formation of formidable baïnes...
But in fact ? What is a bath? How and why is it formed? What are the risks for swimming? Answers provided in video by theNew Aquitaine Coast Observatory !
