How to Spend a Day in Cap Ferret

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post, I paid for this trip myself. All recommendations and opinions are my own.

Our two week holiday in France took us to Toulouse, Cacassonne, Bordeaux, Saint-Émilion and Bergerac. But as it was the end of summer, I was keen to fit in a bit of relaxation and beach time, which led me to discover the beautiful seaside resort town of Arcachon (pronounced Ark-a-shon) in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. This stunning location is where the French have been coming to summer for generations. It’s a short train ride from Bordeaux, and many tourists find themselves here for a day trip. We stayed four nights in Arcachon and whilst there, we spent a day in Cap Ferret, the headland in the Arcachon basin. Read my post about my stay in Arcachon Bay.

Cap Ferret is famous for its oysters, lighthouse, pine forests, beautiful beaches, and extensive cycle paths. To get to Cap Ferret, we took the 10am ferry from the Jetée Thiers in Arcachon. The ferry took us across to Jetée Bélisaire which is in the main town of Lège Cap Ferret. It only took about 30 minutes and the ride took us closer to Bird Island (Île aux Oiseaux), which sits in the middle of the basin. The island is covered and revealed as the tides come in and out. As we arrived at Jetée Bélisaire, we were able to get a closer look at the oyster beds that surround the jetty.

We headed off to hire some bikes for the day. There are a number of bike rentals in Cap Ferret, including a convenient one that’s located near the jetty. But we decided to hire our bikes from Cap Gyro (7 Boulevard de la Plage, 33970 Lège-Cap-Ferret) as they had good reviews, cheap rentals, and were only a short walk from the jetty. I also liked the idea of riding around on their retro styled bikes, but in the end they weren’t as much fun as I had anticipated, as they were rather heavy and didn’t have many gears, so were harder to cycle around than a standard bike. Especially as our legs were a bit weary from our bike ride the day before. However, the paths were quite flat around the area, so we did manage just fine.

Our first stop for the day was the lighthouse, Le Phare du Cap Ferret. However, on the way there, we cycled past the local markets (24 Avenue du Monument Saliens, 33970 Lège-Cap-Ferret), so we stopped off for a quick look. They operate daily during the summer, or on Wednesdays and Saturdays and sell fresh food, clothing and beach ware and locally made items.

When we got to the Lighthouse, it was quite busy as its a popular tourist attraction. There are bike racks just out the front. You do need to pay for a ticket to enter the lighthouse and to walk up to the top. Inside there was a small historical exhibit about the lighthouse, however, as it was only in French, we weren’t able to understand much of it, but I did enjoy looking at the old pictures. We then headed up the 258 steps to the top of the lighthouse to take in the views. They were the most spectacular views of the Arcachon basin. We enjoyed 360° views of the area including Bird Island (Île aux Oiseaux), Dune du Pilat, the oyster farms, pine forests and stunning coastline. Beside the lighthouse is also a WWII bunker that is open to visitors.

We continued on our journey and cycled along the dedicated tar sealed cycle path through the pine forest. It provided shelter from the harsh summer sun. This was a peaceful path, the warm breeze wafted the smell of the surrounding ocean and pine trees towards us. I grabbed some pine cones to take home with me so I could smear them in fat and hang them out for the birds. They also looked great on the fire mantel at Christmas.

We followed the path for 3km and then took the turnoff towards the historic fishing village of L’Herbe (there are clear signposts along the path). To get to the coastal heart of the village, we cycled down Boulevard de la Plage, where we found a large bike rack area where the road meets Avenue de l’Herbe. I would recommend parking your bike here and exploring on foot as we did, because all of the paths here are soft sand.

L’Herbe is known for its oyster farms and its many oyster restaurants. On the main street of Avenue de l’Herbe is a few restaurants, and at first it wasn’t obvious where all of the beachfront restaurants were located. We headed down Avenue de l’Herbe and eventually saw an unnamed sandy road that turns off to the right. We then saw the row of restaurants with their menu boards out front, nestled amongst the oyster farming equipment scattered around area. All of the restaurants offer pretty much the same menu and prices and are perfectly placed on the waters edge, so you can’t really go wrong here.

We sat down at the restaurant near the end called Kykouyou (Village de pêcheurs de, 33950 Lège-Cap-Ferret) and shared a big platter of oysters, prawns, and whelks. It came with one of the best baguettes I’ve ever eaten (I have no idea where they got them from), which I slathered in French butter. We washed it down with their lovely house white wine. The meal was very reasonably priced, we would usually have to pay a lot more for something like this in a city. The location was perfect, right on the water, and we couldn’t have wished for a more beautiful sunny day.

Tips

• To help with your seafood ordering, I’ve included a list of seafood words in French that you will come across in my ‘Practical Tips’ section at the bottom of this post.

After lunch, we decided to enjoy some beach time as we were rather sleepy after our large meal and wine. There are some lovely beach houses here, squeezed together sitting upon the sand, with little sandy lanes running between them. There is a cute little beach just beside the restaurants where we laid out and had a swim. However, if you prefer, the larger main beach called Plage de l’Herbe is just at the end of Avenue de l’Herbe. We had such a lovely time in L’Herbe, that I would happily return here to spend a few days relaxing on the beach and stuffing myself with shellfish. It’s my favourite memory of our holiday in France.

Eventually we motivated ourselves to continue on so we could explore the rest of the headland. We jumped back on our bikes and headed to Le Canon, the neighbouring village. I have to admit that I didn’t enjoy Le Canon as much as L’Herbe, so we didn’t stay long. We made our way over back over to the pine forest cycle path to visit the long stretch of beach on the west side of the headland. We stopped at Plage de la Garonne and clambered over the sand dunes (killer on the achilles) to get a good view of the coastline. This side of the coast is very exposed and windy, so popular for those enjoying water sports. I would be cautious about swimming here if you aren’t a confident ocean swimmer. If we had had more time, I would have loved to have taken a long walk along the beach. But time was getting on, so we jumped back on our bikes and continued down the forest bike path back to Lège Cap Ferret.

After returning our bikes, we walked back to the jetty and stopped to enjoy a drink at L’Escale (33970 Lège-Cap-Ferret) whilst we waited for the final ferry. My husband decided to try something different and ordered a Picon beer which is popular in France. He didn’t really know what he was ordering and ended up with a terrible drink. I Googled it and discovered that Picon is a caramel-coloured, flavoured bitters. It’s drunk as an apéritif, and in this case, served with beer. It is made from a base of fresh oranges which are dried and mixed with alcohol. It also contains gentian and quinquina, sugar, syrup and caramel. I tried it too, and it tasted awful, I really don’t know how people love this stuff!

There is a popular restaurant in Lège Cap Ferret called Chez Hortense (26 Avenue du Sémaphore, 33970 Lège-Cap-Ferret). I would love to have had dinner here, but as it wasn’t peak summer time, the last ferry was at 6.30pm so we didn’t get time to visit. However, before jumping on the ferry we did grab some delicious custard tarts for only €1 each from a little bakery street stall by the jetty. When we got back to Arcachon, we had a lovely dinner at Le Pitt, which you can read about in my post Exploring Arcachon Bay – Where the French Spend Their Summer, that covers our stay in the Arcachon Bay.

If you are planning to stay in Cap Ferret, I’ve included some of the best rated accommodation options in Cap Ferret below.

Accommodation Options in Cap Ferret

Search available accommodation in Cap Ferret

Budget

I’m afraid there isn’t much budget options here, but these are the cheapest.

• My Second Home – Le Verdot – Résidence EXCLUSIVE – These apartments are located by the beach, Plage de la Vigne, mid-way between L’Herbe and Lège Cap Ferret.
• Le Pavillon Bleu – These rooms are near the beach, Plage de l’Horizon, and has a restaurant serving meals.

Moderate

• Le Sommet Des Dunes – These apartments are located in Grand Piquey with an onsite pool.
• Au Phare du Cap – This apartment is near the Cap Ferret lighthouse.
• une maison lumineuse sous les pins – Two bedroom house in Le Canon.

Luxury

• Côté Sable – Located in the heart of Cap Ferret and near the beach, La Plage du Centre.
• Domaine du Ferret Balnéo & Spa – Located in the north of Cap Ferret, in the village of Les Mimosas which is near the nature reserve, Réserve Naturelle des Prés Salés d’Arès et de Lège.
• Yamina Lodge – Located near the Cap Ferret lighthouse.

Practical Tips for Visiting Cap Ferret

• How long should I spend in Cap Ferret? We happily spent an entire day here, but felt a bit rushed to see it all. Personally, if I was to return I would love to spend a few nights here so I could really take advantage of the beautiful beaches and stuff my self full of shell fish.
• Getting to Cap Ferret
  • Ferry: There is a ferry service that runs from Jetée Bélisaire at Cap Ferret to Le Moulleau and Jetée Thiers. There is also a ferry from Jetée du Canon at Le Canon to Jetée Thiers. They run more frequently during the summer months. You can take your cycle bike on the ferries, but you will need to pay an additional fee. For ferry timetables, see the ferry website basin-arcachon-info.com.
  • Fly: The closest airport to Cap Ferret is Bordeaux airport.
  • Train: You can get a train into Arcachon which is connected to the main rail line via Bordeaux, then get the ferry across to Cap Ferret.
  • Bus: You can get the CITRAM line 601 bus from Bordeaux to Cap Ferret.
  • Drive: The main highway into Cap Ferret is the D106.
• Tourist Information Centres in the area:
  • Cap Ferret – 12 Avenue de l’Océan, 33970 Lège-Cap-Ferret
  • Arcachon – au Théâtre – Olympia, 21 Avenue du Général de Gaulle, 33120 Arcacho
  • La Teste-de-Buch – 13 bis, rue Victor Hugo, 33260 La Teste-de-Buc
  • Gujan-Mestras – 37 Avenue du Maréchal de Lattre de Tassigny, 33470 Gujan-Mestras
• Getting around Cap Ferret:
  • Tram: There is a little tram that operates every afternoon from April to September. It departs about every 30 minutes and runs the 2 km between Plage de l’horizon and Jetée de Bélisaire.
  • Cycling: Cycling is the easiest way to get around Cap Ferret and the surrounding area. There are dedicated cycle paths through the entire area and it is mostly all flat, so you don’t need to be super fit. It can be cheaper to hire your bike for several days instead of hiring it daily. However, there are a few things to factor in – your will need a place to store it securely when you are not using it, and you will need to pay extra to take your bike across on the ferries. Some tips for cycling safely in Cap Ferret – cycle to the right as if you were driving here (this is essential for those of us that are used to left hand driving). Also ring your bell to warn people you are approaching them as the pedestrians tend to spill out into the cycle path. Also ring your bell when passing slower cyclists to warn them, as there are a lot of ‘shaky’ cyclist that have a tendency to weave a bit.
  • Drive: There are well paved roads around Cap Ferret and there is parking at the beaches, towns, sites and attractions.
• Eating and drinking out in France: Due to the different licensing in France, some café’s and restaurants are only licensed to sell alcohol with food, so in order to drink you must also order food. Bars have a different license that allows them to sell drinks without food. From my experience, establishments do try to make this clear to tourists, but it does end up causing confusion for some.
• Language: French. Here are a few French words to get you started. I’ve also included a list of the type of seafood related words you will likely come across.
  • Yes = oui (wee)
  • No = non (no)
  • Please = sil vous plait (seal voo play)
  • Thank you = merci (mare-see)
  • Hello = bonjour (boh(n)-zhoor)
  • Good evening = bonsoir (boh(n) swarh)
  • Le poisson = fish
  • Les fruits de mer = seafood
  • Le saumon = salmon
  • Le saumon fumé = smoked salmon
  • La Crevette = prawns/shrimp
  • Le homard = lobster
  • Les moules = mussels
  • Les huitres = oysters
  • Les coquilles Saint-Jacques = scallops
  • Le bulot = whelks (a delicious sea snail)
• Currency: Euro
• Tipping: The service charge is included in the bill, so there is no need to tip.
• Electricity: The electrical current is 220-240 volts, 50-60 Hz. Wall outlets take the European two round prong plugs. However, you are better off purchasing a worldwide adaptor that can be used in France as well other countries. At least then you can potentially get some further use out of it on future vacations. If you’re taking a number of electronics with you, then I would recommend purchasing a couple of these adaptors.
• Navigating: We use Google’s free Offline Maps. Google Offline Maps allows you to access free maps for navigating that can be used offline i.e. you don’t need WIFI, data, or roaming to be able to use them. Follow this detailed guide on how to use Googles Offline Maps. Using your phone as a GPS will drain your battery quickly, so use a portable battery charger which you can use to charge your phone and any other USB chargeable devices. Arcachon has an excellent tourist map which is huge and covers the entire Arcachon basin including Cap Ferret, and details the bike paths, sites and attractions. I recommend you pick one up from one of the Tourist Information Centres listed above.