Biscarrosse – Plage Nord

Biscarrosse · Landes · France

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The northern end of Biscarrosse-Plage, in front of the built-up dune with its viewing platform, is a straight run of sand broken up by deep baïnes. Like most of this coast it is a pure sandbar wave, so the peaks move with every storm, but when the banks are good and the wind is off the land the waves are powerful and often tube. It is one of the more serious beaches in the area and suits confident intermediate and better surfers rather than learners. The beach is busy enough to host a WSL junior event each spring.

Level
Intermediate
Break
Beach break, sand
Waves
Lefts and rights
Crowd
Busy
Season
autumn, spring, summer
Boards
A shortboard for the hollow days; a fish or hybrid when summer swells are small.

When it works

✓ A clean 1–2 m west-northwest swell on a rising or falling mid tide with a light east wind, ideally early in the morning.

When it doesn't

✕ Swells over about 2.5 m close out the banks, and any westerly sea breeze turns it messy quickly.

Watch out for

  • rips
  • currents
  • shorebreak

Best months

April, May, June, September, October, November

Local tips

Watch from the viewing platform on the dune before you paddle out and pick a bank with a defined channel next to it, since the baïnes here pull hard. Dawn is usually best, before the summer sea breeze. The beach lies between the central lifeguard post and the north roundabout, where a surf school sits on the dune.

Getting there

Park along the seafront at the north end of Biscarrosse-Plage (avenue des Échassiers area) and walk straight over the dune; the beach is a couple of minutes from the road.

History

Biscarrosse Plage Nord hosts a WSL Junior Pro each May and the Kiwi Surf Festival in late July.

Travel notes

How often it works
The beach faces the open Atlantic, so it gets waves most days of the year. Both distant swells and local wind waves reach it. Above about 2.5 m the sandbanks tend to close out, with waves breaking all at once.
Crowd and vibe
Weekdays are usually quiet. Weekends and the summer holidays bring crowds. The north end draws more serious surfers, and wannasurf mentions some localism from older shortboarders. Wait your turn and don't drop in.
Camping and vans
Camping Campéole Le Vivier is in the pines about 700 m from the sea, roughly 1.5 km north. The Vivier motorhome aire, with 155 places, is next to it. From 1 May to 30 September, Biscarrosse bans motorhome parking from midnight to 8 am outside the official aires. Nearest campsite about 1.5 km away.
Facilities
The Plage Nord has toilets, showers, a bar-restaurant, a picnic area, free parking and wheelchair access. A surf school sits on the dune and lifeguards work nearby in summer.
Water quality
All six of Biscarrosse's bathing sites are rated excellent in the official French rating (national open data, 2022). In 2025, 58 of the 61 Landes sites were rated excellent by the regional health agency (ARS).

Ideal conditions

Swell
W–NW best, WSW–NNW works
Size
1–2 m offshore swell; starts at 0.8 m, holds to 2.8 m
Period
8 s minimum, best from 12 s
Wind
Offshore ENE–SE; handles onshore up to 12 km/h
Tide
mid best
Faces
W (278°)

Live cam

Cams © their operators, shown from the operator's own feed.

Nearby spots

All spots in Landes · All spots

Sources