Legend has it that surfing arrived in Biarritz in 1956 when legendary film producer and keen surfer Richard Zanuck saw the potential whilst on location filming for the movie adaptation of Hemmingway's classic novel, 'The Sun Also Rises'.
Today, surfing has very much been integrated into the Basque culture that is so unique. Basque culture is inextricably linked with the sea, master boat builders, fishermen and whalers.
Biarritz has long a maritime history and from the 12th century was the centre of the whaling industry but by the 16th century the whales had changed their migration patterns and the whalers were forced to hunt the waters of the North Atlantic eventually diversifying into cod fishing.
These days the glamour of the Belle Epoque era and up until the late 1950's has faded, when movie stars and royalty were frequent visitors to the Hotel Du Palais which sits at the northern end of the Grande Plage. Today, Biarritz is the hub for the European surf industry, the abundance of world-class waves all in close proximity is a magnet for surfers the world over.
