By Shaddo
October 2 2002

Good news! I've just returned from Biarritz (and Bordeaux) and had a wonderful time. At great hardship to myself I took the time to check out the ground, bars and hotels - prepare to be edified. Some of you will know some of this stuff from two years ago. The stadium is on the outskirts of Biarritz, about 20 minutes' walk from the town centre, but bars get a bit thin on the ground halfway into the walk, so the bus may be a better bet. The stadium is on bus route 1, which leaves from outside the tourist information office, which is just off the sea front near the casino. Buses leave every 12 minutes or so throough Saturday, the trip to Stade Aguilera taking about 10 minutes, and costing E1.15 each way. You just need to ask for 'a ticket' which covers a single journey, rather than stating the destination. If there are five or more of you, or you're planning to use the bus a lot, books of tickets are available at a discount.

Once at the ground, you'll need a match ticket, which are sold at of little hatches at the back of the newer of the two main stands, near the athletics field. For the BO/Bourgoin match, tickets were E26 for main stand middle, E21 for main stand ends, and E10 for standing all areas. If you get into the ground early enough, you can stand on the half way line. Most people don't appear to actually go into the ground until just before kick off, probably because there is no bar in the stadium. However, don't panic. There are a couple of temporary bars, again at the back of the main stand, where a half of lager costs E2 and a glass of wine E1 - these are the cheapest bar prices I found in the town! There's no problem with going in and out of the ground to get beer or have a wee, just take your ticket with you.

Hotels are plentiful and cheap, especially around the old port (vieux port) area. I've booked our hotel for the weekend at E40 per twin room per night (yup, that's £13 a head). The old port is also full of bars, cafes and restaurants, including Le Caritz, owned by Pascal Ondarts. For those of you who went last time, the old place has had a revamp, and is now very plush, and looks like it is now called Cafe Leffe, as all the canopies, windows etc have the brewer's logo on. Le Caritz also now does rooms. If you haven't booked a hotel in advance, I'd recommend just going to the old port and asking around - we didn't have a problem and it was the first decent weather they'd had all year.

Le Caritz also does very decent food, although it's not the cheapest place in town. Rue de Vieux Port has plenty of restaurants and brasseries though, and a substantial meal with a decent bottle of wine should cost no more than £15 a head. Specialities include all manner of seafood, including paella, and Lomos (gammon) in a capsicum sauce. Those with fatter wallets and a penchant for top quality fishy things might like to try the Port des Pecheurs, between the old port and casino for some very nice quayside restaurants.

If you're staying for more than a day or so, it is well worth taking a trip into Bayonne (again E1.15 each way on bus no 1), a medieval walled town with loads of winding side streets, interesting buildings and shops.

Although all the reasonable flights to Biarritz have been snapped up by fellow Saints fans, Buzz still has flights to Bordeaux at £110 return. The high speed train from Bordeaux to Biarritz is E56 return, although direct trains are not all that frequent.

Hope you all find the above info of some use, and that it has tempted some of you who were in two minds about the trip to come along. Biarritz is a beautiful town, especially in fine weather (it was 26C and cloudless skies last weekend) and the natives are very friendly. I've got to stay Leinster away in Dublin was a fantastic trip a couple of years ago, but I expect Biarritz 2002 to be pushing for the best away trip ever award.

A la prochaine!