La Voie Littorale/La Voie de Soulac/La Voie des Anglais runs from the mouth of the Gironde down the coast to Hendaye and the Spanish border.

The Route: The way pilgrims would have come from the north to cross the estuary from Royan, to Hendaye/Irún on the Spanish border. (Those who wish can therefore continue on from there to Santiago via one of the Caminos del Norte or go via the Tunnel Route to join the Camino Francés.) The footpath starts at the Pointe de Grave (the tip of the Médoc peninsula) and runs south, passing directly through the towns of Soulac, Montalivet-les-Bains, Hourtin Plage, Lacanau Océan, Arès, Biganos, Sanguinet, Parentis-en-Born, Mimizan, Moliets-et-Maa, Vieux Boucau, Hossegor, Bayonne, Saint-Jean-de-Luz and finally, Hendaye. The overall distance is approximately 375 km. The natural continuation is along the north coast of Spain, but from Bayonne there are also connections to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (Voie de la Nive) and Pamplona (Voie du Baztan).

Waymarking: In the Gironde this is in the form of posts bearing a yellow stylised scallop pointing the direction of travel, while further south small scallop markers are fastened to trees, walls, etc. This signing is excellent throughout the entire length of the footpath, with the exception of a short, unmarked section between Tarnos and Bayonne.

Terrain: For the most part the path is in forest, although there are some wonderfully attractive sections along lake shores in the départements of both the Gironde and the Landes. Almost all the resorts along the Atlantic coast are visited, and the stretch around the Bassin d’Arcachon is particularly beautiful. North of Bayonne this is all fairly flat walking (the highest dune is 39 metres), but paths can be very sandy underfoot. The Basque country between Bayonne and Hendaye is pleasantly undulating and much more populated.

When to go: Anytime, although many hotels and campsites are closed in winter. Also beware of July and August when all the accommodation is at a premium because of the holiday season.

Accommodation: Plenty of good campsites, an increasing number of which offer pilgrims the use of a tent or mobile home for the night. There are small hotels and chambres d’hôtes in most villages, but pre-booking is advisable. Details of all accommodation and appropriate websites are given in the route guides below.

Maps and guides.

• Please note that the CSJ Guide to the Voie Littorale by Judy Smith is now discontinued and no longer stocked in our Shop.  A PDF version and update is currently available by emailing the CSJ office.  Please consider making a donation to help us cover the costs of making these available.
• The Association des Amis de St Jacques de Compostelle en Aquitaine has a route overview plus PDF guides to stages Le Verdon to Sanguinet, accommodation, online maps and historical information.  All in French. This route is continued by:
• Société Landaise des Amis de Saint Jacques et d’Etudes Compostellanes which has a route overview in English for Sanguinet to Tarnos (just north of Bayonne), with stages (in English) and a PDF (in French) for accommodation.  This route is continued by:
• Association Les Amis du Chemin de Saint Jacques – Pyrénées Atlantiques which has route overviews for going to either Irún or Hendaye.
• A cyclists’ version of the Voie Littorale is shown on the IGN Touring Map of Aquitaine and also on the IGN website.

Cyclists: Certain parts of the walkers’ route are accessible to cyclists but in other places alternatives need to be taken, as detailed in the CSJ PDF guide.

Thanks to Judy Smith