Hotel de Silhouette

Formerly rather workaday and scruffy, the streets that surround Biarritz’s covered market hall and fish market (every morning and full of excellent local produce) have become the trendiest in town, full of little bars and restaurants where locals and visitors meet and chat together (try Café Jean for excellent pintxos and glasses of Patxaran). Here a fine old house has been converted into Hotel de Silhouette, with a light filled ground floor that combines reception, sitting area, breakfast room and bar and leads to an unusual feature amongst the town’s hotels: a lovely green garden. Bedrooms contrive to be both functional and funky, with bold wallpapers and splashes of colour. Those in the roof have balconies, and they all have interesting views, either onto the garden or the market. The private parking is a real bonus.