Auberge Ostape

Rooms

Ostapé’s 22 guest suites fan out between the original farmhouse and 5 newer Navarrese-style houses. Suites range in size from Deluxe to Signature.

Whichever type of suite you choose, it will be vast and will come with a stylish commingling of antique and modern furniture. The overall colour scheme is cream and white, and the decorative brief chic-rustic: muted beige sofas or leather chesterfields, heavy quilted bedcovers and cushions, and terracotta or provençal tomette tiled floors, replaced in some bedrooms with beautiful oak parquet. Some rooms have framed butterfly collections, others antique prints or bright contemporary paintings, perhaps an ornately carved headboard or a low table from India or a draped four poster; there’s not a hint of chain hotel uniformity.

Bathrooms are just as plush, with chunky handmade tiles from floor to ceiling, heated towel rails, and separate baths and showers in the larger suites. Some have twin standing, retro-style sinks and taps, others more contemporary surface-top bowls.

Features include:

• Air conditioning
• Bathrobes
• Coffee / tea making
• Cots available
• Hairdryer
• Minibar
• Safe box
• Terrace/balcony
• Toiletries
• TV
• WiFi

Eating

The restaurant at Ostapé is one of the main reasons for staying. It has built up a reputation for some of the best Basque cuisine in the area, sourcing all produce from local farmers whilst making full use of the hotel's extensive vegetable gardens. The cuisine follows the seasons, reworks classic Basque dishes and the presentation is cook-book perfect.

Dinner is a visual as well as a culinary feast: expect hake with candied kumquats, lamb with smoked cheese, barbecued white asparagus, or pigeon in apple and peanut sauce. A mix of a la carte and 3- or 5-course tasting menus are offered for lunch and dinner Thursday-Sunday (note that there is no lunch service Monday-Wednesday). For the rest of the week, a smaller but equally as gourmet bistro menu is available for evening meals. The wine menu is also impressive; as well as classic tastes from the best vineyards of France, there’s an interesting selection of locally produced wine.

Breakfast (extra charge) is also a banquet. A buffet is laid up in the smaller of the 3 adjacent dining rooms and you're faced with freshly baked cakes or brioches, as well as a number of different home baked breads, local yoghurt, freshly squeezed orange and organic apple juice, Spanish charcuterie and cheeses, croissants and pains au chocolat.

Features include:

• Bar
• Restaurant
• Vegetarian options

Activities

• Walk down to Bidarray where you can hire a mountain bike for exploring the valley
  
• Visit colourful local markets, medieval towns and bastide villages, historic churches and a number of grand chateaux; the hotel can arrange bespoke day tours
  
• The hotel offers personalised afternoon cooking lessons: decide with the chef which regional dishes you want to learn, then whip them up with his help, and devour them for dinner
  
• Thrill out with a day of white-water rafting and canyoning or catch a bird's eye view of this region with a microlighting flight
  
• Drive to Biarritz or Bayonne and bask on the golden beaches, or try your hand at surfing
  
• Or visit the historic pilgrims' town of St. Jean Pied de Port, with its hilltop citadel, its pretty houses of pink-grey schist and its Monday livestock market - followed by a communal game of pelote
  
• Back at the estate, there's a heated pool, hammam, sauna and fitness room

Activities on site or nearby include:

• Cycling
• Fishing
• Golf
• Hiking
• Historical sites
• Horse riding
• Rafting
• Shopping / markets
• Surfing

Kids

Kids are welcome at Ostapé, though we think the atmosphere is more suited to adults. All the suites have room for a baby cot, and all except the Deluxe Suites can sleep up to 2 additional guests on sofabeds or extra beds.

Best for:

Children (4-12 years), Teens (over 12)

Family friendly accommodation:

Cots Available, Extra Beds Available

For more family-friendly places, see our Kids Collection

Location

Ostapé is hidden in the foothills of the Pyrenees looking out across the Nive valley. It's a 30-minute drive from St Jean Pied-du-Port and slightly under an hour’s drive from Bayonne.

By Air:
Biarritz-Bayonne Airport (38km) or Bordeaux Airport (220kms). Click on the links below for a list of airlines serving these.

From the Airport
We'd recommend hiring a car to get here, partly for ease and mainly so you have the freedom to explore the area while you're here - see our car rental recommendations.

By Train:
If you prefer to travel overland from the UK, take the Eurostar to Paris, then the TGV to Biarritz (35km); there's a minor station at Bidarray (3km).

Detailed directions will be sent to you when you book through i-escape.com

More on getting to France and getting around