This week’s dream: the laid-back charm of Cap Ferret

It’s currently in vogue among the Parisian elite, but Cap Ferret, on France’s Atlantic coast, remains far less “flashy” than its near-namesake, the southern port of Cap Ferrat. In place of super-yachts, “five-star grand-dame hotels” and Ferraris, this narrow promontory some 40 miles west of Bordeaux has sailing boats, oyster shacks and “modest, if lovingly maintained, vintage cars”. It’s in this simplicity that its charm principally lies, says Kate Maxwell in the FT – and in the wild beauty of its sweeping beaches, pine forests and tiny coves. Stretching southwards for 11 miles, it partially encloses a huge, shallow lagoon, Arcachon Bay, on the other side of which lies the tallest sand dune in Europe.

In the village of Cap Ferret itself is the area’s best bistro, Chez Hortense – known for its “piquant, garlicky” mussels – and the “creeper-clad” Maison du Bassin, an “immaculate, oldschool” hotel. To the west, on the cape’s ocean-facing coast, La Plage de l’horizon is pounded by six-foot waves and is home to France’s second-oldest surf school. From there, cycle tracks wend through the trees, past modernist millionaires’ villas – all “folded” pleasingly into the landscape – to the little settlement of L’herbe, facing the lagoon. The waters here are calm: ideal for swimming and paddling. Large areas are given over to oyster cultivation: 60% of the oysters eaten in France come from this bay.

From the cape’s southern tip, it’s a brief ferry hop to the “quirky” seaside town of Arcachon, with its “elegant” pier and tasteful boutiques. Neighbouring Pyla sur Mer has two particularly sophisticated hotels – La Co(o)rniche and Hotel Ha(a)ïtza, which have interiors by Philippe Starck and his daughter Ara, respectively. And near by is the 100-metre high Grande Dune du Pilat. Climbing it is hard work, but running back down – inevitably “accelerating wildly” as you reach the water’s edge – is fabulous fun.