Located less than half an hour from the ocean, on the borders of Chalosse and Marensin and on the edge of the forest, Dax, by its preserved environment, combines all the advantages. A commercial and welcoming city, its quality as an important spa town gives it a large reception capacity with many gourmet stops. The commercial offer is particularly important, with more than 400 shops, but above all the festive and bullfighting culture is very strong here. Every summer, more than 800,000 people arrive and are welcomed for the Feria. A city on a human scale, with more than 22,000 inhabitants (Dacquois), it forms, with the agglomeration, the first living area in the Landes department. But above all, Dax is a welcoming place where smiles come naturally
Capital of thermalism
Aquae, Acqs, d'Acqs and Dax, its successive names, cannot hide the specificity of this city of water and thermalism with the famous spring of La Nèhe at 64 °C. This thermal water mixed with the Adour silt gives Terdax, the famous Dax mud used in all the thermal baths of the city. The Romans named this city "Aquae Tarbellicae" after the Tarbelles who occupied the area when they arrived and because of the presence of hot springs. This indigenous tribe had built a lake city on the river. Still in Roman times, a bridge was built that made the city a strategic commercial centre. When in the 12th century, Eleanor of Aquitaine married the future King of England, Henry II Plantagenet, the city came under English domination and the rest until the end of the Hundred Years' War. In the 19th century, in order to open the town and develop the thermal activity, the Dacquois destroyed the ramparts and the medieval castle. At the same time, Dax benefited from the pronounced taste of Napoleon III and Empress Eugenie for water cities. In 1894, a first thermal complex was built. Clemenceau, Sarah Bernhardt, Sacha Guitry, personalities from all walks of life will contribute to giving the acquired thermalism all its prestige. Today, nearly 50,000 people take the waters each year in the city, whose therapeutic values are recognized, particularly in rheumatology and phlebology
Heritage, well-being, culture, traditions, modernity
The city of Dax has chosen to enhance its heritage by combining pragmatism and urban life. The Biraben building, near the restored ramparts, designed in 1920 by the architect Albert Pomade, has been refurbished. The Hôtel des Baignots, along the Adour river, a jewel of 19th century thermal baths with its pretty facade, is now transformed into apartments. The district of La Fontaine Chaude (Source de la Nèhe), an emblematic monument of the city, has been completely remodelled up to the race square to make life easier for pedestrians, invited to use the free shuttles, the Vitenville. Taking advantage of the city also means being able to travel and park (Cyclenville, self-service bicycles). The Greater Dax Urban Community has set up a PEM - Multimodal Exchange Point (buses, taxis, cars, bicycles). Essential facilities for France's leading spa town (50,000 people taking the waters). The eastern bypass gives a new lease of life to the rush hour. Dax also promotes the arts, nature and sport. Ephemeral banks in July and August (deckchairs available, riverside activities), Maison de la Barthe (Natura 2000 site), surrounding hiking trails, new sports complex in Saubagnacq called the Colette Besson stadium, etc
Long live the Feria!
The Dax Arena was built in 1913. But in the spa town, the history of bullfighting began first in the streets of the town in 1784, then on the Place de la Course from 1813, with the first wooden arenas. The current arenas designed by the Landes architect Albert Pomade, in a Hispano-Moorish style, are an imposing building with red tiles and blinds on a white background. They were enlarged in 1932. In 2003, their renovation made it possible to highlight the main facade of the building. Its Andalusian-style architecture is reminiscent of the toro plazas of Seville, Córdoba and Granada. At the entrance to Théodore-Denis Park, stop in front of the superb statues of the bull and the courier (racing cow), works by the Saint-Etienne sculptor Christian Maas made of lost wax, an ancestral method from Iran. Today, 8,000 places are available to aficionados for the bullfights of the Feria in August and Toros y Salsa in September. And in August, party friends, put on your red scarf and white shirt for this must-see event in the Landes! Novillada, bullfighting and the rejon race (form of bullfighting on horseback) in the arenas, bullfighting in the streets and bodegas without discontinuité ! The whole city is in jubilation for this mythical event! A few days later, music will be in the spotlight with the Toros y Salsa music-sports festival.
Smart info
When? When? You can of course go there all year round, even if the arrival of the sunny days and the Indian summer are obviously more pleasant. To attend the 2019 edition of the Feria, visit the entire city from August 14 to 18
Getting there. By train, by car on the A63 and A64 motorways or by plane (Biarritz-Anglet-Bayonne and Pau airports), everything is possible.
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