Postcard-pretty Ascain has a lovely village square edged by traditional half-timbered houses a galleried Basque church, a fronton, and several bars.

Take the D4 from here and wind up to Col de Saint-lgnace(160 m) for fine views south-east to La Rhune(900 m), where covens of Basque witches were once supposed to congregate. A little train grinds its way up to the summit in summer, and there is a superb vista stretching north to the Landes and across the Pyrénées Basques to Spain. On foot the climb takes around two hours.

Follow the D4 to Sare and Aïnhoa, or you can hike it or the GR10. Both villages are pretty, the latter with a main street lined with fine 17thC houses displaying their founding dates carved into stone lintels. From here the D20 will lead you back to the D918 at Espelette, pimento capital of the region, and on to Cambo-les-Bains.