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Sites de plongée de la Basse des Esclaves
Dive site · France
Advanced divers and up
Is it worth the trip?
64Good out of 100 for your dates
2 days tie for best
Tue 3 · 62 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.9 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 8kn
- Air
- 12°C
Wed 4 · 64 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 13°C
Thu 5 · 64 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 8kn
- Air
- 16°C
Fri 6 · 64 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 3 kn
- Gusts
- 7kn
- Air
- 16°C
Sat 7 · 65 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.4 m
- Wind
- 5 kn
- Gusts
- 8kn
- Air
- 14°C
Sun 8 · 65 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.3 m
- Wind
- 6 kn
- Gusts
- 9kn
- Air
- 20°C
Mon 9 · 61 out of 100
- Sea
- 0.6 m
- Wind
- 13 kn
- Gusts
- 19kn
- Air
- 21°C
Tap a day for sea, wind and water. Full forecast
Forecast: next 9 days
Full forecast- Tue 362, good
- Wed 464, good
- Thu 564, good
- Fri 664, good
- Sat 765, good
- Sun 865, good
- Mon 961, good
- Tue 1064, good
- Wed 1164, good
The site in four facts
- Advancedand up
- Water 16 °C7 mm wetsuit and hood
- Faces NWswell from there reaches it
- Best Jun–Aug7 good days in 7
Full forecast
every day, every number
The score doesn't know currents, the visibility on the day or your certification.
Suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it. Scored for Advanced divers.
| Day | Score | Sea | Wind | Gusts | Air |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 3Nov | 62, good | 0.9 m | 3 kn | 8kn | 12°C |
| Wed 4Nov | 64, good | 0.6 m | 3 kn | 7kn | 13°C |
| Thu 5Nov | 64, good | 0.6 m | 3 kn | 8kn | 16°C |
| Fri 6Nov | 64, good | 0.6 m | 3 kn | 7kn | 16°C |
| Sat 7Nov | 65, good | 0.4 m | 5 kn | 8kn | 14°C |
| Sun 8Nov | 65, good | 0.3 m | 6 kn | 9kn | 20°C |
| Mon 9Nov | 61, good | 0.6 m | 13 kn | 19kn | 21°C |
| Tue 10Nov | 64, good | 0.3 m | 9 kn | 16kn | 21°C |
| Wed 11Nov | 64, good | 0.5 m | 4 kn | 16kn | 20°C |
Sea is the waves near the site, in metres; wind and gusts in knots. "Boats in": gusts that keep dive boats in. More
Tide
- Tue 3 NovLow 04:54 −1.0 mHigh 11:27 +1.2 mLow 17:47 −1.3 m
- Wed 4 NovHigh 00:19 +1.1 mLow 06:11 −1.1 mHigh 12:40 +1.4 mLow 18:54 −1.4 m
- Thu 5 NovHigh 01:21 +1.2 mLow 07:15 −1.3 mHigh 13:39 +1.5 mLow 19:49 −1.5 m
Local clock times; heights about mean sea level. On open coasts the times are usually within a quarter of an hour; in bays, estuaries and on the Gulf of Mexico they can be an hour or more out. Slack water, the safest time to dive where there is current, is about half an hour either side of each high and low. Tide: EOT20 global ocean tide model, Hart-Davis et al. 2021, DGFI-TUM (doi:10.17882/79489), CC BY 4.0. Times and heights computed by us. A model, not a tide table: check a local table before you go.
Forecast updated . It refreshes every three hours. Forecast data: ECMWF, DWD, Météo-France and NOAA, served by Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0). Changed by us. Generated using E.U. Copernicus Marine Service Information.
Best time to go
best Jun–Aug
Good diving days in a typical week, each month, for Advanced divers, from 2016 on (ERA5 history scored the same way).
- Jan4of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Jan
- Feb3of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Feb
- Mar4of 7: a trip from Sat 6 Mar
- Apr6of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Apr
- May6of 7: a trip from Sat 1 May
- Jun7of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Jun
- Jul7of 7: a trip from Sat 3 Jul
- Aug7of 7: a trip from Sat 7 Aug
- Sep6of 7: a trip from Sat 4 Sept
- Oct5of 7: a trip from Sat 2 Oct
- Nov4of 7: a trip from Wed 4 Nov
- Dec4of 7: a trip from Sat 5 Dec
Tap a month to see this spot for a trip then.
Typical, not a forecast: the sea and the mean wind of each day, with no gusts or rain in the history.
Map
the site and its town
Sites de plongée de la Basse des Esclaves on Google Maps · Directions
Each place wears its best day on these dates: green good, amber fair, pale red poor, as the key says.
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One finger scrolls the page; two fingers move the map. Pins are our own positions. Map OpenFreeMap, © OpenMapTiles, data © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Live webcam
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Live webcam
Rocher de la vierge, 4 km away
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About
the place in full, sources, credits
About Sites de plongée de la Basse des Esclaves
It suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it. The coast faces NW: swell from the NW reaches it, and wind from the SE blows out to sea. No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 11 km away. The sea is about 13°C in January, its coldest month (7 mm semi-dry or a drysuit), and 23°C in August, its warmest (5 mm wetsuit). For Advanced divers the best months are usually June, July and August, with about 7 good days in 7; in February, about 3. From the weather of past years. The town to stay in is Biarritz. Within 5 km we also list 8 surf spots and 1 wind sports spot.
- What it is No source states what kind of site it is.
- How deep No source states how deep it goes.
- Who it suits Suits Advanced divers and up, as a dive guide states it.
- Dive centres No dive centre within 10 km, the nearest 11 km away.
Water about 16°C: 7 mm wetsuit and hood. Typical sea temperature for the time of year, not a forecast.
Visibility under 5 m. Typical for the time of year, estimated from ten years of NASA satellite water clarity, not a forecast. Clearest in Jul, Aug, Sep and Oct (about 8 m).
The score is the conditions only: the journey, the price and the partners never change it (how we score, how we earn).
Rough cost (estimate): about US$1,110–US$2,110 each
about US$1,110–US$2,110 each · 6 nights, 2 sharing: flights, taxi, stay, food.
Our estimate from typical public prices, not a quote: check the real prices before you book (where they come from). Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.
How we worked it out
| What | How we worked it out | Each |
|---|---|---|
| Flights | return ORD to EAS, estimated from distance and season, changing at MAD, full-service airlines, with a hold bag | about US$470–US$973 |
| Taxi | airport and back, shared | about US$47–US$81 |
| Stay | 6 nights, a mid-range double, shared | about US$282–US$470 |
| Food | 7 days eating out | about US$315–US$584 |
| Total | about US$1,110–US$2,110 |
Guided dives are not priced yet: we have no sourced price, so it is not in it. Prices from public sources, checked in 2026.
Where to stay: Biarritz
Ad Links marked Ad may pay us if you book. You pay the same, and they never change a score. How we earn
about 10 min by car · 108 places to stay
about US$107/nightcountry average
About Biarritz its beds, food and every spot near it
About US$107 a night is our estimate of the country's average 2-star double room that month: not each town's price, and not a quote. Drives are estimates. Prices are about, in US Dollar (USD): our pound figures at the European Central Bank's rate of 2 November 2026.
Getting there: about 17h 20m
About 17h 20m door to door from Chicago
Fly ORD → EAS, changing at Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD), then 40 min by road
Flights ORD → EAS on your dates · AviasalesAdeSIM for your phone · Search on AiraloAd
An estimate, one way; the journey never changes the score.
In the water
Dives and courses in Biarritz · GetYourGuideDive gear hire in Biarritz · GetYourGuide
Dive centres nearby
Tech Océan 11 km
Atlantic Pirogue 11 km
Zocoa'Loc 12 km
Paral'Aile 12 km
Odyssée bleue Socoa 12 km
The nearest named dive centres and shops within 25 km, in a straight line; training agencies where the map states them. Listings, not a recommendation. Dive centres: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Credits
What you might see
Animals divers and surveys have recorded within 2 km of this site in the last 15 years. A record says someone saw it here, not that you will.
Common octopus Octopus vulgarisOctopus
Seen in 3 records.
Felimare cantabricaNudibranch
Seen in 3 records.
Leopard nudibranch Peltodoris atromaculataNudibranch
Seen in 3 records.
Small red scorpionfish Scorpaena notata
Seen in 4 records.
Grey triggerfish Balistes capriscus
Seen in 3 records.
Red starfish Echinaster sepositus
Seen in 3 records.
Records: OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System, IOC-UNESCO) and GBIF.org (1 November 2026, doi:10.15468/dl.jeesns), from the datasets named here, CC0 and CC BY records only. Names: WoRMS and GBIF; common names from the Catalogue of Life, the GBIF Backbone and Wikidata. Largest datasets here: Programme CROMIS: carnet de plongée en ligne de la FFESSM-Observations d'espèces subaquatiques collectées par les utilisateurs de CROMIS; Programme BioObs: observations naturalistes en milieux aquatiques-Observations de BioObs.. Credits
This week's visibility and the current no free forecast gives. Ask a dive centre before you book.
Saved: this link opens the same trip
The link holds the trip itself: nothing about you is kept. Check the forecast again before you book.