Sea · France, Spain
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a large bay of the Atlantic Ocean between the west coast of France and the north coast of Spain. Sailors know it for its rough seas and strong storms.
Picture credit: Iago Casabiell González (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Tom Bayly (CC BY-SA 2.0) · STHLM (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Bay of Biscay?
Part of: Atlantic Ocean.
Countries on its coasts: France, Spain.
The story behind it
The bay is shaped roughly like a triangle. Its English name comes from Biscay on the northern coast of Spain, probably meaning the western Basque lands. The Bay of Biscay has some of the fiercest weather in the Atlantic: gales can blow at more than 113 km/h, and unusually high waves roll in. Big rivers such as the Loire, the Garonne, the Dordogne and the Adour flow into it. On the French coast in the north, the tide can rise and fall by about 6 metres. Many kinds of whales and dolphins swim here, including Cuvier's beaked whale. Fishing is one of the main jobs along the coast, and in quiet lagoons on the French side people raise oysters. Port cities such as Bilbao and Santander in Spain and La Rochelle and Bordeaux in France lie on its shores.
Find it on the globe
Bay of Biscay is there as a name written across its water — tap the water and its card opens. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.
Questions children ask
How big is the Bay of Biscay?
The Bay of Biscay covers about 223 000 km². At its deepest point, a little south of its centre, it goes down 4 735 m.
Is the Bay of Biscay stormy?
Yes, it has some of the fiercest weather in the Atlantic Ocean. In winter, strong storms can whip up unusually high waves.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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