Eaux-Bonnes

Eaux-Bonnes (French: [o bɔn], "good waters"; Occitan: Aigas Bonas) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France.

Eaux-Bonnes
Commune
Town Hall
Coat of arms
Location of Eaux-Bonnes
Eaux-Bonnes Show map of France Eaux-Bonnes Show map of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Coordinates: 42°58′26″N 0°23′27″W
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Arrondissement	Oloron-Sainte-Marie
Canton	Oloron-Sainte-Marie-2
Intercommunality	Vallée d'Ossau
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Jean-Luc Braud[1]
Area 1	38.52 km2 (14.87 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	203
• Density	5.27/km2 (13.6/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Eaux-Bonnais, Eaux-Bonnaises
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	64204 /64440
Elevation	520–2,619 m (1,706–8,593 ft) (avg. 750 m or 2,460 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Description

Eaux-Bonnes is close to the small town of Laruns. It is situated at a height of 2,460 feet (750 m) at the entrance of a fine gorge, overlooking the confluence of two rivers. The village's waters were first documented in the middle of the 14th century. The Eaux-Chaudes spa is 5 miles (8.0 km) south-west of Eaux-Bonnes, and there is fine mountain scenery in the neighbourhood of both places, the Pic de Ger near Eaux-Bonnes.^[3]

The climate which characterizes the town is of "mountain climate", according to the typology of climates of France which then has eight major types of climates in metropolitan France.^[4]

Gourette is a winter sports resort located in the commune on the high mountain pass Col d'Aubisque.

History

Eaux-Bonnes circa 1886

Eaux-Bonnes in 1843, by Eugène de Malbos.

The historian Auguste Lorieux (1796–1842) died in Eaux-Bonnes.

Nearby to the north-west on the Surcou road, is the impressive villa Cockade, the construction of which is detailed in Dornford Yates's novel The House That Berry Built.

Population

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1793 206 —     1800 152 −4.25% 1806 206 +5.20% 1821 259 +1.54% 1831 257 −0.08% 1836 269 +0.92% 1841 470 +11.81% 1846 477 +0.30% 1851 366 −5.16% 1856 404 +2.00% 1861 762 +13.53% 1866 917 +3.77% 1872 836 −1.53% 1876 753 −2.58% 1881 828 +1.92% 1886 874 +1.09% 1891 812 −1.46% 1896 775 −0.93%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1901 768 −0.18% 1906 684 −2.29% 1911 622 −1.88% 1921 485 −2.46% 1926 455 −1.27% 1931 453 −0.09% 1936 462 +0.39% 1946 510 +0.99% 1954 558 +1.13% 1962 392 −4.32% 1968 501 +4.17% 1975 421 −2.45% 1982 526 +3.23% 1990 536 +0.24% 1999 435 −2.29% 2009 418 −0.40% 2014 340 −4.05% 2020 191 −9.16%
Source: EHESS (1793-1999)[5] and INSEE[6]

See also

• Aas, a village in Eaux-Bonnes.
• Ossau Valley
• Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department