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Travel guide
The Opal Coast
4 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: May to September
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Welcome
The Opal Coast, in a few days
Between Calais and the Authie estuary, 120 km of chalk cliffs, dunes and wide beaches face England, which you can see with the naked eye from Cap Gris-Nez on clear days. Walk the Two Capes path with the wind at your back, then drop down to Wissant to watch sand yachts race over the firm sand.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 2 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 2 things
- D4 Day 4 2 things
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Cap Blanc-Nez free · about 2 hA 134-metre chalk cliff, twin to the White Cliffs of Dover across the water, topped by the Dover Patrol memorial obelisk.
- Afternoon · Wissant free · about 2 hA low-rise fishing village turned family resort between the capes, with kilometres of firm sand for sand yachts and kitesurfers.
🛏️ Where to sleep · La Matelote€130 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Cap Gris-Nez free · 2 to 3 hFrance's closest point to England, where a lighthouse and a coastguard station watch over one of the world's busiest straits.
- Afternoon · Wimereux free · about 1 h 30The coast's Belle Époque resort, 5 km north of Boulogne, with a promenade of turreted villas, beach huts, and mussels served facing the sunset.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Métropole€100 a night
D3
Day 3
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Nausicaá · 2 to 3 hEurope's largest aquarium, on Boulogne's seafront, with a 10,000 m³ tank of manta rays and sharks behind a 20-metre window, plus penguins and sea lions.
- Afternoon · Boulogne-sur-Mer old town free · about 2 hAbove France's leading fishing port, 13th-century ramparts you can walk right round enclose the belfry, the castle museum and the domed Basilica of Notre-Dame.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Hôtel Meurice€110 a night
D4
Day 4
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Le Touquet-Paris-Plage free · half a dayCreated in the 1880s on pine-planted dunes for English and Parisian holidaymakers, with forest villas, an Art Deco market and a 12 km beach.
- Afternoon · Montreuil-sur-Mer free · about 1 h 30Now 15 km from the sea, it keeps 3 km of ramparts and a Vauban citadel; Victor Hugo set part of Les Misérables here.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Le Régina€110 a night
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
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Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Baguette: the daily bread, bought fresh from the boulangerie. Ask for a "tradition", made with nothing but flour, water, salt and yeast.
- Croissant and pain au chocolat: breakfast pastries, best in the morning while still warm.
- The cheese course: served after the main dish and before dessert, from Comté to Camembert.
- Steak frites: the bistro standard. Order it "saignant" for rare or "à point" for medium.
- Galettes and crêpes: savoury buckwheat pancakes from Brittany filled with ham, egg and cheese, then sweet ones for pudding.
- House wine: ordered by the carafe or the "pichet" at lunch, and often better value than a bottle.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Say "bonjour" when you walk into a shop, a bakery or a café, and "au revoir" as you leave. Skipping it comes across as rude.
- Lunch runs from about noon to 2pm and dinner starts around 7.30pm. In between, most restaurant kitchens are closed.
- Most shops close on Sunday, and many small towns shut on Monday too. Bakeries and markets open on Sunday morning.
- Do not pay for bottled water at the table: ask for "une carafe d'eau", tap water that is served free with a meal.
- Around the big Paris sights, walk past anyone with a petition or a friendship bracelet. They are there to distract you while someone else takes your wallet.
Getting by
Words that help
English ↔ French
| English | French |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Please | S'il vous plaît |
| Yes | Oui |
| No | Non |
| Excuse me | Excusez-moi |
| Goodbye | Au revoir |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais ? |
| I don't understand | Je ne comprends pas |
| How much is it? | Combien ça coûte ? |
| Where are the toilets? | Où sont les toilettes ? |
| The bill, please | L'addition, s'il vous plaît |
| Help! | Au secours ! |
| Cheers! | Santé ! |
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyEuro (EUR, €)
BudgetAbout €95 a day, mid-range
Best seasonMay to September
PlugC/E · 230V
Tap waterSafe to drink
TippingService is included by law, round up
Emergency112
EntrySchengen area: an ID card or passport for EU citizens, 90 days visa-free for UK, US, Canadian and Australian passports.
HealthNo specific vaccination needed. Check that tetanus, diphtheria, polio and MMR are up to date.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/opal-coast
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.