Discover the Region

Discover our region full of surprise !

Here are some interesting things to do, if you want to know more about that, please go to http://www.northernfrance-tourism.com/

Cité de la Dentelle et de la Mode

Located in the Saint-Pierre disctrict, the historic centre of the lace industry in Calais, the City of Lace and Fashion is set in an authentic collective factory that is typical of the 1870s. Its collections are spread over 2500 m2, divided in fives galleries where the know-how and techniques, the applications as well as the most contempory aspects of lace (fashion, design, applied arts…) are displayed. Collections of dresses and accessories designed by renowned couturiers such as Poiret, Paquin, Dior, Givenchy and Chanel are exhibited as well as lingerie models. Throughout the year, numerous events highlight the vibrance of the Cité. Temporary exhibitions in the great glass hall, conferences and fashion parades in the auditorium, initiation workshops regarding lace techniques and fashion design. The documentation centre offers professionals and researchers a specialist library and “tissutheque” (fabrics library). The restaurant, which gives out onto the courtyard of the former factory, and the museum shop located on the side of the canal allow you to continue your visit in a pleasant and friendly atmosphere!

Due to current trends, it can be overlooked that Sangatte has its own charm. ‘La Descenderie’ beach is unspoilt and relaxing. It’s Wissant beach, a little further south and right in the middle of ‘Les Deux Caps’, which is the star of the show. It is 12 km long and a hub for sport. Kite surfing and wind surfing take place here, as well as the ‘Le Trail de la Côte d’Opale’ running race. It was one of the first to be classified a ‘Great National Site’. The 2 Audresselles beaches are even bigger. The first, towards ‘Gris-Nez’. is the more wild. Sometimes you can see seals here. The second is ideal for swimming. At Ambleteuse, the Vauban fort is the main attraction. ‘La Pointe aux Oies’ is notable for its links to Napoleon. The next beach is ‘Wimereux’.

The unspoilt beaches of ‘La Terre des Deux Caps’!

Due to current trends, it can be overlooked that Sangatte has its own charm. ‘La Descenderie’ beach is unspoilt and relaxing. It’s Wissant beach, a little further south and right in the middle of ‘Les Deux Caps’, which is the star of the show. It is 12 km long and a hub for sport. Kite surfing and wind surfing take place here, as well as the ‘Le Trail de la Côte d’Opale’ running race. It was one of the first to be classified a ‘Great National Site’. The 2 Audresselles beaches are even bigger. The first, towards ‘Gris-Nez’. is the more wild. Sometimes you can see seals here. The second is ideal for swimming. At Ambleteuse, the Vauban fort is the main attraction. ‘La Pointe aux Oies’ is notable for its links to Napoleon. The next beach is ‘Wimereux’.

Le Louvre-Lens

This is where the most remarkable cultural institution in France, and a region rethinking its future, meet. The result is a completely rethought museum which at one and the same time enables visitors to wander freely through 5000 years of the history of art and looks out over the twin slag heaps of Loos-en- Gohelle, symbols of modern tourism and a region of warm welcomes and surprising discoveries. Designed by Sanaa, the famous Japanese firm of architects, the Louvre-Lens with its minimalist architecture wonderfully handles the relationship between the inside and the outside of the museum.

The river Audomarois Marshes – Saint-Omer

For centuries, the water network of this huge unenclosed garden on the outskirts of Saint-Omer has offered a livelihood to generations of men and women; it is a fertile area being the only marsh in France that has always been cultivated; it is an island between the river and the sea, a sensitive and vulnerable landscape, listed by UNESCO. Visit it at the pace dictated by the flat bottomed marsh boats which are still built the traditional way by the marsh’s last boat builder.