The Most Unique Experiences in Le Touquet

Adrenaline rush guaranteed for lovers of speed – the char à voile or land yacht can be rented with or without a lesson. Although it looks a bit intimidating at first, most beginners are off and expertly trimming their sails in no time. The wide sands of Le Touquet beach are a perfect surface to practice the sport.

Le Touquet Nautisme, Boulevard du Dr Jules Pouget, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France +33 03 21 05 33 51

Once you see their work you may wonder why these post-impressionist painters are not better known. An international artist colony gathered in the area of Étaples and Le Touquet in the late 19th century and worked here all the way up to the outbreak of The Great War. There were English, Australian, German and Scandinavian painters, as well as French, attracted by the light, the seascapes and the ease of access to Paris and England. The École d’Étaples made a splash at the Paris Salon in 1888, and again at the Universal Exhibition in Chicago in 1893. Many of these paintings are dispersed across the four corners of the world, but 300 works that you would expect to see in d’Orsay or the Met are gathered in the very area that inspired them. This quality collection can only be enjoyed here, in the Musée du Touquet-Paris-Plage.

Avenue du Château, 62520 Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France +33 03 21 05 62 62

The largest seal colony in France has taken up residence in these shores. Just 34km from Le Touquet you can meet the two species of seals that live in the Somme Bay during a walk starting at the Hourdel lighthouse and along the tidal beach, offering a priceless encounter with wildlife. You can visit on your own, but guided visits coordinated by the tourism office ensure that no damage is left behind by visitors that could potentially alter the environment where the colony thrives.

Place Aristide Briand, Cayeux-sur-Mer, France +33 (0)3 22 26 61 15

Seal in Le Hourdel, Somme Bay ©Patrick Carpentier / Flickr

A little further afield, less than an hour drive, is the biosphere reserve of Saint-Omer, where Rémy and Vincent are heirs to a unique and ancestral skill. Indeed, they the are the only remaining boat makers, in other words, the last manufacturers of escutes and bacôves – traditional oak boats – used for centuries by the market vegetable growers of the fertile wetlands. They invite you to discover their marais audomarois and their traditional way of living. Maybe there is a lesson to be learned in their easy symbiosis with their environment.

43 Route de Clairmarais, Saint-Omer, France +33 06 08 09 94 88

Transport in the Marais © Pascar Morel / Tourisme Nord-Pas-de-Calais

Take note of this widely touted cure for a hangover: Le Welsh is the ubiquitous local dish, a pimped-up cheese on toast. The original can be traced back to the Welsh Rarebit that British soldiers and seamen introduced to the locals, where it evolved into Le Welsh, made by melting cheddar cheese and beer in a pot, then slathering the mixtures over toasted bread and ham and topping it all with a fried egg. You’ll find the dish on the menu in most casual restaurants and cafés, but locals rave about Café des Sports (you may even bump into a certain French head of state, we hear he’s a regular).

22 Rue Saint-Jean, 62520 Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, France +33 03 21 05 05 22

Le Welsh ©Jiel Beaumadier /Wikicommons

This one is great for kids and for the young at heart. Just 35 minutes south of Le Touquet you’ll find the Asinerie du Marquenterre, a donkey farm like no other. In this ‘discovery’ rural establishment you can learn about the history of the breeding and domestication of donkeys, their different uses through time, and their incredible aptitude for farmwork and hard labour. Visit the reproduction room, mingle with these friendly donkeys and other farm animals, feed them, pet them, and maybe even go for a donkey ride.

Ferme de la Bonne Dame, Monchaux les Quend, Quend, France +33 6 21 26 02 94