5-day road trip from Belgium to Le Touquet & Cap Blanc-Nez

Day 1: Arrival in Le Touquet-Paris-Plage

You leave Belgium in the morning. From Brussels, it takes about three hours to drive to Le Touquet, so you arrive on the Opal Coast around midday. Once there, Hôtel Le Westminster is your base. From here, you explore the wide sandy beach of Le Touquet, the fortified town of Montreuil-sur-Mer, the fishing village of Étaples and the spectacular coastline between Cap Gris-Nez and Cap Blanc-Nez.

Day 2: Golf, Tennis and Maritime Heritage in Étaples

Le Touquet has a long tradition as a sporting destination. The morning reflects that reputation: you choose between a round at Golf de la Mer, a classic links course from 1931 laid out between the dunes just steps from the sea, or a match on the clay courts of the largest tennis club in France. Both are worth it.

In the afternoon, you drive to Étaples, five kilometres away on the other side of the Canche. Here you visit Maréis, a combination of museum and aquarium housed in a former net factory, where a guide introduces you to the daily life of a fishing town that is still very much active. Afterwards, you walk through the British military cemetery, the largest site of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in France, with more than ten thousand graves designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. A quiet place with wide views over the bay, giving the day a completely different character.

Day 3: Montreuil-sur-Mer and the Beussent Chocolaterie

Montreuil-sur-Mer lies half an hour from Le Touquet, yet feels like a different world. The name is misleading — the sea is far away — but the town does indeed sit high above the Canche valley, surrounded by three kilometres of medieval ramparts. You walk along them with open views over the rolling countryside. Within the walls, cobbled streets such as Rue du Clape-en-Bas lead past timber-framed houses and hidden courtyards that most tourists simply walk past.

The town also has a literary history: Victor Hugo found inspiration here for Les Misérables. Today, Montreuil is especially known as a culinary destination, an unexpectedly concentrated collection of excellent restaurants for such a small town. After lunch, you drive to the Chocolaterie de Beussent, where you follow the entire journey from cocoa bean to chocolate bar, ending with a tasting.

Day 4: Nausicaá, Cap Gris-Nez and Cap Blanc-Nez

The day begins in Boulogne-sur-Mer at Nausicaá, the largest aquarium in Europe. Allow a full morning — this is not an experience to rush. Boulogne itself is also worth a visit: the old town on the hill, the cathedral and the lively fishing harbour. Lunch with fresh fish on the quay is the obvious choice here.

In the afternoon, you drive the Route des Deux Caps, a coastal road that takes you past two of the most striking points in northern France. At Cap Gris-Nez, literally the “grey nose,” you stand at the narrowest point of the Channel, less than 34 kilometres from the English coast. On a clear day, you see the white cliffs of Dover across the water. Cap Blanc-Nez forms the opposite extreme: a high chalk plateau with sweeping views in both directions. Between the two capes, quiet walking paths run along the coastline. The Route des Deux Caps is a protected landscape. There is hardly any construction; what you see is largely what has been there for centuries.

Day 5: Château d'Hardelot or Calais, and the Return Drive

On the final day, before driving back to Belgium, there is time for one last stop: Château d'Hardelot, a Tudor-style castle surrounded by Anglo-French gardens about half an hour from Le Touquet, or the Cité de la Dentelle et de la Mode in Calais, housed in an authentic lace factory. After a final lunch by the sea, you are back on the road home early in the afternoon.

Five days are a good introduction to the region, but those who wish to stay longer will easily find reasons to do so. The Marquenterre bird park, one of the most important migratory bird sites in Western Europe, or a day at Bagatelle amusement park are just two of the options. Let us know how many days you have, and we will tailor the journey to you.