Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
A resort invented in a pine forest and given a name to sell it to Parisians, then to the British.
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The dunes here were planted with pines from the 1850s, and a developer laid out a resort in the forest from the 1880s, adding Paris-Plage to the name explicitly to market it to the capital. British investment followed and the town became fashionable between the wars, which is why the villas are a mix of Anglo-Norman half-timber and Art Deco, several hundred of them scattered among the pines rather than lined along a front. The beach is very wide at low tide and used for sand yachting. A lighthouse rebuilt in 1951 replaced the one destroyed in the war, and the covered market runs several days a week.
What you actually see
- The forest villas - Anglo-Norman and Art Deco houses among the pines.
- The wide beach - sand exposed far out at low tide, used for sand yachting.
- The lighthouse - the 1951 tower, climbed for coastal views.
- The covered market - the town's market hall on market days.
When to go
May to September for the beach; the town is quiet out of season with many businesses closed. Sand yachting runs year-round when wind allows. Weekends bring Lille and Paris traffic.
Honest expectations
The Channel is cold and the wind constant; this is not a swimming resort for most. Prices are high. Much of the town closes outside the season.
Nearby
Montreuil-sur-Mer lies inland; Boulogne is north.
What to pack for Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.