Calais (Pas-de-Calais)

Calais Town Hall

Calais (Pas-de-Calais) mini guide

For most people Calais is a place they just drive through on their way to the rest of France or take a day trip to, to stock up with cheap wine and beer, however there is more to it than that.

Sights to see include:

• The town hall - a unesco World Heritige site
• The statue of the Six Burghers from Rodin
• The Church of Notre Dame dates back to the 13th Century and mingles Tudor with Gothic. General de Gaulle was married here in 1921
• The Fortresses (Nieulay, Risban) constructed by the French engineer Vauban at the end of the 17th century.
• The Calais Lighthouse - For those not daunted by the 271 steps the reward is a magnificent view, on a clear day the white cliffs of Dover can be seen.
• The War museum - housed in a bunker near the town hall, this was once the command post to the German Navy
• Fine Arts and Lace Museum where a stunning collection of Calais history can be seenfrom sculptures and monuments to paintings and lace and lace making.

Calais beach is a sandy beach edged by beach cabins. You can stroll along the esplanade on the sea front. The fine sandy beaches are ideal for tennis, walking, fishing and petanque but the principal activities are sail related.

You can also visit Calais in the delightful sightseeing train on wheels from the Calais Tourist Office right down to the beach. Tour lasts 1 hour.

On Wednesday and Saturday, Places des Armes has a morning market. On Thursday and Saturday the traders move to Place Creve Coeur, off Rue de Gambetta, near the tourist office. Both areas have superb coffee shops that will lead you by the nose to their wares.