Boulogne-sur-Mer France
Frequently Asked Questions
At the Quai de l'Europe, a few minutes from the centre. A shuttle usually takes passengers to Nausicaá and the heart of town.
The largest aquarium in Europe, less than a kilometre from the berth. Its open-ocean tank, holding 10,000 cubic metres, is crossed by a glass tunnel with manta rays gliding overhead. Allow two to three hours.
It is the best choice on this call for a family visit: hammerhead sharks, swirling shoals of sardines and glowing jellyfish, a fifteen-minute walk from the ship along the seafront. The National Sea Centre also makes a clear case about ocean fragility, without being heavy-handed.
On foot, 25 to 30 minutes uphill from the Quai de l'Europe, about two kilometres, or a short taxi ride. The upper town is ringed by walls built in the thirteenth century on Roman foundations.
The rampart walk, which takes about thirty minutes from one medieval gate to the next. The dome of Notre-Dame basilica and its crypt, one of the largest in France, with painted rooms and Roman remains. And the counts' castle, where Egyptian mummies, Greek vases and Inuit masks brought back from Alaska in the nineteenth century sit side by side.
Yes, it is the leading fishing port in France, and you notice it on the quays from dawn. The fishmongers in the lower town, supplied each morning from the auction, sell smoked herring and Channel sole.
Welsh, a hearty dish borrowed from the British neighbours, aged mimolette and seafood facing the channel. Rue de Lille, between the basilica and the belfry, is lined with estaminets and food shops.
Wednesday and Saturday mornings on Place Dalton, in the centre. It is the best moment to pick up cheeses and Boulonnais produce.
A 53-metre monument on the edge of town, recalling that Napoleon assembled tens of thousands of soldiers at Boulogne between 1803 and 1805 with a view to invading England. It still looks towards the English coast, visible on a clear day.
Yes, in good weather an excursion to Cap Gris-Nez and Cap Blanc-Nez opens the finest views on the Côte d'Opale, about thirty kilometres away. Allow half a day.
