When people talk about the Hauts-de-France and northern France, preconceptions tend to surface, with images of monotonous landscapes and austere red-brick towns. However, all you need to do is go camping in the Nord or Pas-de-Calais to change your mind. If you imagine the landscapes to be boring, take a trip to the Opal Coast to admire CAP BLANC-NEZ and CAP GRIS-NEZ, spectacular cliffs facing the English Channel. And make a detour to the BAIE DE SOMME, a paradise for migratory birds. As for austere cities, LILLE and its old streets, the sumptuous Grand’ Place in ARRAS and the cathedral in AMIENS will quickly make you forget them. And when it comes to culture, the NORD has nothing to envy anyone else, with museums dedicated to Flemish painters and, above all, the LOUVRES in LENS, which houses part of the collections of its Parisian counterpart. All these sites will make your camping holiday in Hauts-de-France a fascinating experience.
Camping holidays by the sea in Hauts-de-France
Hauts-de-France has an exceptional 200 km coastline. With its long sandy beaches fringed with dunes, this coastline is ideal for sand yachting. It is dotted with beautiful sites, starting with the Grand Site des 2 Caps, consisting of Cap Blanc-Nez and Cap Gris-Nez, high cliffs facing the English Channel. The view is superb and there are some beautiful walks to be had. Wissant beach, between the two capes, is one of the most beautiful in the region and one of the most beautiful beaches in France. Victor Hugo said of it that “it offers the most beautiful landscapes”. Further south, the Baie de Somme awaits you. A paradise for expert and amateur birdwatchers alike, the Baie de Somme offers landscapes whose colours change with the hours and seasons. In this unspoilt natural area, cliffs, sand, dunes and marshes follow one another as the sea and sky merge. It is a paradise for birdwatchers, whether experts or amateurs. Covering 200 hectares, the Marquenterre Nature Reserve is a stopping point for migratory birds. Trails of 2 km or 4 km dotted with observation posts allow you to admire a wide variety of birds.
If you prefer the underwater world to the skies above, from your seaside campsite in Hauts-de-France you can visit Nausicaa, Europe’s largest aquarium. Located in Boulogne-sur-Mer on the Opal Coast, it is home to no fewer than 58,000 animals and invites you to take a real dive into the deep sea. However, nature is not limited to the coastline. The Audomarois marshes, on the outskirts of Saint-Omer, are a gigantic labyrinth of water and greenery covering 3,700 hectares. They can be visited by flat-bottomed boat.
An exceptional heritage
Hauts-de-France has a unique heritage. Halfway between Paris and the Netherlands, this region has benefited from various cultural influences, which can be seen in particular in the narrow Flemish houses of Old Lille and the superb Grand’Place in Arras. In this flat region, man has built his own mountains. Amiens is home to the largest cathedral in France. Built from 1220 onwards, this Gothic cathedral is one of the jewels of medieval architecture in France. However, it is not the only one. The region has several other Gothic cathedrals of interest, such as those in Soissons and Beauvais. But cathedrals are not the only treasures in Hauts-de-France. During your camping holiday in the Oise, you will have the opportunity to discover the Château de Chantilly, one of the most beautiful châteaux in France, with its park and stables. Hauts-de-France has always been a land of artists. There are many museums throughout the region that pay tribute to them. The Louvre Museum in Lens, among others, has relocated part of the Louvre’s collections to Pas-de-Calais. However, the heritage of Hauts-de-France is not only artistic. This region was strongly marked by industrialisation in the 20th century. Mining shaped its life for over a century, as evidenced by the former mining site of Wallers-Aremberg, made famous by the Paris-Roubaix cycle race.
Camping in Hauts-de-France, a land of remembrance
More than any other region, Hauts-de-France was marked by the First World War. The Somme was the site of the largest battle of 1914-1918. Its territory is therefore dotted with numerous military cemeteries, often for Commonwealth soldiers, and memorial sites. If you are interested in this period, during your camping holiday in Hauts-de-France, don’t miss a visit to the Historial de la Grande Guerre in Péronne, a museum that looks back on the conflict, but also on all its repercussions on cultural and social life at the beginning of the 20th century. In Arras, Wellington’s quarry takes you 20 metres underground to relive the epic story of the British soldiers who launched a surprise attack on the Germans in Arras.
Our campsites in Hauts-de-France
A selection of campsites with pitches for caravans, tents and motorhomes in Hauts-de-France.
Author: We Love Camping
C'est parce que nous aimons le camping traditionnel que nous avons pensé à ce site. Parce que nous regrettons parfois que le mobile-home occupe désormais tant de place sur les campings, nous avons voulu mettre en avant les terrains où les tentes, les caravanes et les camping-cars restent majoritaire. Et offrir à tout ceux qui partagent notre amour de la vie en plein air, un site avec des idées de voyages, des conseils techniques et surtout un choix de campings où il fait bon venir poser sa caravane ou planter sa tente.
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