thumb|300px|right|Cape Blanc Nez seen from the beach
thumb|300px|right|Cape Gris Nez
thumb|300px|right|Dunes of Touquet
The Opal Coast ( ; ) is a coastal region in northern France on the English Channel, popular with tourists.
Geography
thumb|right|300px|View of the English coast from Côte d'Opale, France
The Côte d'Opale is a coastal region in North Central France, in the departments of Nord and Pas-de-Calais. It extends over of French coast between the Belgian border and the border with Picardy. This coastline faces the English Channel and the North Sea, and is situated directly opposite the chalk cliffs of southeast England, which at the closest point are only away.
The Côte d'Opale is composed of many varied landscapes including beaches, dunes, swamps, estuaries and cliffs. The coast is marked by the presence of two large promontories situated between Calais and Boulogne: the Cap Gris-Nez (literally "grey nose cape" in English), reaching an elevation of above sea level, and the Cap Blanc-Nez (literally "white nose cape" in English), which reaches . These capes are the closest points to England on the entire French coast.
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Cities
- Boulogne-sur-Mer
- Calais
- Dunkerque
Famous seaside resorts
From south to north:
- Berck
- Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
- Sainte-Cécile-Plage
- Hardelot-Plage
- Équihen-Plage
- Wimereux
- Audresselles
- Ambleteuse
- Wissant
- Blériot-Plage
- Bray-Dunes
Other communes of the coast
From south to north:
- Merlimont
- Cucq
- Saint-Étienne-au-Mont
- Le Portel
- Audinghen
- Escalles
- Sangatte
- Marck
- Oye-Plage
- Grand-Fort-Philippe
- Gravelines
- Leffrinckoucke
- Zuydcoote
Arts
thumb|300px|right|Eugène Boudin's painting of the Dunes at Berck, 1890
Many artists have been inspired by the coast's landscapes, among them the composer Henri Dutilleux, the writers Victor Hugo and Charles Dickens, and the painters J. M. W. Turner, Carolus-Duran, Maurice Boitel and Eugène Boudin. It was the painter who coined the name for this area in 1911 to describe the distinctive quality of its light.
See also
- Communauté d'agglomération du Boulonnais
- Berck-Plage - Paris-Plage line
References
External links
- Travel Guide of the Opal Coast / Côte d'Opale
- Accommodation on the Opal Coast / Côte d'Opale
- Côte d'Opale through photos : You will love it !
- Côte d'Opale : Tourism, shopping, B&B
- Le Cap Blanc Nez
- Le Cap Gris Nez
- Le Grand Site des 2 Caps
- Slipping on Côte d'Opale : B&b, Gîtes, Hôtels ...
- Tourism in Boulogne sur Mer and the Boulonnais area (in English)
- Cape Blanc Nez
- Cape Gris Nez