Nowadays this 1913-built beauty is Le Touquet's Palais de Congrès (convention centre), but in the town's early-20th-century golden era it was the high-rolling Casino de la Forêt, which served as the inspiration for the fictional Royale-les-Eaux casino in Ian Fleming's inaugural James Bond novel, Casino Royale. The original casino is long gone, but the convention centre has a gambling area with slot machines and table games.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
14.66 MILES
At this vast manta ray–shaped aquarium – one of the world's largest – huge tanks with floor-to-ceiling windows make you feel as though you're swimming…
24.25 MILES
Topped by a lighthouse and a radar station that keeps track of the hundreds of ships that pass by here each day, the 49m-high cliffs of Cap Gris-Nez are…
14.39 MILES
Boulogne's hilltop Upper City is an island of centuries-old buildings and cobblestone streets. You can walk all the way around this 'Fortified City' atop…
28.54 MILES
Southwest of Calais, just past Sangatte, the coastal dunes give way to cliffs that culminate in windswept, 134m-high Cap Blanc-Nez, which affords…
-
Parc du Marquenterre Bird Sanctuary
17.65 MILES
An astonishing 300 bird species have been sighted at this 2-sq-km bird sanctuary, an important migratory stopover between the UK, Iceland, Scandinavia and…
-
15.42 MILES
Nestled in the bucolic Authie valley 27km northeast of Le Crotoy, this strikingly beautiful 12th-century abbey, rebuilt between 1687 and 1756, merits a…
-
14.33 MILES
The cultures of five continents meet inside the Château-Musée, housed in a 13th-century fortified castle. Egyptian antiquities (some brought here by…
-
Église St-Martin de St-Valery-sur-Somme
22.88 MILES
St-Valery-sur-Somme's Église St-Martin was built from shingle and flint, giving it a chequerboard appearance, guarded by fantastical gargoyles…
Nearby attractions
0.66 MILES
Designed by French artist Alain Godon (b 1964), this 9.5m-high sculpture made from polystyrene on a metal frame, coated with beach sand, depicts an…
14.24 MILES
To encounter the city's long-time commercial bedrock, commercial fishing, head to the quay used by small fishing boats. Hungry seagulls dive and squawk…
3. Musée Libertador San Martín
14.25 MILES
The house where General José de San Martín, the exiled hero of Argentine, Chilean and Peruvian independence from the Spanish, lived from 1848 until his…
14.25 MILES
Built between 1777 and 1780 as a private mansion, the Hôtel Desandrouin (also known as the Palais Impérial) was later used by Napoléon in 1803, 1810 and…
14.28 MILES
Boulogne-sur-Mer's red-brick town hall was built in 1734, but its 37m-high square medieval belfry dates from the 12th century. It's free to climb the…
14.33 MILES
The cultures of five continents meet inside the Château-Musée, housed in a 13th-century fortified castle. Egyptian antiquities (some brought here by…
14.36 MILES
The Haute-Ville's minor basilica is locally referred to as a cathedral, although it's never held that status. Its towering 101m-high dome, visible from…
14.36 MILES
Cast in bronze, this statue atop a small pyramid commemorates the pioneering Boulogne-born Egyptologist Auguste Mariette (1821–81), founder of Cairo's…