Le Grand Bleu Sauvage | Activities training and team building

Domaine Cazin 76, Avenue des Canadiens - 62224 Équihen-Plage - France +32 (0)496 50 32 32

GENERAL

For all places of interest in the spacious region, it is best to get the green Michelin guide Picardie - Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The IGN topographical maps are also recommended. With the Guide Tourism & Recreation of Boulogne-sur-Mer, you also will be well-placed to discover the beautiful Equihen.

WALKING/HIKING GUIDES

Follow the yellow triangle signs for the most fun and easy walks. They come listed in a pack per region, available for free (maybe after insisting a bit) in all tourist information centres. The Boulonnais region comes in a pack of 12 trips, all tested and approved!

For the novice hiker: "24 Balades dans le Pas de Calais" by Roland Huguet for Conseil Général Pas-de-Calais. The walks range from 4 to 10 km and are very simple if you have an IGN map with you. Trip 19, 20 and 21 start in the vicinity of Le Domaine Sauvage.

More experienced: "Le Pas-de-Calais à Pied" from the Topo Guides series: 23 fun walks with a lot of extra info. Or "Les Nouveaux Guides Franck: Randonnées Pas-de-Calais, Côte d’Opale" by Christophe Lépine: a lot of daytrips between 10 and 20 km, combining existing walks. Include the nicest sceneries for the very experienced hiker.

Recommended: walk 12 – Entre les 2 Caps ; walk 20 – Montreuil-sur-Mer.

NATURE

Check out Dominique Arnaud's "Nature en Caps et Marais d’Opale": a wealth of details on the area's fauna & flora. Arena. The educational centre on nature in Condette is worth a visit, as are the educational walks in the region of Eden 62. Their free program is available everywhere.

LOCAL RESTAURANTS WITHOUT TOURIST CROWDS

A small representation of our own experiences with some nice establishments in the region.

62224 Equihen-Plage: Restaurant La Brise, 48 rue Charles Cazin, 00 33 3 21 33 73 25 – Very culinary. Excellent value for money. Highly recommended. This is our top pick!

62270 Wierre-Effroy: La ferme du Vert, Rue du Vert, 00 33 3 21 87 67 00 - Beautifully converted barn, unique location and atmosphere, hotel, menu was slightly disappointing, better à la carte.

62930 Wimereux: Chez Yann, 25 Rue Napoleon, 00 33 3 21 87 30 04, www.chezyann.com - Tasty original cuisine.

62930 Wimereux: La Vie est Belle, 44 Rue Carnot, 00 33 3 21 83 19 31, www.restaurant-lavieestbelle.fr. - Former star chef, simpler now but very good and affordable bistro/restaurant. Unique flavours and dishes at an interesting price. Our personal favourite!

62520 Le Touquet: Perard, 67 Rue de Metz, 00 33 3 21 05 13 33, www.restaurantperard.com - Perard invented the fish soup, now exported to all corners of the world. Price/quality/service is just OK, but Perard is really worth checking out. Oyster bar and store.

62520 Le Touquet: Le Manoir du Golf, Avenue du Golf, 00 33 3 21 06 28 00 - At the Golf club, beautiful scene and terrace, non-golfers welcome too, delicious 'spicy' food, not cheap but more than worth it.

62520 Le Touquet: Les Djukes, 73 Rue de Paris, 00 33 3 21 05 03 03 - Cosy interior, tasteful dishes.

62520 Le Touquet: Le Ricochet, 49 Rue de Paris, 00 33 3 21 06 41 36 - World cuisine with eastern influences.

62170 Saint-Josse: Auberge du Moulinel, 116 Ch. De L’Avant-Pays (D139), 00 33 3 21 94 79 03 - Hard to locate (check your Satnav and don't drive to St-Josse) but worth finding. Subtle cuisine in an old-fashioned and unique setting.

Definitely worth mentioning are the estaminets-randonnée ("pub-crawl"), about 20 popular pubs/restaurants (such as "Au Lion d'Or" in Hardinghen) scattered in small villages in the Boulonnais, where you can eat delicious regional food for about €10 and find popular games. Booklet with the addresses in all tourist offices can be picked up for free.

TRIPS

Nature lovers: take a whisper boat ride through the Clairmarais (St-Omer) nature reserve and the Somme Bay. Or explore the bay and its extraordinary nature by car. Along the coastline and through the bay’s ‘hinterland’ you’ll see nature’s different facets. There are a couple of themed parks and visitor centres along the way. And of course, don’t miss a city tour of the towns of Saint-Valéry-sur-Somme or Le Crotoy.

A unique nature walk, straight through the Somme Bay, is possible too. On the way back, don’t miss the beautiful St-Riquier abbey and the garden of the Valloires abbey. Try this route, it’s a top priority! History enthusiasts: Visit La Coupole near Saint-Omer, an impressive WW2 bunker museum. And, of course, golfers won’t want to miss the Hardelot Golf.

SURROUNDINGS