Côte d'Opale

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The Côte d'Opale is a coastal region in North Central France, in the departments of Nord and Pas-de-Calais. It extends over {{convert|120|km}} 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 {{convert|34|km|mi}} 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 {{convert|50|m|ft}} above sea level, and the Cap Blanc-Nez (literally "white nose cape" in English), which reaches {{convert|132|m|ft}}. These capes are the closest points to England on the entire French coast.

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• Boulogne-sur-Mer
• Calais
• Dunkerque

From south to north:

• Berck
• Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
• Sainte-Cécile-Plage
• Hardelot-Plage
• Équihen-Plage
• Wimereux
• Audresselles
• Ambleteuse
• Wissant
• Blériot-Plage
• Bray-Dunes

From south to north:

• Merlimont
• Cucq
• Saint-Étienne-au-Mont
• Le Portel
• Audinghen
• Escalles
• Sangatte
• Marck
• Oye-Plage
• Grand-Fort-Philippe
• Gravelines
• Leffrinckoucke
• Zuydcoote

File:Boudin-Berck dunes.jpg

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 {{ill|Édouard Lévêque|fr}} who coined the name for this area in 1911 to describe the distinctive quality of its light.Le Touquet-Paris-Plage à l’aube de son nouveau siècle, éditions Flandres-Artois-Côte d’Opale, 1982, p.22

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• Communauté d'agglomération du Boulonnais
• Berck-Plage - Paris-Plage line

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.evancy.com/travel-guide Travel Guide of the Opal Coast / Côte d'Opale]
• [https://www.evancy.com/northern-france-holidays Accommodation on the Opal Coast / Côte d'Opale]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20131225225849/http://www.photos-cote-dopale.com/ Côte d'Opale through photos : You will love it !]
• [http://www.cote-dopale.com Côte d'Opale : Tourism, shopping, B&B]
• [http://www.cote-dopale.com/tourisme/point-de-vue/le-cap-blanc-nez Le Cap Blanc Nez]
• [http://www.cote-dopale.com/tourisme/point-de-vue/le-cap-gris-nez/ Le Cap Gris Nez]
• [http://www.cote-dopale.com/tourisme/grand-site-des-2-caps/ Le Grand Site des 2 Caps]
• [https://archive.today/20130119165230/http://www.cote-dopale.com/hebergements/ Slipping on Côte d'Opale : B&b, Gîtes, Hôtels ...]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060822062127/http://www.agglo-boulogne-cotedopale.fr/uk/ Tourism in Boulogne sur Mer and the Boulonnais area] (in English)
• [http://www.mincoin.com/php1/wissc.php Cape Blanc Nez] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170208052640/http://www.mincoin.com/php1/wissc.php |date=2017-02-08 }}
• [http://www.mincoin.com/php1/wiss.php Cape Gris Nez] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161024140655/http://www.mincoin.com/php1/wiss.php |date=2016-10-24 }}

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Category:Landforms of the Pas-de-Calais

Category:Cliffs of Metropolitan France

Category:Tourist attractions in Hauts-de-France

Category:Tourist attractions in Pas-de-Calais

Opale

Category:Landforms of Hauts-de-France

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