The North Overview

Every day, thousands of tourists pass through the channel ports of the Côte d’Opale on their way to Britain, yet few manage more than a quick glimpse of the surrounding regions, leaving the northern regions of Flanders, Pas-de-Calais, and Picardy undiscovered. When you’re fleeing the ferry ports, don’t miss the area’s hidden gems: the windmills and gabled homes of the once-Flemish Flanders possess gingerbread charm. Lille (below), a large and lively metropolis, has a strong Flemish flavor and a world-class art collection.

Pas-de-Calais’s chalk cliffs loom along the Brit-accented coast; the village of Montreuil-sur-Mer seems to belong to a fairy tale, while the busy channel port of Calais is a setting of brash reality. Farther inland, sheep graze near collapsed war bunkers on still-active minefields in Arras . Even after five decades of peace, relics from the two World Wars haunt northern France. German-built observation towers still peer over dunes—testimonials to the resilience of this region—while scores of tombstones bear witness to the terrible tolls exacted at Arras, Cambrai, and the Somme.

In Picardy, seas of wheat are sprinkled in spring and summer with red poppies. A once royal and now Parisian retreat, this area is home to lush forests, France’s largest Gothic cathedral, and dazzling châteaux.

Take A Dip into culture at Lille’s amazing modern art museum, La Piscine —a public pool that has been transformed into a sleek exhibition space.
Soak Up the bucolic charm of tiny Montreuil-sur-Mer , where Victor Hugo set much of Les Misérables.
Meander through Amiens’s cobblestone Quartier St-Leu , where canals converge at flower-filled squares.

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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.