


A very pretty small town, with good hotels and restaurants. This place is a bit of an oasis among the busy stretch along the Calais coast. But the location is perfect for anyone who wants to stay overnight on a day trip or shopping trip to France via the ferries or Channel Tunnel. It sure beats hanging around Calais!
www.tourisme-montreuillois.com/
Google map: bit.ly/isFNTy
900 mile cycle journey - best holiday ever. The European Bike Express makes it possible to cycle from the Channel to the Mediterranean (Manche à Mer has a similar ring to Coast to Coast) by dropping you off at Calais (not a scheduled stop, but if you ask them nicely) and picking you up at Narbonne. In our case the return date was 29 days after the drop-off, giving us a few days by the Med. We found the CTC information, Alastair Sawday’s French Bed and Breakfast Guide, IGN 1/25,000 scale maps and local tourist office guides invaluable. We mostly booked the day before except when our overnight destination coincided with the Tour de France. As we were getting on a bit we avoided the Massif Central. Among the many highlights were: being pressed to take food, drink and an orange for the journey by Licques cycling club (we met their club outing food stop), watching Le Tour go by, staying at the Chateau Larra and dining with the Baroness and her family. We took no spares (just puncture repair kit) on the premise that we’d never be too far from a cycle shop in France. Others may not want to risk it, although we only suffered two punctures in 970 miles. It all added up to one of the most memorable holidays we have had.
P.S (can be included if this doesn’t make it too long:
Our overnight stops were Bois-en-Ardres, Montreuil. Chépy, Gaillefontaine, Les Andelys, Evreeux, Maletable, Bonnetable, Pontvallain, Saumur, St Jean de Thouars, Parthenay, St Maixent, Angouleme, Biras-Brantome, St Sauveur, Villeneuve-sur-Lot, Valence d’Agen, Castelsarrassin, Moissac, Larra, Villefranche-en-Lauragais, Castelnaudary, Marseillette, Gruissan –Plage.
Just 30 minutes by road from Calais, Ferme du Vert is a charming little farmhouse in a peaceful bucolic setting, and great value for a weekend break. The rooms are lovely, the food is superb - the owners have their own fromagerie - and the small collection of farmyard animals makes it a hit with young children.
www.fermeduvert.com/
La Ferme du Vert, rue du Vert - 62720 Wierre, Effroy
+33 (0)3 21 87 67 00
Google map: bit.ly/eHVUzD
For weekend city breaks to Calais the Bonsai hotel is a good choice. Tiny rooms but ideal location and budget prices. Located right opposite the main station, a few minutes' walk from the centre of the town of Calais. Most important - free parking facilities for those who travel by car.
Quai Du Danube, Calais, 62100
www.hotelara.com/france/calais-accommodation.html
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