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Bray-Dunes

The Dune Marchand nature reserve

Eighty-three protected hectares, holding half the plant species of Hauts-de-France

The dune system of the Dune Marchand reserve, at Bray-Dunes
Photo: Pierre André Leclercq, source, CC BY-SA 4.0

The essentials

Where
Bray-Dunes
How long
Two hours
Price
Free
  • Protected since 1974
  • 83 hectares
  • 300 plant species
  • Free
What to do in Bray-Dunes?

Between Zuydcoote and Bray-Dunes, the Dune Marchand national nature reserve protects eighty-three hectares within a preserved dune system of two hundred and fifty hectares. It's been protected since 1974.

This isn't a beach fringed by dunes, it's the reverse: a dune landscape running down to the sea, with damp hollows, grassland and scrub. More than three hundred plant species grow here, orchids included, and the reserve alone holds half the species recorded across the Hauts-de-France region.

What you’ll see, by season

  • In spring This is orchid season in the dune slacks — the damp hollows between the dunes, where water rises to the surface. It's when the reserve best justifies its protected status.
  • In summer Butterflies and grasshoppers, and nesting birds. Heat builds up in the sheltered hollows: bring water, there's no shade.
  • In winter Wind and passing birds. The dune is bare, the shape of the landscape reads more clearly, and you'll have it to yourself.

How to explore it

The paths are waymarked, and there aren't many of them: that's deliberate. Walking in sand is more tiring than it looks, so allow generous time.

Access is free and unrestricted. Dogs aren't allowed: a nesting reserve and a dog running loose, even a gentle one, don't mix.

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    3 activities to book

    What activities to do in Bray-Dunes?

    Our favourite

    For the protected dunes

    La réserve de la Dune Marchand

    Two hundred and fifty hectares of dunes between Bray-Dunes and Zuydcoote, with waymarked trails.

    1 h 30 · waymarked path

    For the beach at low tide

    Le char à voile

    Bray-Dunes beach is a ground for sand yachting, with supervised sessions.

    Supervised session · booking required

    To cycle into Belgium

    Le vélo jusqu'en Belgique

    The Vélomaritime links Bray-Dunes to De Panne, on the other side of the border.

    1 h · bike

    Our 3 restaurants

    Where to eat in Bray-Dunes?

    Our favourite

    For fish, facing the sea

    La Voile Bleue

    A restaurant serving fish, mussels and seafood, place de l'Esplanade.

    Fish and seafood · 63 place de l'Esplanade

    For a refined table

    L'Art de l'Eau

    A restaurant on avenue du Général de Gaulle.

    Restaurant · 989 avenue du Général de Gaulle

    For moules-frites

    Les Amarres

    A brasserie on boulevard Georges Pompidou.

    Brasserie · 802 boulevard Georges Pompidou

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