Côte d'Opale
Sea fishing on the Opal Coast
France's leading fishing port, with trips open to everyone
The essentials
- Where
- Côte d'Opale
- How long
- Half a day or a full day
- Price
- Trip by the seat, or a chartered boat
- Day trips
- Mackerel, bass, cod
- From the harbours
- Year-round
Boulogne-sur-Mer is France's leading fishing port, and this coast has lived off the sea forever. That translates very concretely for a visitor: boats take amateurs out on trips, by the seat or as a group, from the harbours along the coast.
You need neither a licence nor gear: the boat supplies the rods, and the skipper knows the grounds. What you need to bring is a strong stomach.
What you catch, and when
- Mackerel June to September, near the surface and in shoals. This is the classic beginner catch: it takes no technique at all and it works.
- Sea bass Spring to autumn, around the capes and wrecks. More technical, and strictly regulated: minimum size, quota per angler, closed seasons.
- Cod and pollock Winter, over the wrecks in the strait. Longer trips, rougher seas, and a season that depends on weather windows.
From the shore
The breakwaters, jetties and piers of the harbours can be fished freely, without a licence, provided you respect minimum sizes and no-fishing zones. It's free, it works at any hour, and it's often the best way to strike up a conversation with a local.
Recreational fishing rules change regularly, especially for bass: the sizes and quotas in force are published by the maritime prefecture, and only those count.
Nearby
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