Top 5 best museums on the Opal Coast

The coastline of the Hauts-de-France means lovely beaches, good restaurants, cliffs, the sea… but also plenty of museums. To share and discover our region's cultural heritage, and get a better sense of what's around us, a wide choice of museums is on offer: fine arts, fashion, history, and more. We've picked out a few good addresses among the best museums on the Opal Coast, to satisfy your curiosity!

Le Musée des Beaux-Arts de Calais

This museum, set in the heart of Calais's historic centre, blends the classical with the contemporary. It's organised around:

• An exhibition devoted to Rodin. Numerous plaster sculptures and a fascinating trail taking you back in time to see the stages involved in creating the Burghers of Calais monument, a true symbol of the town.
• An exhibition on Calais's cultural richness and the various artistic influences linked to its geographical position at the crossroads of England, Flanders and the Paris basin.
• Another room takes you into the fantastical world of Alice in Wonderland and the imagination of Lewis Carroll.

📌 From 13 May 2023, new exhibitions devoted to fine art will be installed in a refreshed museum, with an all-new layout for its interior spaces.

La Cité de la Dentelle et de la Mode de Calais

Leavers lace, Chantilly lace, needle lace, and more. None of that ring a bell? Then head straight to this superb museum. Become an expert on this fabric and the age-old know-how, unique in France, behind Dentelle de Calais-Caudry® lace. Opened in 1966 in a former 19^th-century factory, the Cité de la Dentelle et de la Mode de Calais is a true tribute to the richness of Northern France's textile industry. Wandering through its 5 galleries tracing the different techniques and developments of lace, you'll rub shoulders with the biggest names in luxury and fashion:

• hand-made lace ;
• machine-made lace ;
• lace-making demonstrations on Leavers looms ;
• the trades ;
• fashion.

📌 What's new at the museum? From 24 June 2023, an exceptional exhibition opens: more than 60 outfits and numerous accessories, photographs, drawings and videos, immersing you in the luxurious world of Yves Saint Laurent and his work with lace to enhance the female body and reveal it in complete transparency.

Le Château d’Hardelot

Tucked away in the heart of a forest, this magnificent neo-Tudor manor house is now home to the Cultural Centre of the Entente Cordiale between France and England. Stroll through its outdoor gardens, which change with every season. Take in the architecture, reminiscent of Windsor Castle. Once through the doors, you enter an exhibition space open to the world, showing more than 500 works on loan from major French museums. Discover the Elizabethan theatre, home to dance, opera, music and more.
As you'll have gathered, this is a true meeting place, a blend of cultures and a deep dive into history.

📌 What's new at the château? On 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 21, 23, 25 and 26 February, a one-hour guided tour (sur réservation) lets you discover the manor house, its gardens and its medieval ruins.

Le Musée du Touquet-Paris-Plage

This superb Anglo-Norman-style villa, built in 1925, has housed the museum of the Opal Coast's chicest seaside resort since 1989. Numerous collections are displayed in this gem of a building with its warm wood panelling:

• works from the Étaples art colony, with close to 300 paintings by artists who fell in love with the Opal Coast (Eugène Boudin, Henri Le Sidaner, and more).
• modern art ;
• contemporary art ;
• historical works.

📌 Right now, until 8 May 2023, discover Alain GODON, a French painter and sculptor born in 1964, who is exhibiting, among other things, his oil paintings depicting Le Touquet's iconic landmarks with humour.

Le Musée du Mur de l’Atlantique

This 2^nd World War bunker takes you into the daily life of the German troops. You'll visit the inside of one of the 4 casemates that make up the Batterie Todt. Its strategic position (near Cap Gris-Nez) made it easy to reach the English coast, just 29 km away.

📌 Following its annual closure, the museum in Audinghen reopens its doors from 11 February 2023.

Has this non-exhaustive list made you want to discover more museums on the Opal Coast? Extend the experience by planning a weekend on the Opal Coast.