Opal Coast
Visit Guînes
Where François I received Henry VIII, and the first flight across the Channel touched down
- Field of the Cloth of Gold
- State forest
- Blanchard column
- 20 min from Calais
Guînes was English for two centuries, and it's here, in a field between Guînes and Ardres, that François I and Henry VIII met on 7 June 1520 — the Field of the Cloth of Gold, eighteen days of feasts, tournaments and gold-embroidered tents that led to no treaty at all.
Two and a half centuries later, the first flight across the Channel touched down here. For a town of five thousand people twenty minutes from Calais, that's a lot of history packed into one field.
What to do in Guînes?
- The Field of the Cloth of Gold site
- Guînes state forest
- The Blanchard column
- The Clock Tower and its history trail
- The Émile Villez museum
- Château de la Bien-Assise
3 activities to book
What activities to do in Guînes?
Our favourite
For the walk and the first flight across the Channel
La forêt de Guînes et la colonne Blanchard
The column marks the spot where Blanchard's balloon landed in 1785, at the edge of the state forest.
1 h 30 · waymarked path
For the Field of the Cloth of Gold
La Tour de l'Horloge
The Clock Tower museum tells the story of the meeting between François I and Henry VIII, in 1520.
1 h · museum
For nature right by the town
Le marais de Guînes
The Guînes marsh is explored on foot, via paths setting off from the centre.
1 h · on foot
Our 3 restaurants
Where to eat in Guînes?
Our favourite
For a table in the centre
L'Orée de la Tour
A restaurant on rue Georges Clemenceau.
Restaurant · 20 rue Georges Clemenceau
For an inn
L'Auberge des Trois Pays
A restaurant on boulevard Blanchard.
Restaurant · 89 boulevard Blanchard
To eat by the marsh
Le Bistrot du Marais
A restaurant on chemin du Premier Banc, at the edge of town.
Restaurant · chemin du Premier Banc
Our 3 places to stay
Where to stay in Guînes?
Our favourite
For a B&B in the centre
La Forge
Three guest rooms on rue Guizelin, breakfast included.
B&B · 32 rue Guizelin
To sleep in an old mill
Le Moulin de Corneille
Gîtes and guest rooms in a restored mill.
Gîtes and B&B · rue du Moulin à Corneilles
To camp
Camping de la Bien-Assise
Guînes' campsite, avenue de la Libération.
Campsite · avenue de la Libération
Getting there and parking
By car, twenty minutes from Calais, half an hour from Wissant.
No train station: the nearest is Calais-Ville.
Information about the town
The Blanchard column, in the state forest, marks the spot where Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries landed on 7 January 1785, after the first aerial crossing of the Channel by balloon. The monument is modest; the place is not.
The state forest is the lungs of the Calaisis: waymarked trails, picnic spots, and enough elevation to make the walk a real one. It pairs well with a morning at Cap Blanc-Nez, twenty minutes away.
The Clock Tower offers a trail through the town's history, from the Vikings to the Field of the Cloth of Gold. It's a short visit, and the best way to understand what played out here.
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