Le Touquet beach: areas, swimming, tides and seaside activities

Le Touquet beach is some ten kilometres of fine, flat sand, facing due west over the Channel, which uncovers a very long way at low tide. Depending on where you lay your towel, the atmosphere changes completely: family fun in front of the seafront promenade, wide open spaces for sand yachting to the south, dunes and an almost deserted estuary to the north.

Here is how to choose your patch of sand, swim with peace of mind and enjoy everything that happens on the beach, in season and out of season.

The three faces of Le Touquet beach

There is not "one" beach in Le Touquet but a continuous ribbon, with no rocks or pebbles, which can be divided into three areas. They are linked on foot across the foreshore: at low tide you can walk for hours without leaving the sand.

To the north, the beach curves towards the mouth of the Canche. The sand there is constantly reshaped by tidal currents, dunes planted with marram grass run down to the shore, and you can see the port of Étaples across the water. It is the quietest area, perfect for walking, much less so for swimming.

In the centre, the beach runs along the seafront promenade, lined with villas, apartment buildings and terraces. This is where, from spring to autumn, the children's clubs and beach bars set up, and where the lifeguarded swimming zones are marked out in summer.

Further south, beyond the Channel sailing centre, the foreshore becomes enormous at low tide: this is sand-yachting territory. The beach then stretches on towards Stella-Plage, a district of the neighbouring commune of Cucq, backed by protected dunes.

Swimming in Le Touquet: lifeguards, flags and common sense

The Channel stays cool, even in August, but swimming in Le Touquet is pleasant in fine weather thanks to the very gentle slope: you can wade a long way with the water at mid-thigh. A few simple rules let you enjoy it safely.

• Swim in the lifeguarded zones. In the peak summer season, lifeguard stations watch over marked zones in front of the seafront. Outside these periods and zones, you swim at your own risk.
• Respect the flags. Green: lifeguarded swimming with no particular danger; orange: lifeguarded but dangerous swimming; red: swimming prohibited.
• Avoid the estuary. On the Canche bay side, the tide creates strong currents and the seabed keeps shifting: you can walk there, but do not swim.
• Watch the incoming tide. On such a flat beach, water rises quickly in the runnels (the hollows in the sand that fill first) and can cut off a sandbank where children are playing.

Bathing water quality is checked every summer by the Regional Health Agency; results are posted at the lifeguard stations and at the town hall.

Understanding the tides before you go

It is the question every visitor asks on the first day: "where has the sea gone?". In Le Touquet the tidal range is large and, on high-coefficient tides, the sea retreats several hundred metres from the promenade. There are about six hours between low tide and high tide.

• High tide: the most convenient time to swim near the clubs and the promenade.
• Low tide: ideal for walking on firm sand, cycling on the foreshore, sand yachting or shrimping.
• Spring tides (high coefficients, around the March and September equinoxes): a vast foreshore at low water, with the sea rising right up to the foot of the promenade at high water.

The tourist office publishes the times on its Le Touquet tides page. Note the time of high tide each morning: it shifts by about three quarters of an hour a day. To know what weather to expect by season, see also our article on the weather in Le Touquet.

What to do on Le Touquet beach

Sand yachting, the signature sport

Le Touquet is one of France's sand-yachting strongholds. The Channel sailing centre, named after champion Bertrand Lambert, is at the southern end of the beach and offers taster sessions and courses, generally from age 8. You need low tide and wind, so sessions are scheduled according to the tide calendar. The same centre also offers paddleboarding, surfing, kitesurfing and sea walking (walking in a group through the water). Everything is covered in our article on water sports in Le Touquet.

Beach clubs and games for children

In front of the promenade, several beach clubs welcome children in season, often from age 3: clubs with instructors, trampolines, playgrounds on the sand. The tourist office mentions in particular Ojem Jeunesse, Ojem OM and Caddy Sports. The seafront also has a mini-golf course and a merry-go-round.

For other days

• Beach volleyball and summer tournaments on the sand;
• kite flying, ideal in the south where there is huge space;
• brown-shrimp fishing with a push net at low tide;
• cycling on the firm sand, or a rosalie pedal car on the promenade;
• a sunset drink at a beach bar, open from Easter weekend until the autumn.

Dogs, access and practical details

Dogs are not allowed on the central part of the beach, where the lifeguarded swimming is, throughout the summer season. They are tolerated at both ends, on the Canche bay side and to the south, beyond the busy areas. The exact periods are set by municipal order and posted at the access points: check the signs when you arrive.

The central beach is a few minutes' walk from the town centre; the flat, wide promenade is easy to cover with a pushchair or by bike. Bring:

• a windproof jacket, even in summer, as the sea breeze often picks up in the afternoon;
• shoes for the foreshore if you walk a long way out at low tide (shells);
• sun cream: the wind masks the strength of the sun;
• a windbreak if you plan to stay several hours in the same spot.

Outside the summer, the beach remains magnificent: in October or February you often have kilometres of sand almost to yourself. This is also the season of the Enduropale, the famous motorbike and quad race on the sand, held every year at the end of winter, between late January and early February.

When is the best time to enjoy the beach?

Because it faces west, Le Touquet beach offers beautiful sunsets over the Channel, especially from May to September when the sun sets late. In summer, mornings are the quietest: you will easily find space near the clubs before 11 am. In the evening, the low light on the wet sand delights photographers.

If you stay in the town centre, you will never need the car to go to the sea. From Villa Mon Étoile, on rue d'Étaples, the beach is about 300 metres away, five minutes on foot with bucket and spade.

Charles's tip: check the time of low tide before choosing your day. On days when it falls in the late afternoon, walk north to the Pointe du Touquet: you will have the Canche bay golden in the setting sun, sand as far as the eye can see and almost no one around. Take binoculars, as you can sometimes spot seals on the sandbanks.

To round off the day, follow up with a walk in the dunes and the pine wood or discover our ideas for a family holiday in Le Touquet.