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Ste Cecile is a relatively small beachside town on the Cote d’Opale nestling in a natural break in the sand dunes between Le Touquet Paris Plage and Hardelot. Whilst lively in July and August with its summer visitors enjoying a range of activities and concerts/entertainment, for the rest of the year, Ste Cecile is a relatively peaceful and calm haven for those who want to get away. 

Ste Cecile is on the Cote d’Opale which to its southern boundary at St. Valery, where it crosses the river Somme. Cote d’Opale has more than 100 km of wide sandy beaches that meet European “blue flag” standard. The clean, soft white sands are typically backed and bordered with high dunes covered in sea oats and grass and offer solitude amidst their hollows even at the height of the season. The dunes, all of which are protected under French law, provide for some excellent horse riding, walking and cycling on clearly marked paths. Further paths can be found in the forests that lie behind the sand dunes.

For the more energetic, Ste Cecile offers OpalAventure which has 5 different courses amongst the trees giving you the opportunity to cling to cargo nets and swing from the treetops; the Bagatelle Amusement Park near Merlimont (approx 20 mins drive away) or why not visit the Nausicca sea discovery centre in Boulogne. 

If you prefer your sport aquatic, within 10 minutes drive you can reach Le Touquet where you can try your hand at most things from water aerobics in the surroundings of one of the grand hotels to flume sliding at the giant water complex, Aqualud, located centre stage on Le Touquet’s famous Paris-Plage.

In the summer there is a wide range of entertainment for children in Ste Cecile with kids clubs, crazy golf, pony rides and much more. 

Ste Cecile offers a good variety of good quality, reasonably prices restaurants and bistros, bars and cafes, two boulangeries and a small supermarket and shops. (2 larger supermarkets are within 5 mins drive). It also has a market in the square twice a week in July and August. However if you should get the urge for a more sophisticated day/evening out then you can pop over to Le Touquet with its race track, riding stables, beauty spas, smart designer boutiques, superb restaurants, casinos and of course the golf courses. (In all there are 12 courses within a 30 minute drive of the house, plus the internationally renowned Belle Dune an hour away).

There is much to see and do locally, and most tastes are catered for. However, Ste Cecile is also ideally located as a base for exploring further afield thanks to the superb motorway links. The centre of Paris is 2 ½ hrs away, the Belgian border 1 hr, Bruges and Ypres 1½ hrs, Lille 1 ½ hrs, Honfleur 2 hrs. The battlefields of the Somme are within easy reach along with several second world war museums and war related places of interest (we would strongly recommend La Coupole at Saint Omer).

If you don’t want to drive in Paris, you can catch a train from Etaples (the next town along from Ste Cecile). It is on the main line to Paris with direct trains every hour.