A mere 40 minutes by car from the Channel ferry port of Calais, the fortified historic town of Saint-Omer is often overlooked by visitors to northern France but is well worth a stop-over for its historic attractions, stunning surrounding landscapes and great dining.
The big draws of this former trading centre with its rich textile and ceramics heritage are its fascinating architecture (including many yellow-brick buildings), its canals and its Gothic cathedral. Begun in the 13th century, the latter houses a 16th-century astrological clock said to be one of the oldest clocks in all France, and a Rubens work depicting Christ being taken down from the Cross.
For more art, the atmospheric Musée de L’Hôtel Sandelin displays more than 3,000 works, ranging in date from the Middle Ages to the 19th century, in the rooms of a handsome 18th-century mansion.
On the edge of town begins the UNESCO listed 3,700-hectare Marais Audomarois wetlands area, a biosphere reserve now housing vegetable gardens but once also serving as a French Resistance hideaway.
These gardens provide many of the ingredients for Saint-Omer’s fantastic restaurants, which also entice lovers of great French food with dishes featuring locally caught fish.
You can learn more about the water meadows at the La Maison du Marais interpretive centre, and from there take a leisurely flat-bottom boat-ride past the allotments and the smallholdings. Alternatively, hire a bike and explore the area at your own pace.
Saint-Omer’s other main sight is La Coupole at nearby Wizernes. This modern museum occupies the concrete dome of a World War II bunker complex and includes an exhibition on the German occupation, and well as displays on the history of space exploration and a state-of-the-art 3D planetarium.
Useful information
Tourist Board Information of Saint-Omer
7 Place Victor Hugo
F-62500 Saint-Omer
Tel: + 33 3 21 98 08 51
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