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Calais is situated on the N coast of France, 21 mls NE of Boulogne, 169 mls N of Paris, 32 mls SW of the Belgian border, 74 mls NW of Lille airport and 140 mls W of Brussels international airport. The town is surrounded by open countryside on 3 sides and the English Channel to the N. Calais is set on relatively flat land straddling the Canal de Calais.
As the closest landing point in France, Calais has long been the port of passage across the Channel to England. Calais is a fairly unenchanting town covering an area of around 4½ mls E to W and with a population of 75,000, Calais is dominated by its restless port and is the main port for cross-Channel ferries connecting the UK and continental Europe (it also plays host to the French terminal for the Channel Tunnel). Most people pass straight through, as Calais has few attractions apart from the bustling hypermarkets and vast shopping centres which are designed to satisfy an incessant flow of bargain-hungry day-trippers. Calais Nord is the old town, rebuilt after the Second World War when 70% of the town was destroyed; this quarter comprises the dreary Place d'Armes main square surrounded by fairly rundown post-war construction. The 13th-century Tour du Guet watchtower is one of the few survivors from the pre-war past. Winding canals separate this area from the sprawling, less touristy Calais Sud, centred on the shopping streets of Boulevard La Fayette and Boulevard Jacquard. |
