The Bay of the Somme visitor guide

Visit The Bay of the Somme, France

The Bay of the Somme is France's largest estuary, and this wetland location is home to a wonderful range of birds and also to colonies of seals.

Explore Somme Bay

The Bay of the Somme is one of France's "Grand Sites of France" due to the richness of the flora and fauna. The bay includes a number of different habitats including stony beaches, wet-meadows and dunes. At low tide the sand stretches out as far as the eye can see and is very beautiful, especially at sun rise and sun set.

The bay stretches from Le Hourdel to the south round to Saint Quentin-en-Tourmont to the north.

More than 250 different species of birds spend a part of their year at the bay and there is also a colony of seals. Indeed the largest colony of seals in France live here.

It is of course possible to visit towns like Saint-Valery-sur-Somme and Le Crotoy and admire the views over the bay from the town but to really appreciate the bay you need to take an outing onto the sand flats. Saint-Valery-sur-Somme is one of the best places to organise this.

Every day at low tide a guide takes out a walking group to discover the estuary and the flora and fauna, including usually a sighting of the seal colony. You will often be wading through sea-water and but wellies are provided by the guides.

The Maison de la Baie de Somme is another good place to learn about the Bay and set out on a walk. This is located at Lancheres.

The Parc du Marquenterie is a large protected park covering the northern edge of the bay and the sand dune landscapes beyond. It is home to 300 species of migratory birds and you can do a seven kilometre trek through the park to catch a glimpse at first hand of some of these beautiful birds.

As well as walking in the bay you can also go hot air ballooning over the bay, kayak in the bay or cycle or drive around its edges. Horse riding trips can also be arranged.

Saint-Valery-sur-Somme is a very pretty town and makes a good base for organising these activities and exploring the bay in general.

Yet another way to explore the bay is by steam train. The "Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme" travels from Cayeux-sur-Mer to Le-Crotoy stopping at Saint-Valery-sur-Somme and Noyelles-sur-Mer. You can get on or off at any of these towns. The railway line hugs the bay and gives you some great views over the fields and marshes of the bay.