Dunkirk vs Calais

[Dwn]

I've asked for advice about a planned (first) multi day trip between Calais and Brussels, and it's been very helpful.

One common response though has been that I should change my start point from Calais to Dunkirk. This isn't impossible, but given that I'm arriving in the evening I won't have much daylight for cycling any distance on the first day. The drop-off point for the Le Shuttle bike service is very close to my hotel, so it keeps the first day pretty simple.

Is the cycle route out of Calais particularly bad? I've checked street view for part of the route and it looks a bit dull, but that's the worst I can say really. Am I missing something awful about Calais?

If I did start from Dunkirk, are there any decent hotels near the ferry terminal? I've searched on Google, but nothing much comes up.

Thanks

 

[mjr]

I'm not sure about Calais cycle routes. I've not cycled there but travelling through by car and coach over the years, they've not looked particularly bad. If you're using the Eurotunnel Bike Service, that actually drops you nearer Fréthun IIRC, which has fewer cycleways but is not far to quiet roads. Couple of budget hotels nearby IIRC.

I suspect people suggest Dunkirk because it's 20ish miles closer, the same ferry price (£25 before discounts) and apart from the first two miles to Loon-Plage and half a mile in Bray-Dunes, it's now connected to the Belgian cycleway network which allows an easy, obvious and pleasant ride: D601 to EV4 to LF1 to Bruges, canal to Gent, then Aalst and Brussels; or if you're happy with small French roads, a southern alternative is D17 to Popringe for Ypres, then Kortrijk and pick up EV5 to Brussels.

Dunkirk ferry port hotels: there's a Campanile and a Kyriad on the port side of Loon-Plage I think but that's not on the usually-recommended cycle route between port or Loon-Plage so it would probably mean either cutting across the gravel into the industrial zone or waiting for all the ferry lorries to clear the motorway feeder before cycling along it. They're often expensive (for the type) too - I guess popular with people stopping over before an early ferry. I think the next nearest are F1 and Premiere Classe at Saint Pol sur Mer. There are some in Grande-Synthe but they are south of town which worries people because of the migrant camps - but then, the B&B Hotel at Calais I stayed at in 2018 had a barbed wire fence and security guards so it might just be paranoia. This year, I'm aiming for the Escale hostel in Dunkirk, about 12 miles from the ferry port. Two years ago, we tried for an excellent barn conversion (with bike garage) at 't Moerlogie just into Flanders (about 20 miles from the port) but it is a rush to check in from the 5pm ferry arrival if late and even more of a rush to get food before things close! If I did it again, I'd probably buy food in Dover and cook in the kitchen there.

Hope that informs!

 

[Dwn]

That's very helpful, and reassuring about Calais - I thought I was just missing something. Calais is a place I've just blasted through enroute to somewhere else (as is Dunkirk). You barely notice these places in a car. Very different when you're thinking about a bike trip.

 

[mjr]

Perhaps as further reassurance, there's many nice words about the eurotunnel bike service on another forum at https://forum.cyclinguk.org/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=123181&p=1248864#p1248864 but - as I probably mentioned there - I can never make the limited times work out travelling from Norfolk because of the bike time restrictions on trains through Cambridge and London.

 

[Fab Foodie]

My only comment is that any route from Calais to Dunkirk is dull as ditchwater!

 

[Dwn]

My only comment is that any route from Calais to Dunkirk is dull as ditchwater!

Yeah, I can see that would be the case but I can live with that in exchange for the ease with which it fits the rest of my travel arrangements.