Where to stay in Somme Bay: the 3 areas to know in 2026

Our tips for booking the right place

• Our two reviews of Le Crotoy give 2/5 and 5/5, and the disagreement comes from expectation: It is the sharpest in this guide, and we publish both. The 2/5: "on the north bank of the Baie de Somme, presented as an artists' village, with the only south-facing beach in the region.. yeah, meh. Muddy beach, swimming is forbidden, the village is pretty average, we left pretty fast." The 5/5: "personally, I found the little town of Le Crotoy very pretty […] the centre is well preserved with typical seaside buildings in the Belle Époque style." Both describe the same town, and neither is wrong: the first came for a beach, and the bay does not have one, "muddy beach, swimming is forbidden"; the second came for a village, and found it. If you are looking for a swim, this is not the region.
• Our longest review describes Saint-Valery step by step, right down to the addresses: It deserves to be quoted in full because it serves as an itinerary: "the main town on the south bank of the Baie de Somme, it is very pleasant to visit, for a day or two. There is a quay that runs along the Somme estuary and leads to a walk you can do on foot or by bike. The colors change with the tides and become magnificent at sunset. With a bit of luck, you might see a seal swimming up the current. Then there is the sailors' quarter, with pretty picturesque lanes full of flowers. The upper town has kept part of its walls. There is an old church, and likewise, little passages full of flowers growing at the foot of stone walls." And it ends with something no other review in this series gives, two addresses: "a good place to eat fish? La Pêcherie. For chips? The Debeauvais chip shop, a bit out of the way, but good!"
• The bay is never crossed alone, and our review explains why: "By the way, to cross the bay, you are required to be accompanied by a local guide if you don't want to get trapped by the sucking mud or the rising tide." The same review describes the terrain that makes this instruction serious: "a large wetland area with sandbars or mudflats that are submerged at high tide, pebble dikes, and salt marshes (meadows that get flooded a few times a year during high tides)". And it gives the gear, twice: "make sure to bring good binoculars or a spotting scope", "also, bring boots because you might end up walking on mud". A guided crossing has to be booked, and its time is the tide's, not yours: that is the constraint that decides the number of nights.
• The two banks are linked by a steam train, and our review makes it an activity: "You can get there using a little steam train between Saint Valery and Le Crotoy, which is a great activity to do with the family." It is the only direct crossing of the estuary: by road you have to go round it, which is thirty kilometres and forty minutes for eight kilometres as the crow flies. In other words, the bank you choose decides the day: you do not do both banks in a morning and an afternoon. And since our review makes it an activity rather than transport, you take the ride in whichever direction suits, leaving the car where you sleep.
• Our two reviews of the reserve advise the same thing: a guide for the seals: The first describes what you can see: "with the right gear, you can spot many bird species, harbor seals, and gray seals. Make sure to bring good binoculars or a spotting scope." The second says how to go about it: "this area is rich in biodiversity. You can observe many different bird species but also colonies of seals, especially during the warm season. To give yourself the best chance, choose a visit with a guide. I loved it." The two conditions are therefore the season and the guide, and neither can be improvised on the morning itself. Our review of Saint-Valery reminds us that you can also get lucky without booking anything: "you might see a seal swimming up the current".
• Our review of the Marquenterre defends a model of tourism, and that is rare: "A spacious nature park without being huge, which succeeds perfectly in protecting the birds that come to rest there during their migration or to nest in a preserved environment, and in including (paid) educational tours with information panels, or even guides, along paths that slip into the heart of the park, serving very well designed observation hides. There are quite a few visitors, without it being a crowd, and the place stays very clean. Which goes to show it is possible to run tourism while respecting the natural heritage. Bravo!" Our second review of the park adds the family argument: "this natural space is home to many bird species that you can observe without disturbing them. There are many very well designed information panels. Don't hesitate to come with the family." Two reviews, and it is the only place in the region our members are unanimous about.