The good news is raining down like herrings during the carnival in Dunkirk in recent months. The city of Jean Bart no longer counts the investment projects from Verkor, Taiwan's Prologium, Dorano and XTC. With the Dunkerque l'Energie créative" programmethe 3rd largest port in France is committed to the developing the energies and industries of tomorrow as thehydrogenthe automotive batteriesthe decarbonation... Some 16,000 jobs have been announced, prompting the city to make major property programmes in its historic port, which still offers significant land availability. " Located 1 hour from LilleJust 2 hours from Paris and Brussels, Dunkirk is a dynamic, welcoming and festive city that has become a major tourist destination. innovation territory with its international companies and several research centres particularly committed to the ecological transition" confirms Delphine Taleux-Grisot, Director of the Tourist Office to which the centre belongs. Conferences and seminars. He added: " L'industry and the tourism are the two pillars of local economic development. Tourism has been given a new impetus under Mayor Patrice Vergriete [still President of the Dunkerque-CUD Urban Community, but appointed Minister for Housing in July 2023]. While leisure activities have progressed, the business tourism continues to dominate the city through professionals on assignmentof team building and seminars often bringing together up to 600 participants" .
A conference centre on the beach
These plans for the industries of the future are also reflected in the agenda of the Kursaalhis Palais des congrès et des expositionsThis will include the Assises européennes de la Transition énergétique (10-12 September 2024) and the Industrissime trade fair (6-7 November 2024). Located since the 1960s opposite the beach of Malo-les-BainsLocated in one of Dunkirk's districts, the building, which belongs to the CUD, was first extended and refurbished in 2005. Threatened with removal for a time, the building's survival has recently been preserved, which should lead to a new campaign of works to maintain the attractiveness of its facilities. two large halls of 2,700 and 3,200 m² (the latter with modular seating for 500 to 3,500 spectators), its Jean Bart auditorium 500 seats (including 150 in the balcony) and its 9 meeting rooms upstairs, including 4 with sea views (for 60 to 150 people).
opposite the beach at Malo-les-Bains
" Back to pre-pandemic levels, the Kursaal has a busy schedule with more than a hundred events a year including 40% with a national audience. The majority of these events are attended by between 500 and 800 people, but the maximum capacity for congresses can reach 1,500 people, thanks to our catering facilities. We already have several major events lined up for 2024, including the FNSEA congress in March and the European Energy Transition Conference, which will bring together 2,000 participants over three days." says Yannick Delater, Business Development Manager at Dunkerque Congressthe association that operates the Kursaal under a public-private partnership until 2025. And to consider that Dunkirk now benefits from a The "golden triangle" formed by the Casino Tranchant and the Radisson Bluboth of which are just a few minutes' walk from the Kursaal, and with which we work closely." . The first has a 90-seat restaurant and a room for 150 to 200 people, depending on the configuration. Located at the end of the breakwater facing a wilder part of the beach, the second is the the town's new hotel assetIt is recognisable by its original architecture, inspired by the houses of St Malo. Inaugurated 2022The Radisson Blu Grand Hotel & Spa boasts 110 4-star rooms and suites with contemporary Art Deco decor, a rotunda restaurant, a cosy bar and a 1,000 m² spa. Not forgetting, of course, its seminar room, which can be divided into three (for 30 to 100 people).
A new look for the hotel industry
As far as the hotel trade is concerned, the northern city, which boasts a thousand rooms with the tourist residences is benefiting from other new addresses, including the opening in January 2023 from Mercure Dunkerque Centre Garea 4-star hotel located, as its name suggests, a stone's throw from the SNCF station. Overlooking the marina of the Bassin de la Marine, its modern building has 89 elegantly decorated rooms, a seminar room (for 32 people in a theatre) and a food bar used for breaks. Situated 6 km from the city centre on the shores of the Armbouts-Cappel lake and close to the main road leading to Lille, the Best Western Hôtel du Lac offers 66 3* standard rooms and 5 modular rooms equipped for business meetings, conferences and cocktail parties (for 10 to 200 people).
The largest carrier is still theIbis Dunkerque Centrea 3-star hotel with 120 rooms. " The new hotels have prompted a number of establishments to renovate, including the Best Western Plus Cargo, which has been upgraded to 4 stars, and L'Hirondelle, which plans to move up to 3 stars." says Delphine Taleux-Grisot. In addition to its 50 rooms, this latest emblematic address in Malo-les-Bains has four seminar rooms ranging from 18 to 100 m2 (for 8 to 80 people). Also on the beach is the Le Merveilleux hotel, whose 20 4-star rooms will be joining the 8 charming rooms at the Waterzooi in the town centre in 2020. For all meeting room rentals, the owners have signed an agreement with the nearby Kursaal, which can be reached in just a few minutes on foot by walking along the beach on a completely renovated breakwater lined with cosy cafés and restaurants.
A city dedicated to contemporary art
Le Merveilleux Plage, L'Hirondelle and above all the Radisson Blu have the advantage of being located close to two of Dunkirk's leading cultural venues opening their doors wide to events. Dedicated to contemporary art, the Laac First of all, in the evenings or on Mondays, the hundred or so seats in the amphitheatre of its central forum are available, under the benevolent eye of impressive sculptures by Niki de Saint-Phalle and Karel Appel. The museum, which houses no fewer than 2,500 works assembled thanks to the patronage of local businesses, offers optional guided tours of this collection. Visit Frac (Fonds régional d'art contemporain) Grand Large then has been housed for ten years on the former shipyard site, in two twin buildings, one of which is an ex-industrial hall suitable for exhibiting XXL works. Last spring, the site of the second triennial exhibition on the theme of Art and Industry, in which local businesses also took part, events are taking place on the top floor, where there is an exhibition room and a vast belvedere (350 people for receptions). The glass roof provides an uninterrupted view of the port, which was fortified in the 18th century by Vauban after the Battle of the Dunes, which marked the end of Spanish domination. Louis XIV is said to have spent as much to develop this right of way as he did to build the Château de Versailles!
Dunkirk, a port city steeped in history
The quayside is home to a number of emblematic sites linked to the city's past and present. To find out more, visit Maritime and port museum is a must-see with its model ships, paintings and plans of the city of Flanders over the centuries. The adjoining basin takes visitors on board a number of ships, including the last fireboat in operation until 1989 in the North Sea and the Duchesse AnneThis three-masted sailing ship, built in Germany in 1900, was donated to France as war reparations after the Second World War. Companies can hire the deck and tween-deck (from 50 people for seminars to 100 people for receptions) of this large sailing ship, which is a listed historic monument, or one of the 3 rooms in the museum (from 25 to 100 people).
On the 2nd floor of the red brick building, groups can round off their knowledge with a free tour of the Dunkerque Port CenterThis is an information and exhibition area about the modern port, whose activities gradually moved west of the city centre in the 20th century. For a fee this time, tours of 2 to 3 hours of the port and its businesses can be organised on specific themes: energy (Graveline nuclear power station), the environment, the steel industry (ArcelorMittal), town planning, etc. On another quay, theformer Sugar Hall dating from 1898, was renovated in 2015 to house the municipal archives, the Agur urban planning agency and a centre for raising public awareness of sustainable urban development. One of the last remaining testimonies to 19th-century port activity, the building's contemporary architecture transcends its centre to provide a 145-seat auditorium, several flexible workspaces and a meeting room at the top (40 seated and 60 for cocktails) with a vast terrace overlooking the corsair town.
Northern outdoor activities
When it comes to activities, Dunkirk has plenty to offer, including catamaran trips on the North Sea, therowing in Gravelines, from paddle at the Parc des rives de l'Aa, discover the small fortified town of Bergues famous for being the setting for Dany Boon's film "Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis". Climb to the top of one of the two belfries of Dunkirk The city's 85% were destroyed during the "Dunkirk pocket". - suffered during the "Dunkirk pocket" in the summer of 1940. In a former casemate in the port, the Bastion 32was also slipped in by the Operation Dynamo Museum devoted to this battle, which between 26 May and 4 June saw some 200,000 British and 138,000 French sail back to England on a thousand ships of all sizes, including a swarm of little ships. It's enough to make you want to go back and read Robert Merle's excellent novel "Week-end à Zuydcoote", which takes place during these tragic events. Many of these boats and their ill-fated crews were sunk by the Reich army, and their wrecks can still be seen at low tide on the immense beach stretching as far as the Belgian border. Each wreck has its own story to tell, and groups can discover them on a guided tour. sand yacht regattasof bike rides on the Vélomaritime or on foot towards Zuydcoote through the Dunes of Flanders, a site listed for its landscape and environmental quality.
Faced with the CUDIt is even possible to privatise part or all of the Princess ElizabethA former frigate that took part in Operation Dynamo, 1800 soldiers were able to reach the British coast on board during its many perilous crossings. Now used for seminars, receptions and as one of the gourmet dining of the city, the ship, which has lost none of its superb character, can accommodate 45, 220 or 100 guests respectively. A historic setting for MICE which - like the Duchesse Anne - perfectly matches the maritime image of Dunkirk. And in 2017, it was back in service for the filming of "Dunkirk", a resolutely British vision by director Christopher Nolan.
