Situated between 2 and 3 hours from Paris, London and Brussels, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage occupies a privileged position when it comes to business tourism in Haut-de-France. From recent investments However, its position has been strengthened in the wake of the health crisis, at a time when companies are looking for quality locations, if possible in the fresh air and in a protected environment. " My predecessor Léonce Deprez took a gamble on business tourism to keep the seaside resort alive during the week and outside the school holidays." says Daniel Fasquelle, the town's mayor and new chairman of the...
Situated between 2 and 3 hours from Paris, London and Brussels, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage occupies a privileged position when it comes to business tourism in Haut-de-France. From recent investments However, its position has been strengthened in the wake of the health crisis, at a time when companies are looking for quality locations, if possible in the fresh air and in a protected environment. " My predecessor Léonce Deprez took a gamble on business tourism to keep the seaside resort alive during the week and outside the school holidays." says Daniel Fasquelle, the town's mayor and new chairman of the Hauts-de-France Regional Tourism Committee. A department of the Tourist Office is dedicated to thehosting and organising events.
This proactive policy has given rise to the Palais des Congrès located in a wing of the former Casino de la Forêt. At a cost of €24 million, its historic rooms have been completely renovated, with a contemporary extension designed by the architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte. Inaugurated in February 2020, on the eve of the Covid-19 epidemic, the building, whose great hall has been restored to its full Art Deco glory, has become the cornerstone of the community's business tourism revival. It now boasts two major assets 13 spaces the ability to host two or three events simultaneously, and its new 1156-seat Ravel auditorium. These are retractable to adapt to events with 400 to 1,000 participants, theVictor Boucher auditorium with its 419 adjustable seats, will take over for smaller events. " Everything is now modular, interconnected and equipped with the latest technology".says Damien Mionnet, Sales Manager. He adds: " We took advantage of the forced shutdown during the pandemic to reinvest in video equipment in order to develop the video-conferencing" .
Standing on the dunes of the Côte d'Opale since the Belle Epoque, the seaside town of 5,000 inhabitants to which must be added 10,000 second homes is in fact equipped as a town of 35,000 inhabitants in terms of sports and cultural facilities. In addition to the thalassotherapy/well-being facilities, companies can choose from a whole host of activities to boost their events, from golf (whose little caddy is the symbol of Le Touquet) to the sand yachting - on the long beaches of the north - via the bike/mountain bikethe tennisthe hiking and outings in canoe, paddle or kayak in the Bay of the Canche. " Le Touquet will be the base camp for the England team at the Rugby World Cup in 2023 "says Daniel Fasquelle. The English have made the station a success and are still very much present, including for the MICE. The Eurostar No longer stopping at Calais-Fréthun (30 minutes from Le Touquet), these groups are now transferred from Lille-Europe station (1h30 away).
A chic resort undergoing a complete overhaul
Symbol of Le Touquet-Paris-Plage back in the limelightthe Barrier which had split fromWestminster hotel in 1972 bought the establishment in 2016 before putting it through a rejuvenating cure. Inaugurated between two waves of epidemics, the 104-room establishment (including 8 suites) has since lost its 5th star, the only one in this category on the Côte d'Opale. This move upmarket doesn't seem to be holding businesses back - quite the contrary, in fact, with the Barrière Le Westminster hotel having given its 10 event spaces including a large 350 m² room (divisible into 3) that can accommodate 200 people in theatre. " MICE already accounts for 40% of the business with peaks from April to June and from September to mid-November. We benefit both from the novelty of the hotel for customers who are loyal to the Group because of our locations, and from the fact that we have a very good reputation in the market. catch-up effect with companies that haven't done any events for a long time" says director John Banizette, pointing out that this jewel of the Roaring Twenties has already been privatised several times since its reopening.
Other establishments in the resort have also benefited from recent renovations, including two 4-star establishments, the Novotel Thalassa and the Grand Hôtel Le Touquet. Hotel capacity, currently 1500 roomswill also be enriched by the opening before the summer of the New Century three Accor brands with 180 rooms shared between a hotel Mercure and a Tribe - the the group's new trendy design store - in four stars, and a Ibis Style in three stars. Located near theairportInitiated in 2007 by Léonce Deprez, this development project has had its share of ups and downs. Let's hope that The Duneexpected for 2024 on the seafront in place of the Aqualud water park, will experience fewer delays. With its futuristic, semi-underground architecture and its green roof This five-star hotel, which will have a promenade winding through it, will add a hundred or so keys to the seaside resort which, as part of its move upmarket, has adopted the slogan "Nature & Elegance. This chic positioning is reinforced by the regular weekend presence of the presidential couple.
New "nature" products near Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
Just 20 minutes from Le Touquet, the four-star Hotel du Château de Montreuil-sur-Mer was taken over in December 2019 by the Living Hotels group. Renovated during the Covid, this renowned restaurant has 11 rooms with refined decor, as well as two garden villas and four cottages set in a verdant garden surrounded by 17th-century walls. The entire hotel is available for private hire, with a small meeting room (12 people), a pavilion for 140 participants and various areas for dinners and cocktails. Additional accommodation is also available in this fortified town in the Pas-de-Calais region through partnerships with accommodation providers of a similar category.
Florence Karras, whose Domaine de Fresnoy located in Loison-sur-Créquoise has just 4 bedrooms, sleeping 10. This former Parisian from the world of banking has also just taken over a former priory in the middle of Covid, with the aim of enabling companies to offer their employees a green break on the theme of the sylvotherapy.
" The aim is to support companies in their transformation, while raising awareness of the benefits of nature." The centre offers walks in the forest for "forest bathing", "side stepping", sensory awakening, meditation... In short, letting go! A meeting room equipped for a dozen people has also been set up in an old barn for the seminars. " I work on team cohesion in a different way, without challenges. The programme is tailored to the client's expectations and theme. It can be the heart of the stay or a complement to a seminar".adds Florence Karras. An unusual place to get out of the box "which will enable it to be listed by the Séminaire Collection and Welcome to the Jungle sites.
