Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France

Saint-Martin-sur-Écaillon in Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Martin_sur_ecaillon.JPG
Author: Pichasso


Nord-Pas-de-Calais is the northernmost region of metropolitan France. It covers 12,414 sq km (4,793.1 sq mi) and has a population of 4 million people. It is composed of two departments namely Nord and Pas-de-Calais. These are places which once belonged to southern Netherlands and were gradually absorbed into France between 1477 and 1678.

Nord-Pas-de-Calais is in the Central European Time Zone, which is an hour ahead of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC+1), and two hours ahead during Daylight Saving Time in summer. It was created out of the historical provinces of Artois, Boulonnais, Calaisis, Cambraisis, French Flanders, French Hainaut and portions of northern Picardy.

Church of Neuville-en-Avesnois
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Neuville_en_avesnois_church.jpg
Author: Hektor


The administrative center and largest city in Nord-Pas-de-Calais is the city of Lille. The namesake city of Calais is the second largest in the region. Due to the proximity with Great Britain, on clear days you can actually see the White Cliffs of Dover from Calais in France.

The Nord-Pas-de-Calais region was heavily industrialized in the 19th century, with coal mines, steel mills and textile factories. These industries went into decline in the early 20th century, causing the region to lose jobs which was only reversed with investments pouring in from the government and the European Union. The choice of Lille as the terminus of the Channel Tunnel was considerably boosted tourism in the region. The port towns of Calais, Dunkirk and Boulogne have also benefited from the ferry services linking them to cities in neighboring countries.

Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Saint-Omer, Nord-Pas de Calais
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cath%C3%A9drale_Notre-Dame_de_Saint-Omer5.JPG
Author: Welleschik

Visiting Nord-Pas-de-Calais

You can reach Lille by train from Paris, Brussels and London, and from Lille, continue to other towns in the region.

Cities and communes in Nord-Pas-de-Calais

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