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Opal Coast French Language School Trips & Tours

An Opal Coast school trip offers students the opportunity to explore the authentic cultural wonders of Northern France. Situated just an hour from Calais, the Opal Coast is an ideal destination for groups seeking to enhance language skills through various educational and cultural visits.

Why choose the Opal Coast for your school trip?

Aside from easy access due to the close proximity of this region, visiting the Opal Coast in France offers stimulating learning experiences packed full of educational value. Students can visit the towns of Aire-sur-la-Lys, Boulogne-sur-Mer and St Omer with an exclusive town trail that builds confidence for listening and speaking in French during their expedition. 

Visit a traditional boulangerie for a learning experience of how French bread and croissants are produced, with a chance for students to partake in baking their own tasty goods! There are leisure attractions in abundance that provide fun downtime during your stay too. Explore the natural world at Lille Zoo or take to the ice and skate at the Hélicéa Leisure Centre. 

Our French Language Enrichment Experience can be included in your school trip too. Combined with an array of memorable visits, a French Language Enrichment trip to the Opal Coast enhances classroom-based learning by giving pupils the opportunity to practise conversational French, listening skills and increase confidence in their ability. With the support of your own French-speaking Groupie at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem, your pupils will be encouraged to use their language skills whilst on visits, during mealtimes and throughout their entire school trip.

Our Opal Coast school trip highlights…

Combine learning and leisure by discovering some of the best things to see and do across the Opal Coast, Our trip highlights include: 

  • French Language Enrichment Experience
  • L'Escargotiére du Choquel 
  • Visit a Local Boulangerie
  • Natur’Pom Cider Farm
  • Louvre-Lens Museum
  • Gaufres and Waffles Factory 
  • Le Touquet
  • Ceramics Museum in Desvres

Check out our other Opal Coast school trips

With so many learning opportunities to discover in the region, we offer a range of Opal Coast school trips with a specialised focus, allowing you to take advantage of the rich cultural offerings of this stunning region. The Opal Coast in France allows students to explore a true sense of French life, with educational focuses on culture, food, history and art all prominent themes to explore during your stay. 

As well as our fantastic French Language trip, we offer the following Opal Coast school trips:

Opal Coast Primary School Trips 
Cultural School Trips to the Opal Coast
Food Technology Opal Coast School Trips

 

Prices start from£349pp

Price Shown includes

  • 2 nights' full board accommodation staying at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem
  • Executive coach transport from and to your school and throughout your stay
  • Services of your own Group Co-ordinator (Groupie)
  • French Language Enrichment Experience at the Château
  • Organised evening activities
  • Free Go Explore journal for every pupil
  • Extensive group travel insurance
  • 1 in 8 free place ratio

Price shown is based on 40 paying passengers departing from selected departure points and is subject to availability.


On-tour support

On-tour support includes...

Your dedicated Group Co-ordinator, if staying at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem, will ensure the smooth-running of your school tour, acting as all-round support for your group. 


Accommodation

Popular options in the Opal Coast


Opal Coast School Trip Highlights

French Language Enrichment Experience at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem

Exclusive to NST

Our French Language Enrichment Experience has been designed to develop conversational and comprehension skills through a range of exciting target language-focused excursions and activities with an emphasis on enrichment experiences.

Throughout your tour, pupils will have daily interactions with French speakers to help build their confidence when communicating in a variety of social situations. No matter what your group’s age or ability, your experience can be pitched at exactly the right level to enrich their learning and enable your pupils to engage with the target language. 

With the support of your own French-speaking Groupie at NST’s Château d’Ebblinghem, your pupils will be encouraged to use their language skills at all times, for example, during morning language briefings, mealtimes and evening activities.

Your Groupie will liaise with you on arrival to confirm your group’s language requirements, to support differentiated learning styles and to ensure that your trip is meeting your needs. Then put your learning into practice by interacting with native French speakers on a series of local visits!

Find out more about our French Language Enrichment Experience

Boulogne-sur-Mer

This port town provides several cultural experiences located close together. 

  • Take a guided tour of the town and practise your language skills with the local French guide. 
  • Explore the Roman old town, spending time in its shops and cafés and practising language skills. 
  • Pupils can also compare French life past and present. 
  • Local market days are Wednesday and Saturday. Pupils can interact with traders, build language confidence and pick up a bargain or two.

 

Local Goat Farm

Gain an insight into French farming and cheese making. There are also opportunities for cheese tasting and, at certain times of the year, to help milk the goats. 

Les Chocolats de Beussent

Learn about the industry of chocolate making and combine the demonstrations of melting, moulding and coating with worksheets, a guided tour of the workshop (in English or French), and the chance to enjoy tasting samples!

Les Escargotières

Get a real taste of France! At a working snail farm, your group will learn how one of France’s most famous foods is reared. Then sit back and see which of your pupils will be first to sample one for themselves. 

Local Boulangerie Visit

There are a number of boulangeries in the region where your pupils will watch and listen to the baker describe, in French, the process of making traditional French bread and croissants, before getting the chance to produce and eat their own. 

Boulangerie Escoeuilles

At this traditional boulangerie only French is spoken. Your pupils will learn new phrases as they see the making and baking of bread, brioche and papin pies, before leaving with a fresh croissant or pain au chocolat.

Natur’Pom Cider Farm

Visit the organic orchards at this cider farm and learn about the ecosystem of the farm, the cycle of the plant and organic production. Visits can be adapted to the age of pupils and there is an on-site shop for tasty souvenirs!

Nausicaá Sea Centre

Nausicaá promises you an unforgettable voyage to the heart of the Ocean! Discover the 1,600 species who call the Aquarium home. A visit here will convince you that the Ocean is not only a wondrous and rich resource; it is also the future of Mankind. This fascinating sea centre promotes learning through interactive exhibits. Groups can explore three amazing worlds: "Journey on the High Seas,"  "Mankind and Shores" and "Ocean and Climate." 

Nausicaa offer 1 hour educational workshops which will really bring your trip to life. The workshops currently available are:
Zoom into Marine Life - Observe tiny fauna magnified thousands of times on a wide screen and discover the importance of a good water quality for survival of the species.
Calculate your ecological footprint - Thanks to a 20 question quiz, discover your ecological footprint and your impact on climate change!
Zoom into marine biodiversity - At the lab, pupils will observe tiny marine animals through microscopes. They will discover shared characteristics according to the classification of living beings.
Sharks! Not even scared! - Let’s discover the shark and its importance in the Ocean. Learn more about this fascinating animal and look at it differently.

You can also take a 'backstage tour' of Nausicaa to find out what goes on behind the scenes at the Sea Centre. How was it built? What do the manta rays and the other animals of the big tank eat?

Town Trails

Follow trail instructions and answer questions in French in this informative way to explore the town. NST’s exclusive trails are an excellent method of getting pupils to read, repeat and understand French words and phrases. Town trails are available in: 

  • Aire-sur-la-Lys 
  • Boulogne-sur-Mer 
  • St Omer

 

Language Workshops at Lille & Boulogne Universities

Lessons at the universities of Lille and Boulogne can be tailored to the ability of your group as well as your choice of topic. Your group will be split into classes of up to 15 pupils to ensure the maximum individual participation of each pupil, who will then go on to use their enhanced abilities and confidence in speaking the language for the remainder of the visit. These lessons are available year-round from Monday through to Saturday (excluding August).

Bellewaerde Theme Park

Spend a day at this fantastic theme park, home to a wonderful mix of rollercoasters, shows, animals and water features.

Hélicéa Leisure Centre, Boulogne-sur-Mer

Relax between, or after, visits at this fabulous leisure centre. Its ten lane swimming pool and large ice-skating rink are popular with our groups.

La Gaufre du Pays Waffle Factory Visit

Did you know the waffle is one of the oldest biscuits in the world? During this visit you will find out about the production of waffles and have a chance to see the Little Museum of Waffle Houplines. This delicious and educational tour ends with a tasting of course ... a great moment of pleasure for your taste buds!

Louvre-Lens Museum

See 5000 years of art history at the Louvre-Lens museum. Explore the museum’s exhibitions and discover masterpieces and sculptures in this beautiful art museum.

The Lighthouse – Le Touquet

If you like adventure, and you’re not afraid of heights, climb the 274 steps to the top of the Lighthouse for fabulous 360 degree views of Le Touquet.

Sweet Factory

Learn about the history of the sweet shop and see how the sweets and lollipops are made. Pupils will learn from the French commentary, demonstrations and be able to taste the delicious sweets produced. 

Biscuiterie

Famous for their culinary credentials, see how these delicious biscuits are made.

Pottery Museum and Workshop

Famous for pottery, visit the Ceramics Museum in Desvres and take part in a pottery workshop.

Dairy Farm

Visit this dairy farm and see how the animals are reared and how their milk is used to make the delicious cheese.

Caves at Naours

Take a guided tour of the underground refuges at Naours. Hollowed out of the limestone by local people as a refuge during invasions, pupils will love wandering around this maze of 28 tunnels and 300 chambers.

Calais Lace Museum

Established in Calais, inside an authentic nineteenth century lace factory, the Museum of Lace and Fashion is a specialist museum for the famous lace woven on looms. 

Arques Crystal Glass

Tour the visitor centre and small museum of the Arques Crystal Glass factory. The works was founded by the Durand family in 1825 to make demijohns for Bordeaux winemakers. Today, it markets a full range of tableware products in more than 160 countries.

La Coupole

This fascinating museum was once the Nazi’s planned V2 rocket base. It now showcases the story of Hitler’s secret weapon and also of French life during WWII.

The bomb damaged remains of this V2 assembly and launching site house a museum covering the themes of the 1940s occupation of Northern France, the German secret weapons, the Cold War and the conquest of space.

Agincourt Historical Museum

Learn how Henry V’s weakened and outnumbered army defeated the French in 1415. This fascinating museum contains a wealth of documents, reproductions and photographic enlargements, copies of weapons and armour and a scale model of the battlefield. Students will gain a valuable insight into how and why battles were fought, get to touch and handle the arms and armour and interact with full-size talking figures.

Lille Zoo

Spend a fun couple of hours wandering around this zoo and enjoy the antics of the wildlife. 

Calais Dragon

Ride aboard the Calais Dragon and discover a breathtaking view of Calais, the beach and the Côte d'Opale. The dragon awakens and a unique 45-minute journey begins.

 

Image credit: Fred Collier, Ville de Calais


Evening activites

  • Organised evening activities at the château 
  • Excellent recreational facilities at the château (including two football pitches, volleyball area and four hectacres of private grounds)
  • Most other hotels can provide a room for groups to use in the evening for quizzes or discos

Educational resources

Free Go Explore journals
We understand that learning resources form an important part of a language tour. Our free Go Explore educational resources are a great tool for pupils to record their language experience and build their confidence when exploring another culture, language and location. 

With space to add information, pre-visit notes, a daily journal about what they’ve seen and learnt and space for relevant vocabulary our journals are useful for assisting in controlled assessment preparation and is a valuable memento of time spent abroad.

Click here to view a sample of our resources


Transport

Available from any location in the UK, our executive coaches are fitted with seatbelts, toilet facilities, air conditioning, DVD and reclining seats.

Coach


Giving you full support throughout

Before your tour

  • Your own dedicated NST contact
  • Bespoke tour itineraries
  • Unrivalled local knowledge & expertise
  • Curriculum linked visit programmes
  • Great value for money - no hidden costs
  • Free group leader inspection visits
  • Risk assessment guidance
  • Safety assured, transport, accommodation and visits

Whilst you're away

  • Free educational resources
  • Group-friendly accommodation
  • Exceptional standards of coaching
  • On-tour support from our reps on the ground
  • Support & assistance from our specialists throughout your tour
  • 24/7 support just a call away
  • Extensive group travel insurance

On your return

  • Priority rebooking services
  • Rewarding your loyalty with our reward scheme
  • You say, we listen - we're committed to continuously improving our tours
  • School travel company of choice since 1967

“We were all very well catered for during our stay at NST’s château. There were no complaints from the children (which is quite an achievement!) and staff really appreciated the refreshments in the teachers’ lounge after a long day! We were very pleased with the venue and would like to return in the future.” 

Mary Grundberg, Aston House School