Marina Boulogne-sur-Mer

Marina Boulogne-sur-Mer gives you 520 berths across three basins in the heart of France's busiest fishing port, so you're sharing the water with a working fleet of nearly 150 boats — it's genuinely alive in a way most marinas aren't. The marina runs 24/7 and the staff are famously helpful, and it's a short walk to the town centre with plenty of shops and restaurants. The town itself has a fascinating history as a major cross-Channel link with England, and that seafaring character is still very much in the air.