We are planning a week’s visit to the Somme, in France, but my sister and I are not as keen as our husbands to spend days walking through graveyards. We’re staying in Amiens, and will have two cars, so we and the chaps can do different things. What else is there to see?
Jennifer Bewley, Thaxted, Essex
You should definitely make time for some leisurely exploration of Amiens itself. Start at the fabulous cathedral, the largest in France and a gothic marvel, with arches 140ft above the transepts and outstanding stained-glass windows. The pretty Saint-Leu area is a great spot for a coffee. Then there’s the grand maison with attached tower where Jules Verne lived and wrote prolifically for 18 years (£6; jules-verne.net). Take a boat trip around the hortillonnages, too: these “floating gardens” have supplied the city with fruit and vegetables since the Middle Ages.
In summer, it’s well worth making the half-hour drive to the beautiful little Fleur d’O garden, in Davenescourt (£5; a-fleur-do.pagesperso-orange.fr). Further afield, there’s the Baie de Somme, the medieval ramparts of Saint-Valéry, the low-key beach resort of Le Crotoy, the posh and pretty resort of Le Touquet and the walled hilltop town of Montreuil-sur-Mer. An hour north of Amiens, you’ll find Arras, with its superb Grand’Place surrounded by gabled Flemish shops and houses.
A great place to stay is the art-deco Le Macassar (00 33-3 22 48 40 04, lemacassar.com; doubles from £156, B&B), which has five rooms, wood panelling and period furniture. A 15-minute drive from Amiens, in the village of Corbie, it’s run by an English/Canadian couple. A few miles further east, the Château d’Omiécourt (03 22 83 01 75, chateau-omiecourt.fr) has elegant rooms and indoor and outdoor swimming pools. Doubles start at £214, B&B.
For dinner, don’t miss Jean-Michel Descloux’s modern French cooking at Le Relais des Orfèvres (03 22 92 36 01 restaurant-relais-orfevres.fr; menus from £27), in the centre of Amiens.
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For more information, see www.visit-amiens.com.
Got a question for Richard? Email travelclinic@sunday-times.co.uk