The Japanese concept of forest bathing – or shinrin-yoku – has been embraced by Europeans for some years now as a way to get back to nature, away from the demands of daily life. It’s not supposed to involve actual bathing in a hot tub decorated by fairy lights while sipping Crémant de Bourgogne, but who am I to say “no” if that’s on offer?
This is Bain de Forêt, a pair of smart cabins set between the towering pines of Hardelot-Plage, just 45 minutes’ drive south of Calais. Each cabin has a Nordic bath set under its own little wooden gazebo; the site is so peaceful, it is ideally suited to a romantic getaway à deux. But seeing as both the A-frame-style La Cabane and the lower-rise cabin Le Refuge (where we are) sleep four, we couldn’t really leave the two kids (aged nine and 11) behind. As we arrive on site for our three-night stay, everyone seems happy. My husband puts the fizz in the fridge to cool, the kids take the wooden cover off the Nordic bath, and I gaze up into the verdant canopy and breathe a huge sigh of relaxation.
The next morning, we wake and gaze up through the skylight above our beds at the trees and, until the children get up, it’s silent but for birdsong. Breakfast is a feast of pastries, bread, yoghurts and fruit, delivered silently in a basket by owner, Isabelle. We then hire bikes from her partner Guillaume’s onsite shed and pedal to the centre of the sleepy resort. Since the early 1900s, this area has been a favourite bolthole for the British and while many of the villas built at this time were flattened during the second world war, a few still remain between the trees and along the wide boulevards that lead down to the beach. There’s a main street with restaurants, bakeries and a little supermarket, but there are few people around.
We’re due for a session of sand-yachting on the broad flat sand with Les Drakkars Char à Voile on Hardelot beach. After an introductory lesson in manoeuvring the sail-powered go-karts from the young instructor, we get the hang of zipping back and forth. The adrenaline-pumping hour passes quickly, and the kids whoop and whee as we all make our turns in the sand and manage not to tip over. When we disembark in time to pedal back to the cabin for lunch, our skin tastes of salt and our lungs are full of fresh sea air.
It’s all so relaxing, nobody wants to go anywhere for the afternoon, so we take it in turns to bathe in the hot tub, and lie on the net hammock set into the deck and stare up through the trees; we read and potter about. A few metres away from the cabin, a fire pit is dug into the ground, so, later, after dinner, we take a bag of marshmallows up there and use twigs as skewers to toast them on the fire. The smell of woodsmoke rises into the air and thick mist creeps in and cloaks the site, cocooning us in silence.
The next morning, we take to the bikes again, this time cycling along quiet lanes to the Chateau d’Hardelot. The walls of the original 13th-century castle still stand but the chateau itself was rebuilt in the 19th century by a succession of British owners. Inside, its permanent exhibition pays homage to the entente cordiale and was curated by British writer and broadcaster Stephen Clarke, author of 1,000 Years of Annoying the French. Between its neogothic, crenellated walls, we tour each ornately decorated room to see busts of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, satirical cartoons and photo of the late Queen at the opening of the Channel tunnel. The pièce de résistance, though, is the circular theatre in the grounds. It was designed by British architect Andrew Todd and echoes the design of the London’s Globe theatre, only with comfy seats and a roof. With a regular programme of British and European-themed music and theatrical performances, it also celebrates the entente cordiale, despite any challenges Brexit may have thrown up.
After ice-creams in the cafe, we pedal back to the cabin before heading to Boulogne-sur-Mer for lunch at Le Chatillon, a lively restaurant set between warehouses that opens at 6.30am to serve the fishers and port workers just off their night shift and keeps serving throughout the day. We tuck into a platter of smoked fish; salmon, mackerel, herring and lisette (young mackerel), and then choose our mains, with turbot and dover sole featuring. The kids go with mussels.
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We then head off to see Boulogne’s main fishy attraction, Nausicaá. It is Europe’s largest aquarium, but also a conservation centre for biodiversity and home to almost 60,000 creatures. The window on to the biggest tank – its capacity a whopping 10,000m3 – is an incredibly impressive sight, and the children gaze in wonder as the giant manta rays glide above us and colourful tropical shoals dart this way and that.
On our final night in the cabin, we eat dinner on the terrace as the sky turns a beautiful pink. While the kids eat more fire-toasted marshmallows, my husband and I finally have some peace to enjoy the 40C pool by ourselves and we sip the Crémant that’s been chilling in the fridge for two days. If this is forest bathing, then I’ll take it, but even without the bubbly and the bath, the trees and tranquillity make Bain de Forêt a very special spot.
Carolyn Boyd and family were guests of Hauts de France Tourism with travel provided by LeShuttle, with crossings from £109 a vehicle one-way. Stays at Bain de Forêt from €300 a night for four including breakfast