France’s Breathtaking Bell Towers

There are 23 UNESCO-listed belfries in L’Hexagone, renowned for their architecture and history. Here are four of our favourites.

BOULOGNE-SUR-MER

Even on a rainy day, the view from Boulogne-sur-Mer’s belfry is a striking sea of red roofs and cobbled squares. The belfry itself is the oldest monument in the town.

CALAIS

This Neo-Flemish vision is particularly eye-catching thanks to its red brick, white stone and dandelion-yellow clock faces. It stands at a lofty 78 metres and costs just €5 to climb.

ARRAS

A proud fixture in Place des Héros, Arras’s beffroi was built between the 15th and 16th centuries, only to be destroyed in WWI. What we see today is a faithful reconstruction.

LUCHEUX

Good things come in small packages, so they say, and the belfry in Lucheux is proof. Petit and sweet, it’s also the only belfry porch on the list with a road running through it!

From France Today magazine