The average price per m² in Wimereux is 5 137 €/m² for an apartment, based on actual notarised (DVF) sales. About 58 transactions are recorded each year.
Mood illustration of Wimereux, a seaside resort on the Côte d'Opale, in the Pas-de-Calais.
In Wimereux, apartments trade on average at around 5 137 €/m², based on the DVF transactions registered before notaries. That average covers a mixed stock: seafront dwellings with a view over the Channel, more ordinary apartments in the shopping centre, recent residences set back from the promenade. The oldest seaside resort on the Côte d'Opale, its line of Belle Époque villas and the closeness of Boulogne-sur-Mer keep up a demand that mixes year-round residents and second-home buyers coming from the Hauts-de-France as well as from the Paris region. The sea view, the floor level, the presence of a balcony or a terrace and the distance to the seafront promenade weigh heavily on the value of a property. Land constrained by the dunes of the parc naturel régional des Caps et Marais d'Opale, the regional nature park, and the scarcity of front-line positions support the prices of the best-placed dwellings.
Prices from the DVF file (Demandes de valeurs foncières, published by the DGFiP), transactions actually recorded at the notary at municipality level. Cross-referenced with the Notaires de France - INSEE indices. Learn more about our methodology.
The Wimereux market stays active for a municipality of this size, with a steady flow of apartment sales recorded each year in the DVF data. That turnover owes to the twofold nature of the town, at once a place to live in the Boulonnais and a seaside resort, which keeps up a demand mixing residents, retired people and second-home buyers. New supply remains limited: the built fabric is largely complete and the land available comes up against the protections of the coast and of the dunes.
Several factors support that price level. The Belle Époque seafront, the quality of the beaches, the immediate closeness of Boulogne-sur-Mer and the motorway access that brings the resort nearer to Lille and to Paris keep up a demand that reaches beyond the local area alone. Conversely, the seasonal nature of part of the activity and the reliance on tourism cap the rise and explain marked gaps between front-line properties and the rest of the stock.
Wimereux sits well above Boulogne-sur-Mer, the neighbouring main town whose market remains far more affordable. It comes close to Neufchâtel-Hardelot, another smart resort on the coast, while staying clearly below Le Touquet-Paris-Plage, whose prices are the highest on the Côte d'Opale.
Wimereux began as a simple hamlet in the dunes of the rural municipality of Wimille, at the mouth of the coastal river of the same name. The site served as a military camp under Napoléon Ier, then under Napoléon III in the middle of the 19th century. It was the fashion for sea bathing, carried by the arrival of the railway, that turned this point of the coast into a holiday place. The station, opened in 1862, is still in service today.
The resort developed under the Second Empire and during the Belle Époque. As early as 1903, when resorts destined for fashion such as Le Touquet or Hardelot were still in their infancy, Wimereux already had more than six hundred villas and about ten hotels. From that period the municipality keeps a remarkable seafront: a run of turn-of-the-century residences stretches for nearly a kilometre and a half along the promenade, which forms one of the most distinctive walks on the Côte d'Opale.
Despite the damage of the two world wars, Wimereux has kept its 19th century character. Attached to the conurbation authority of the Boulonnais and part of the parc naturel régional des Caps et Marais d'Opale, the municipality today combines seaside appeal, a lively centre and a setting of dunes and cliffs between Boulogne-sur-Mer and the cap Gris-Nez.
Wimereux has 6 256 inhabitants. A seaside resort of the Boulonnais, it brings together a population settled year-round, a holiday clientele and a large share of second homes. Buyers are split between households from the coast and from the Boulogne-sur-Mer area, families from the Hauts-de-France looking for a pied-à-terre by the sea, and purchasers from the Paris region drawn by the relative closeness and the Belle Époque setting. Apartments with a view over the Channel and properties close to the promenade concentrate most of the demand, while the centre offers more affordable dwellings sought after as main residences.
The average price for apartments in Wimereux is 5 137 €/m², based on the DVF transactions actually completed before notaries. That average hides wide gaps depending on the sea view, the floor level, the presence of outdoor space and the distance to the promenade. A front-line apartment and a dwelling set back in the centre do not trade at the same level.
Wimereux is the oldest seaside resort on the Côte d'Opale and its seafront of Belle Époque villas makes it a sought-after holiday place. The scarcity of positions along the promenade, land limited by the dunes of the regional nature park and second-home demand coming from the whole region and from Paris pull values upwards.
Wimereux lies on the coast of the Pas-de-Calais, a few kilometres north of Boulogne-sur-Mer. The municipality has its own station, opened in 1862, on the line serving the Boulonnais. By car, it is reached by the coast road and the A16 motorway, which runs along the Côte d'Opale between Calais and the Baie de Somme.
Largely so. The seaside vocation of the municipality feeds sustained demand for second homes and pieds-à-terre, alongside a resident population. That structure keeps up a steady turnover of sales. Seasonal lettings are subject to local rules that are worth checking with the town hall before any plans.
It all depends on the use. A seafront apartment, with a view over the Channel, sits at the top of the range and is aimed above all at a second home or a rental investment. The centre, more affordable, suits a main residence or a first purchase, with walking access to the shops, the station and the beach.
This analysis is published by Immover, an independent observatory founded by Antony Barbier. Data sourced from official sources (DVF, INSEE, Notaries of France).