Discover the commitments behind the Canal
Find here the structural commitments of the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe and the project partners.
Discover the commitments behind the Canal
Find here the structural commitments of the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe and the project partners.
On Wednesday, October 9, 2024, at the Historial de Péronne, the SCSNE (Seine-Nord Europe Canal Society), Hauts-de-France Tourisme, the Oise Tourisme, Pas-de-Calais Tourisme, and Somme Tourisme agencies, and the Nord Department signed an agreement. This agreement aims to establish a general framework for the signatories to promote tourism along the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, both during the construction phase and once it is operational.
Approved by the Supervisory Board of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal Company (SCSNE) on September 28, 2023, the tourism development policy for the Seine-Nord Europe Canal aims to make the Canal a tool for enhancing the image and tourist appeal of the Hauts-de-France region . This involves developing the construction site for tourism, followed by promoting the Canal once it is operational.
The SCSNE governance wanted this tourism promotion policy to respect several principles:
The signatories of the agreement commit, in particular, to designing, marketing, and implementing tourism products that incorporate the Canal during the construction phase . This may involve, for example, organizing site visits or combined offers and customer journeys. To achieve this, it will be necessary to identify and mobilize the various resources available in the areas (guides, restaurateurs, accommodation providers, and other service providers) that can contribute to the development of these tourism offerings. These tourist routes incorporating the Canal construction sites will be developed in collaboration with the main contractors, from whom the SCSNE expects to be proactive in proposing solutions. "Open house" days at the construction sites will be organized periodically.
Canal Information Centers are also planned in the areas along the Canal route. These centers will provide information about the project and its progress, the planned developments in the region, and opportunities to participate in its construction (employment, hosting construction sites, etc.). They will regularly host temporary exhibitions. Developed in partnership with local authorities, these exhibitions contribute to the attractiveness of the areas and the future Canal. The first opened in Compiègne in 2023 , and future centers are planned for Marquion, Bertincourt, and Péronne, with others still to come along the route.
By connecting the Seine and Escaut basins, the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will open up new markets and accelerate the development of river tourism in Hauts-de-France. It will allow private pleasure craft as well as passenger boats (including river cruise ships) to offer new products on a particularly attractive Paris/Amsterdam route (see map on page 12). More generally, its opening constitutes a unique lever for this sector which is still relatively undeveloped in the region.
The Canal programme provides for the creation of a pleasure craft stopover in Saint-Christ-Briost and a marina in Allaines in the Somme. These two infrastructures represent an opportunity for local tourism spin-offs, both for private pleasure craft and for cruises. They thus enrich the overall tourist offer of the territory in addition to tourism linked to the rich historical and natural heritage.
The challenge for tourism and river industry players will consist in particular of:
Hauts-de-France has real assets for the river cruise ship market:
River tourism around the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, i.e. tourist activities along the waterway, was planned from the project studies, for the 200 km of banks of the Canal. Included in the project are a service road on one of the two banks developed for soft modes of transport, the Somme Canal Bridge, locks that can be visited, etc.
Due to its unique scale and character, the care taken in its environmental and landscape integration, and the exceptional mobilization required for its construction, the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will constitute an attractive structure for the inhabitants of Hauts-de-France as well as for visitors.
The challenge in particular is to succeed:
The partnership established through this agreement and, beyond that, with local tourism stakeholders and the future operator Voies Navigables de France, aims to create the conditions for success.
This joint work will be able to draw on the intrinsic characteristics of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal which, in many respects, is fully consistent with the identity of Hauts-de-France which shapes the image and attractiveness of the region.
Added October 10, 2024 - Updated October 10, 2024
