Keep going down the coast and you reach Le Touquet, a grand resort otherwise known as Paris-by-the-Sea. Just an hour from Calais, it is one of the nicest towns in France and, consequently, a little pricier than its smaller neighbours: one-bedroom flats start at about €200,000 (£135,000), while a two-bed wooden house is on the market with Agence Bergounioux (00 33 321 058 100) for £220,000. The agent describes it as “cosy”, which probably means tiny. Still, you’re paying to be in a lovely place and with the new rail-link access, it couldn’t be easier.

Brussels has something of a bad name with British buyers, probably because of its association with the European Commission, which has its headquarters there. It is undeserved. The Belgian capital is a fine city with wonderful art nouveau architecture and property prices that are still remarkably low by British standards, despite more than a decade of double-digit rises.

Patrick Menache, head of Brussels-based Macnash Associates (00 32 2 347 1147, www.macnash.com), advises caution, though. “Prices will start to go up as a result of the rail link towards the end of 2007, but buyers should wait for a few months before investing,” he says. “Prices are high at the moment, and we expect a correction in the market.”

The city is probably most of interest to investors: the large number of transient Eurocrats makes for a buoyant letting market. If you felt adventurous, though, you could buy a great flat for about £170,000 in the centre of town, commute to London to work, and be home in time for moules-frites every evening.

Menache also suggests checking out properties in the small villages to the south of Brussels, such as Alsemberg. “I have a client who sold his apartment in Brussels for €230,000 (£155,000) and bought a beautiful village house for €300,000 (£200,000),” he says.

Two to three hours from London

Once the new link is up and running, Paris will be just two hours and 15 minutes away — and with prices still 60% lower than in London, it remains an attractive place for British buyers. The most popular arrondissements with Brits are the 1st, 3rd and 5th, but there are also plenty of places near the city that combine a rural setting with ease of access. As with the capital itself, it is the areas to the south and the west that have been the most popular with Parisians.

The Val d’Oise region to the north is gaining in popularity. The ancient village of Maffliers, for example, is just a 35-minute train ride from the Gare du Nord. According to local estate agent Françoise Ellery, of Ellery Ludlow (00 33 134 087 813), the old inn in the centre of the village will be up for sale in spring 2007, in plenty of time to take advantage of the new train times.

“It is a lovely 17th-century building,” she says. “It has five bedrooms, three bathrooms and all the traditional fittings including tiled floors and beams.”

But why confine yourself to France? Bruges, in northern Belgium, is a perfectly preserved medieval city with canals and cobbled squares, only 60 miles from Brussels and a 20-minute drive from the sea. Property prices are similar to Brussels.

Veronique Vermeersch, director of estate agency De Neve & Partners (00 32 50 343 848) says £170,000 will buy you a two-bedroom flat in the centre of town. “But if you go just outside town, prices drop dramatically,” she says. “There, you will find the same thing for about €200,000 (£135,000).”

Antwerp is also a delight. If you decide to stay longer than Vincent Van Gogh did (four months), it might be worth looking for somewhere to buy. Again, about £170,000 will buy you a two-bedroom, central flat.

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