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Lille |
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It has some of the best museums and galleries outside of Paris - including a converted art deco swimming pool, which is worth visiting just for the building - and two of the closest Michelin-starred restaurants outside of the UK.
Add in the old city, Vieux Lille, with its gorgeous, multi- coloured Flemish buildings, and picture-perfect cobbled streets and squares, and you have to ask yourself why you haven’t already visited the place.
Eurostar takes as little as 1 hour 20 minutes from London St. Pancras and 1hr 10 minutes from Ebbsfleet International in Kent.
The city centre is just a few minutes walk from Gare Lille-Europe station.
The first St. Pancras train leaves at 7:00am and arrives in Lille before 9:30am; and the last train back is about 21:40 and pulls into St. Pancras at approximately 22:00.
The first Ebbsfleet train leaves at 7:15am and arrives before 9:30am. The last train back departs at about 21:40 and gets to Ebbsfleet for around 21:50. The Eurostar car park costs £11.50/24 hours.
If you fancy going by car, Lille is just over an hour, and 68 miles, from Calais via the A16 and A25 motorways.
Dover to Calais is 75 to 90 minutes by ferry. There are regular crossings from about 6:30am and last one back is around 23:40.
There are several free car parks on the city outskirts, and plenty of pay ones in the centre, including the underground Grand’ Place - around €14/24hrs.
If you'd like more information on getting to Lille, check out our booking and travel planning section.
Eco-friendly travel - to find out how you can make your travel carbon neutral visit CarbonNeutral or ClimateCare.
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Most of the highlights are packed into an easily walkable
€18 buys a City Pass, which includes free bus, tram and metro travel, free entry to 19 tourist sights and a selection of discounts and special offers.
For guided tours of the city, head for the tourist office, which organises one and two hour trips for less than €10.
You can also do a guided tour on a Segway - those weird two-wheeled electric platform scooter things. Unfortunately, these tours are currently only in French.
For virtual tours of some of the main sights, click here.
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What to See
Officially called place du Général de Gaulle in honour of Lille’s most famous son, it’s a focal point for celebrations and a popular meeting place - especially around the Déesse column, which commemorates the 1792 Austrian siege.
Vieille Bourse - the most beautiful building in the square, and probably Lille, is a lavish mid-17th century Flemish masterpiece. Originally built as a stock exchange, it now houses a flower and second-hand book market.
Grand’ Place is also a good place to begin exploring Vieux Lille and its wonderfully preserved streets and houses. For a street searchable map of the old town, click here.
Palais Rihour is just a few hundred yards from the main
It is all that remains of a dukes of Burgandy grand palace that once filled the entire square. It’s now home to the tourist office. Map
Palais des Beaux-Arts – apart from the Louvre in Paris, France’s fine art collections don’t get any better than this.
It has an incredible collection of work by artists such as Goya, Rubens, Picasso, Toulouse-Lautrec, Van Gogh, Delacroix, Renoir and Van Dyck. Much of it is there courtesy of Napoleon’s European looting tour after the French Revolution. Map
Its tower and five equal-height naves are typical of the hallekerque style of Flanders and the Netherlands. Map
Porte de Paris is the most impressive of the city's three gates. It was built by Simon Vollant between 1685 and 1692 as an arc de triomphe to celebrate Louis XIV’s capture of Lille for the French. Originally part of the town’s defences, the adjoining ramparts were pulled down in 1858. Map
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Cathédrale Notre-Dame de la Treille - work began on this
The exterior is austere but inside it’s more inviting, partly due to the rose window by the artist Kijno. You can still see traces of the moat from the medieval motte-and-bailey castle that originally occupied the site. Map
La Piscine, Musée d’Art et d’Industrie - a 20 to 30 minute metro or tram ride takes you to the Roubaix and a museum in a converted art deco swimming pool.
It’s worth the journey just to marvel at this eye-poppingly stunning building. The museum also has an impressive and wide-ranging art collection including ceramics by Picasso. Map
Musée de l’Hospice Comtesse - a former hospital founded in 1237 by the Countess of Flanders, it's now a local history and art museum. Map
It captures a Lille of the past, and exhibits include furniture, woodcarvings, earthenware, and paintings by French and Flemish masters.
This town within a town is the largest fortress in France and undoubtedly the crowning military building of Louis XIV’s reign. Map
Although it’s still in use as a military base, the public can visit via tourist office pre-arranged guided tours every Sunday from May to August between 3.00 and 5.00pm. It is also open to the public for one week in May (9am-6pm) as part of a general open day for fortifications in northern France.
If you want to find an address that’s not listed on this page, click here.
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Lille, like everywhere in France, takes it food very seriously
The blend of French and Flemish that is so evident throughout the city can also be seen in the food and drink.
The most obvious giveaways are the importance of beer and chicory as ingredients, and the popularity of mussels and chips (moules-frites) and beer.
Lille is probably the beer capital of France and there are
Regional speciality dishes include Potjevleesch, a three-meat terrine - traditionally chicken, rabbit and veal; Waterzoi, a creamy freshwater fish stew; and Carbonade Flamande, a beef stew made with beer.
Click the the links for information on French wines and cheeses.
If you want to book a restaurant, the dialling code is 00 33.
Le Sebastopol is the city’s second Michelin-starred restaurant. It offers perfectly cooked food, good value wines and a relaxed and unpretentious atmosphere. Fixed-price meals range from €30 for a light lunch to a gourmet seven-course treat for €65. Map
Clément Marot - this gastronomic gem is one of Lille’s best kept secrets. The food is beautifully cooked and presented, and excellent value for money.
Set meals
start at €24 but when you see the rest of the
Le Square Aramis - if you find yourself in Vieux Lille around midday, this trendy bistro is a great lunch stop. If you don’t fancy the bustle of the main café, there’s a more intimate dining room behind it and a cosy mezzanine level. Fixed-price meals from €19. Map
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La Barbu d’Anvers - not a place you’ll find during a casual wander around town, this charming estaminet is tucked down an alleyway near Grand’ Place but definitely worth seeking out. Set menus start at €19. Map
La Terrasse des Ramparts - there probably isn’t another restaurant in Lille with a setting as stunning as this. It’s part of the 1620 Porte de Gand gatehouse in the old city and has a wonderful terrace and glazed veranda. Set meals start at €16. Map
L’Assiette du Marche - once the royal mint for Louis XIV, this 18th century townhouse is now home to a stylish and contemporary restaurant run by the son of the owner of A l’Huîtrière. Terrace dining, and fixed-price menus from €16. Map
L'Ecume
des Mers - the sister restaurant to A l’Huîtrière
Aux Moules - this Lille institution and magnet for mussel lovers allegedly sells the most moules in France. Try repeating that after few beers. A seemingly bottomless bowl of moules with frites costs under €15. Map
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Envies de Saison is a great snack stop, which breathes new life into the humble sandwich and much else besides - 63 rue Nationale. Map
La Maison du Moulin d’Or - originally purveyors of lace and women’s undergarments, this shop has since been converted into a rather elegant café and a great pit-stop - 31 to 33 place de Théâtre. Map
Le Carnot - bars probably don’t get any prettier than this one just a few minutes walk from Grand’ Place and the Opéra de Lille. It also has outside seating - 7 boulevard Carnot. Map
Méert - any business that’s been trading since the 18th
Paul - this bakery started life in Lille in 1889 and has since sprouted hundreds of branches throughout France. It’s perfect for a light snack or a cup of coffee, and if you arrive in the city early enough, one of the best places to go for breakfast - 8-12 rue de Paris. Map
If you’ve travelled by Eurostar and want a convenient place for a drink before you catch the train home, there are several good bars opposite the station in place du Gare. These include La Taverne Flamande, Le Palais de la Bierre, and Les Trois Brasseurs. Map
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February - Tourissima - over 800 holiday companies pitch up for this vast holiday exhibition at the Grand Palais.
March - Wine and Gastronomy Fair - a showcase for
March/April - Short Film Festival - one of France’s top events for animation, cinema and video.
May - La Louche d’Or (the golden ladle) - a soup festival in Wazemmes. I promise I’m not making this up.
May to July - Fête des 10 Vagues - a huge music festival with many free events.
June - Giants of Lille - all day celebrations lead up to a street parade of giants in honour of the two giants said to have founded the city. This is followed by a big feast in place de l’Opera.
Mussels are consumed in vast quantities and restaurants compete to see who’s sold the most by building massive piles of empty shells outside the restaurant.
Sadly, this kind of competition is unlikely to catch on in the UK due to the health and safety risks of mussel-avalanche related injuries.
November - Envies
Culinaries - another excellent food
Late November to late December - Lille’s annual Christmas market is held in place Rihour from 11am until 8.00pm. Santa makes an appearance and there's a big wheel in Grand’ Place.
For information on what’s going on and when, click here.
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Like all cities
Lille has its share of high-street chains, but if
The roads south of Grand’ Place are also fertile ground for retail therapy enthusiasts. Map
There are several indoor shopping centres, including one of the biggest in France, Euralille at avenue le Corbusier between the two railway stations - map; and Les Tanneurs at 80 rue des Paris. Map
If markets are more your thing, there are plenty to browse, in addition to the big annual attractions of Grande Braderie and the Christmas market.
The
biggest is the Sunday morning food, flowers, and
There is a food and general market in place du Concert on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday - map; and a mainly food market in place du Sébastopol on Wednesday and Saturday morning. Map
And the wonderful courtyard of the Vielle Bourse is home to a flower and secondhand book market - daily except Monday. Map
For more information on shopping in Lille, click here.
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Lille has a certain amount of
petty crime, but provided you
Credit cards are widely accepted throughout the city and there are plenty of ATM machines.
Tips and service charges - a service charge of up to 15% is standard in most restaurants and its inclusion is normally indicated somewhere on the bill - service compris - but it’s customary to leave a small tip for the waiter if the service has been good.
If service is not included, and depending on how you rated your experience, anywhere between 10 and 15% is reasonable. Most people also leave some small change in cafés.
You don’t have to tip taxi drivers, but it’s customary to give them around 10%.
Local time and other useful information.
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Copyright (c) 2008 daytripstoeurope.co.uk |
Lille is a perfect day-trip city. It’s quick and easy to get to - around 80 minutes by Eurostar from
London and 60 minutes by car from Calais - and small enough to get to
grips with in a day.
The
two easiest ways to get there are by car or 
area, but if you need to rest your legs the city has
an excellent bus, tram and driverless 
Grand’ Place - built on the site of the original medieval
market square, this is the heart of the city. 
Eglise St-Maurice - although construction began on the
city’s finest church in the 14th century, it has taken a series of
alterations and enlargements (the last in the 19th century) to
create this magnificent Gothic building.
neo-Gothic cathedral in 1854 but due to financial hiccups it wasn’t
finished until 1999. 
and there are over 2,500 bars and restaurants catering to all tastes
and budgets. 
menu,
and how the other diners are enjoying their food, you might be tempted to spend
a lot more. 
century is clearly doing something right. As
soon as you walk through the door of this waffle specialist and patisserie,
you’ll know exactly what that is. It's a local landmark and worth a visit just to drink in the décor - 
French
wine and gourmet treats also held at the Grand Palais.
exhibition at the Grand Palais.
you want something a little
different, then head for Vieux Lille. Along with the stunning architecture of
the old town, you’ll find most of the city’s best shops - and the most
expensive.
general bric-a-brac Marché du
Wazemmes in place du Novelle Adventure and the surrounding streets. The same
area hosts a smaller market on Tuesday and Thursday.