Things To Do In Lille, France

Connect with me!

Wanting to know what things to do in Lille, France? Then keep reading! Having spent 4 days in Lille, France – I must say I covered this pretty city very well. Here’s my guide to the most underrated city in France – Lille, and all of the best things to do in Lille:

Located in Northern France, close to the Belgian border, within reach for travellers based in the UK, up in Belgium, The Netherlands (me!), and over in Germany. 

Being so close to Lille, I decided it was finally time to check out this city on a solo-trip! It was a solo trip because my Hunk happened to be sailing around Thailand with his buddies. Lets not discuss the crystal clear waters, super yacht or the high-amount of water-activities the hunk was getting up to – lets focus on lovely Lille!

Getting To Lille

I took the Thalys train from Amsterdam Centraal Station to Gare Lille Europe Station, which took 2.5 hours to Lille and cost €28 each way. The Thalys trains have 1 power outlet at every seat on the train which is super handy for a ‘long’ train journey. The seats were really comfy and I had more room than on a European airline, so that was also a plus!

Check out trains for the Thalys to Lille  /  Check out the train for the Eurostar to Lille

Eating in Lille

Lille is a foodie paradise! With the influences from both French and Belgian cultures, the cuisine reflects this perfectly! Some of the best dishes to eat in Lille include the Carbonades Flamandes, which is a Flemish stew, a Belgian version of the Dutch Stroopwafel, and of course French Macarons. With all of this deliciousness, you can see why FOOD is a huge thing to ‘do’ in Lille.

Read about all of the places I recommend eating at in this blog post!

Actually, one menu item I saw everywhere but did not try was a dish called ‘Welch’. It is supposedly not related to Welsh cuisine, however I’ll let you be the judge. It is a slice of bread, covered in ham and cheese, with a beer element. So, kind of a Welsh Rarebit, kind of a French Croque Monsieur. The beer part coming from the Flemish influence.

Important to know about restaurants in Lille: After the lunch service the restaurants close until 7pm. So for those of you who like to dine early, Lille is not for you… or you’ll need to buy snacks to get you through until an acceptable dining time.

Hot Tip: I went to a restaurant at 7:30pm one evening, I was starving. I was ALONE in the restaurant until around 8:30pm, before it promptly filled up by 9pm. So, if you want a guaranteed table at a nice restaurant, just try arriving earlier than Lille-acceptable hour.

Where to stay in Lille

I stayed at the Gastama Hostel, one of only 2 hostels in Lille. At just €23 per night for a 4-bed female room, the price was right! Gastama features a happening bar where you’ll find many locals as well as travellers socialising, and a tasty breakfast (which costs €5 to €7 depending on what you order).

The bed was comfy with a super cosy duvet, and the beds had curtains – my favourite feature! With the curtains closed, no light gets into your ‘zone’ making for a fairly peaceful nights sleep – unless your roommate strolls in at 3am!

Main Areas To See In Lille

Vieux Lille

Vieux Lille is ‘Old Lille’ and is bursting with character. The architecture runs from the classic French style into the super colourful Flemish style throughout the old part of town, showing just how the influences of both French and Flemish culture really do merge in Lille.

The streets are VERY cobbled – even wearing trainers I struggled to walk! However, I did around 20,000 steps per day in Lille’s cute streets & am still standing. Within the area of Vieux-Lille it is really vibrant and ‘happening’. Every evening I ate dinner at restaurants within Vieux-Lille which was buzzing with people.

Also ladies make note, Vieux-Lille also has fantastic shopping!

Lille Centre

The Centre of Lille culminates with Le Grand Place – a huge square celebrating the architecture of 17-20th centuries. At the centre of the square you’ll find a large female statue, said to be a goddess in celebration of Lille’s resistance of the Austrian siege in the 18th century – during Breast Cancer Awareness month she wears a bright pink bra!

Also in commemorations of their resistance to the Austrian siege, you’ll find a brown/red building on the Vieux Lille side of the square which, if you look closely, you’ll see numerous cannon balls attached to the facade. This is to show how proud the Lillois people are of their resistance. One of the cannon balls looks like a breast, which was done as the former shop below it was a long-running lingerie shop! The people of Lille sure do have a sense of humour 🙂

Things to do in Lille

Lille Free Walking Tour

I took the Lille Free Tour from Hostel Gastama one morning with Nicolas who was super knowledgeable about Lille! I was lucky enough to be the only person taking the walking tour that day, and so I had Nicolas to myself (and alllll of my questions!).

Getting to know a city through its history gives me a greater understanding of the people, the culture, why the city is the way it is, and always helps with getting my bearings and a lay of the land. I learnt SO much on this tour with Nicolas and highly recommend taking the tour when in Lille.

Tours run at 10am from Hostel Gastama (you don’t need to be staying at the hostel to participate) or 2pm from Porte de Paris.

The Citadel

The Citadel is a very important area of Lille, as you will find out when doing the Lille Free Tour! However, it’s not just the importance of the citadel which I loved, but it is a very pretty area! Within the limits of the citadel also houses the Lille Zoo, which costs only a few Euros. As the citadel is a French military base, you cannot visit, however the area itself is green and pretty and definitely worth a visit.

The Pont Napoleon which joins Lille to the Citadel is one to be seen! The bridge has been destroyed quite a few times through the changing rule of Lille, but now finally the Pont Napoleon has been restored to its former glory. 

Museum Beaux Arts

The Museum Beaux Arts is just €7 to visit, and is one of the best museums in France! What I loved about the museum was the coloured walls. Each section has a different colour and I found the museum was curated extremely well! You’ll find paintings from the likes of Rubens, Monet, Raphael, Van Gogh and Picasso amongst many others.

Unfortunately I didn’t pay the extra €1 to have an English audio guide. The gentlemen who sold me my ticket said there were English descriptions by all the paintings. There isn’t. Do yourself a favour and get the Audio Guide!

Cooking Class – L’atelier des Chefs

Taking a French cooking class has been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. However, as my budget isn’t everlasting, I chose to take the lunchtime cooking class with Látelier des Chefs. At just €17, you get to cook your own French cuisine lunch, while being taught a few key kitchen skills along the way!

I learnt how to chop an onion and NOT cry! Guys – this is priceless!

My cooking class was also extra good, as I was the only one booked in to take it – though the class before mine at 12noon was fully booked. Due to this, I got not one but two chefs to myself as I cooked a delicious duck dish! Following my cooking session, I ate my meal in the small restaurant on site, drank some wine, and was given plenty of tips of what to see, do, and eat in Lille while I was in town. This was my favourite thing I did whilst in Lille and I can’t recommend it high enough!

Port De Paris

This triumphal arch is definitely a highlight of Lille. Erected after Lille came under the rule of King Louis the 14th in the 1700s it is a beautiful structure similar to the Arc de Triomph in Paris.

Lille Belfry

The Lille Belfry is located near the Porte de Paris. It is the perfect place to get a lovely view of the city! But the best view is that of the triumphal arch! On the day I visited the winds were extremely strong and I actually couldn’t spend long enough at the open-air top of the belfry to get a good quality photograph! 

To know about the Belfry: To visit, you must ring the doorbell. You then state you’d like to visit the  top of the belfry and are buzzed into the building. I tried to visit the Belfry on my first day in Lille. However, didn’t manage to work out how to get to the top. It was only after asking my walking tour guide about it that I was told this important tip!

Once inside, buy your €5 ticket and start climbing the stairs! After a few floors you can then choose to take the stairs the rest of the way up. It’s quite the climb so I chose to take the rickety elevator! I took the elevator up and I must say, I did not feel like it was going to make it! Naturally, I took the stairs down, rather than go inside the elevator again.

Vielle Bourse

The Old Stock Exchange, which was built in the 17th century, is one of the most striking buildings in Lille. It currently houses a cute 2nd-hand book market along with an area for chess players in the main courtyard. The Vielle Bourse in Lille opens from 12noon in the afternoon.

Lille Church

The Church of Lille is, in my opinion, u-g-l-y you aint got no alibi, ugly. And what I refer to is the outside. I mean look at it! It’s just flat grey stone. Well, I found out on my walking tour that it is built like this for a reason. Construction of the church in Lille began in the 1800s. However rising costs and the outbreak of both world wars put the church on the back-burner. It was actually only finished in 1999. and used the same engineer as the Sydney Opera House. 

Now, I’m damn proud of the Sydney Opera House. It’s construction is brilliant – and did you know the white tiles are self-cleaning?! Yep – super cool. So, the same engineer of the SOH just had to bring some kind of interest to this building, architecturally!

Well, he did. The panel of white marble on the front of the building is actually see-through. Not just see through, but held together with steel ‘ropes’. It is thin enough to let streams of orange yellow light, creating natural lighting for the church/cathedral. Brilliant! Go see it in person, it is a lot more awesome than my photograph, I promise!

Lille’s Pretty Shop Facades

Last but certainly not least – Lille is FULL of cuteness. There are so so many store fronts that are joyful and beautiful to look at! Make sure you appreciate the shop facades because they are pretty special! Here’s just 2 of my favourites!

Have you been to Lille? Or have I inspired you to go make a trip to Lille? I’d love to hear about your experiences or comments below!

Want to read more about other cities in France? Check out my posts on France here!

Don’t forget to Pin for later!

Connect with me!

About Lesley

Australian expat, married to a Dutch guy, living in Amsterdam. Previously lived in London for 3 years, too! Lover of travel, coffee, brunch, beaches, fresh flowers, and family. Now a new mum, navigating life with a baby!