A belfry, a stock exchange and Vauban's star
Lille's old centre is compact: Grand Place to the cathedral is a short walk,. Leave the car at the P+R and the day is on foot.
1. Start at the Goddess column
The Column of the Goddess went up in 1842 for the city's resistance to the 1792 Austrian siege. The Grand Place around it is officially Place du Général-de-Gaulle.
2. Browse the Vieille Bourse courtyard
The Vieille Bourse is Flemish Renaissance on the outside and, on summer afternoons except Mondays, a second-hand book market inside. I'd go for the books, not the photos.
3. Look up at the belfry
The town hall's belfry is 104 m, built 1929–1931 and on the UNESCO list with the other belfries of France and Belgium. Wikipedia counts 400 steps.
4. See the relief maps at the Palais
The Palais des Beaux-Arts is one of France's largest art museums, 22,000 m². Go down to Vauban's relief models of fortified towns at 1:600. That's the room I'd see first.
5. Find the 1236 hospital
The Hospice Comtesse was founded in 1236 by Countess Jeanne of Flanders, in the middle of Vieux-Lille.
6. Check the cathedral's new face
Notre-Dame-de-la-Treille was begun in 1854 and only got its front in 1999, a modern facade on a Gothic Revival church.
7. Walk round the Citadel
Vauban called the Citadel the "queen of citadels", built 1667–1670. The French army still uses it, so you walk the outside.
8. Swim past art in Roubaix
La Piscine is a 1932 art deco pool turned museum.
Waffles on Esquermoise, stew on rue de Gand
1. Queue at Méert for waffles
Méert sells thin waffles filled with Madagascan vanilla cream. Buy a box for the ferry.
2. Order carbonnade or potjevleesch
Carbonnade flamande is beef braised in beer. Potjevleesch is cold meat in jelly, served with chips.
3. Try Maroilles in a tart
Maroilles is the region's strong cheese; the tart comes with chips too.
4. Eat along rue de Gand
Rue de Gand is the estaminet street of Vieux-Lille. Pick whichever room has locals in it.
5. Drink at La Capsule
La Capsule in Vieux-Lille keeps over 100 bottled beers and 28 on tap.
6. Shop Wazemmes on Sunday
The Wazemmes market runs Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday mornings; Sunday is the big one.
Two million at the Braderie, chalets on Rihour
1. Leave the car out in September
The Braderie de Lille takes the first weekend of September; 2026's was 5–6 September, starting 08:00 Saturday, with over two million visitors. The city hasn't published 2027; a listings site says 4–5 September. I'd use a P+R that weekend.
2. Shop Rihour from 18 November
The Christmas market on Place Rihour runs 18 November – 30 December 2026, 11:00–20:30, Fridays and Saturdays to 22:00, closed 25 December, according to a listings site.
3. Eat moules at the Braderie
Moules-frites is the Braderie meal, and the empty shells pile up outside the restaurants.
What's on
| When | What |
|---|---|
| 18 November – 30 December 2026 | Christmas market on Place Rihour; 11:00–20:30, Fridays and Saturdays to 22:00, closed 25 December (listings site) |
| First weekend of September 2027, date not yet published by the city | Braderie de Lille; a listings site gives 4–5 September 2027. The 2026 edition was 5–6 September. |