Lille Overview

Boasting a plethora of noteworthy restaurants, fabulous shopping, and a thriving nightlife scene, Lille (leel; pop. 220,000) has many of Paris’s draws without the expensive price tag. Once the feared industrial colossus of the north, Lille has evolved into a lively metropolis, its stylish modern architecture melding with the older cobblestone cityscape. Over 100,000 students flock to Lille each year and keep the city’s bars and discothèques busy until dawn. In the summer, a calmer atmosphere presents vacationers with relatively untouristed museums and cobblestone streets lined with ice-cream shops.

Flights: Aéroport de Lille-Lesquin (☎03 20 49 68 68; www.lille.aeroport.fr). Allo Navette (☎08 91 67 32 10, €0.30 per min.) shuttles leave from rue le Corbusier at Gare Lille Europe. Every hr. M-F 5am-10pm, Sa 5am-6pm, Su 10am-10pm; €4.60, students €3.
Trains: Lille has 2 stations.
- Gare Lille Flandres, pl. de la Gare. Ticket office open M-F 5:30am-9pm, Sa 6am-9pm, Su 7:15am-9pm. Currency exchange available M-F 8am-6:30pm, Sa 10am-5pm, Su 10am-4pm. Luggage storage available. To Arras (40min., 19 per day, €9.40), Paris (1hr., 20 per day, €37-51), and Brussels, BEL (1hr., 1-3 per day, €18-24).
- Gare Lille Europe, av. le Corbusier. Gare Lille Europe. Open daily 5:30am-12:15am. TGVs run to the south of France and Paris (1hr., 6 per day, €37-51). Eurostar (☎08 92 35 35 39) runs to Brussels, BEL (40min., 15 per day, €18-24), and London, ENG (1hr., 15 per day, €110-175).
Buses: Eurolines, 23 Parvis St-Maurice (☎03 20 78 18 88; www.eurolines.eu). Open M-Th 9:30am-6pm, F 10am-8pm. Buses from Gare Lille Europe to Amsterdam, NTH (5hr., 2 per day, €51); Brussels, BEL (1hr., 3 per day, €22); and London, ENG (5hr., 1-4 per day, €61).
Public Transportation: Transpole bus terminal is next to Gare Lille Flandres. Métro and trams serve the town and its periphery daily 5:12am-12:12am. Tickets €1.25, carnet of 10 €11; day pass €3.50. Office open Sept.-June M-F 7:30am-6pm.
Taxis: Taxi Union (☎03 20 06 06 06). Taxi Gare (☎03 20 06 64 00). Both 24hr.

Orientation And Practical Information

Lille is like a spider web: streets disperse in all directions from the town’s many squares. It’s best to carry a map, especially when tackling vieux Lille. The newer part of town, with wide boulevards and 19th-century buildings, culminates in the Marché de Wazemmes. The city’s largest shopping district is in the primarily pedestrian area off place du Théâtre. Lille, like any big city, can be unsafe, so be vigilant with your belongings and person at all times.

Tourist Office: Pl. Rihour (☎03 59 57 94 00; www.lilletourism.com), inside the Palais Rihour. Rihour. From Gare Lille Flandres, go straight on rue Faidherbe for 2 blocks. Turn left through pl. du Théâtre and pl. du Général de Gaulle. Make a right at the Théâtre du Nord and walk into pl. Rihour; the office is ahead. Provides maps (€0.50) and currency exchange. Also sells the Lille Metropole City Pass, which provides unlimited public transportation and discounts. 1-day pass €18, 2-day €30, 3-day €45. Call for pharmacie de garde. Open M-Sa 9:30am-6:30pm, Su 10am-noon and 2-5pm.
Tours: The tourist office offers tours via bus, bike, Segway, and cell phone. Useful guidebook (€2) with 5 walking tours is also available. Tours in English and French €7.50-20. For something more freestyle (and free), flip to for Padding Around Lille.
Budget Travel: Voyage Wasteels, 25 pl. des Reignaux (☎03 20 06 87 66). Open M-F 9am-12:30pm and 1:30-6:30pm, Sa 9am-1pm.
Bookstore: VO, 36 rue de Tournai (☎03 20 14 33 96; lalibrairie.vo@wanadoo.fr). Large English book section. Open Tu-Sa noon-7pm.
Youth Center: Centre Régional Information Jeunesse (CRIJ), 2 rue Nicolas Leblanc (☎03 20 12 87 30). Info on work and long-term lodging. Internet €0.15 per 5min., €15 per 10hr. Open Tu and Th 1-7pm, W 10am-6pm, F 1-6pm, Sa 10am-12:30pm.
Laundromat: 2 rue Ovigneur. €2.80 per 5-6kg. Open daily 7am-8pm. Espace Web Cyberlaundry, 14 rue Alexandre Desrousseaux (☎03 20 85 07 73). €3 per 7kg, €3.50 per 10kg. Internet available. Open daily 8am-7:30pm.
Police: Pl. Augustin Laurent (☎03 20 49 56 66), in the Hôtel de Ville. Call for the pharmacie de garde.
Hospital: 2 av. Oscar Lambret (☎03 20 44 59 62). CHR-Oscar Lambret.
Internet Access: At the CRIJ and Espace Web Cyberlaundry (both above). Phone+.Net, 27 pl. des Reignaux (☎03 20 40 96 07). €0.80 per 15min., €3 per 1hr. Open M-F 9am-midnight, Sa-Su 9am-1am.
Post Office: 8 pl. de la République (☎03 20 36 10 23). République. ATM and currency exchange available. Open M-F 8am-7pm, Sa 8:30am-12:30pm. Branches on bd. Carnot, near pl. du Théâtre (open M-F 9am-6pm) and on the corner of rue Nationale and rue Jean Roisin (open M 10am-6:30pm, Tu-F 9am-6:30pm, Sa 10am-1pm and 2-4pm). Postal Code: 59000.

Accommodations

One- and two-star hotels in the €30-40 range cluster around Gare Lille Flandres, while more expensive accommodations dot place du Théâtre and place du Général de Gaulle. Many of Lille’s budget options are run-down or face noisy streets; to guarantee a comfortable stay, you may want to spring for one of the pricier options listed below. As most of these hotels serve a business clientele, try to reserve a month ahead and inquire about lower prices on weekends.

Auberge de Jeunesse (HI), 12 rue Malpart (☎03 20 57 08 94; lille@fuaj.org). Mairie de Lille. Take the left exit from Gare Lille Flandres, turn left onto rue de Tournai, and make a right at rue du Molinel. Head straight for 2 blocks and turn left onto rue de Paris. After 3 blocks, rue Malpart will be on your right. No-frills hostel in a quiet location with dorms named after European cities. Lots of international boarders. TV room, kitchen, and bar. Dorms are often left unlocked; take valuables with you when you leave the room. Breakfast included. Luggage storage €1.50 per day. Free Internet and Wi-Fi. Reception 1am-11am and 3pm-midnight. Check-out 10am. Lockout 11am-3pm. Open from late Jan. to mid-Dec. Dorms €18. MC/V.
Hôtel Moulin d’Or, 15 rue du Molinel (☎03 20 06 12 67; www.hotelmoulindor.com), near the train station. Offers a level of comfort that usually costs much more. Rooms are decorated with large painted flowers on the walls, and all have bath, TVs, hair dryers, and phones. Breakfast €8. Free Wi-Fi. Reception 7am-4pm and 5-9:30pm. Check-out 11am. June-July singles and doubles €57-67; triples €82-92. Aug.-May singles €57-67; doubles €77-82; triples €82-92. MC/V.
Hôtel Faidherbe, 42 pl. de la Gare (☎03 20 06 27 93; fax 55 95 38). Modestly sized rooms, most with TVs. Breakfast €5. Reception 24hr. Check-out 11am. Singles and doubles with tub €33-40, with full bath €47. Extra bed €10. AmEx/MC/V.
Hôtel de Londres, 16 pl. de la Gare (☎03 20 12 09 10; www.hoteldelondres.com), near the train station. Tidy rooms with carpets, vegetable decor, and TVs. Some rooms overlook pl. de la Gare. Breakfast €6.10. Free Wi-Fi. Reception 24hr.; ring bell downstairs if glass door at the top of the stairs is closed. Check-out 11am. Singles with shower €50-60, with toilet €55-70; doubles with shower and toilet €67. AmEx/MC/V.

Food

Lille is known for Maroilles cheese, genièvre (juniper berry liqueur), and, of course, moules (mussels). Find the cheese in any épicerie, the liqueur in brasseries on rue Gambetta, and the mussels, well, everywhere. Rue Léon Gambetta boasts a slew of cheap kebab joints and leads to Marché de Wazemmes, pl. de la Nouvelle Aventure. (Open Tu and Su 8am-2pm, F-Sa 8am-7pm.) EuraLille, next to the Eurostar station, has an enormous Carrefour supermarket. (☎03 20 15 56 00. Open M-Sa 9am-10pm.) There is a Monoprix in the Centre Commercial off rue des Tanneurs. (☎03 28 82 92 20. Open M-Sa 9am-10pm.)

Le Broc, 17 pl. de Béthune (☎03 20 30 16 00). Cheese-heavy dishes that range from fondues to crêpes and salads. Fondue €14-15 per person. Plats €7.40-16. Open M-F noon-1:45pm and 7-10:30pm, Sa noon-2pm and 7-11pm. MC/V.
La Pâte Brisée, 63-65 rue de la Monnaie (☎03 20 74 29 00). Cozy teashop that serves quiches, salads, and dessert tartes. Those with an indecisive or especially indulgent sweet tooth should opt for the assortiment des tartes sucrées (€8.10; includes drink). Menus €8.50-20. Open M-F noon-10:30pm, Sa-Su noon-11pm. Lunch menu available noon-2pm, dinner 7-10pm. MC/V.
Domaine Lintillac, 7 rue Inkermann (☎03 20 55 44 44). It’s always duck season at this homey restaurant that specializes in fantastic canard dishes—and nothing else. With such a specific focus, it’s no surprise that the quacky plats (€8.80-12) are so creative and delicious. Open Tu-Su noon-2pm and 7-10pm. MC/V.
Le Repaire du Lion, 6 pl. Lion d’Or (☎03 20 74 20 36). Classic brick-and-wood crêperie boasts over 100 different galettes (€2.60-9), sweet crêpes (€2.40-6.50), and meal-size salads (€6.20-6.50). Open M-Sa 11:45am-2:15pm and 7-11pm. MC/V.
La Source, 13 rue du Plat (☎03 20 57 53 07). Organic-food store downstairs sells vegetarian specialties like heavily spiced rice dishes. Upstairs restaurant serves creative vegetarian and other organic lunch menus (€8.50-15), all of which come with a 1.5L bottle of water and a pitcher of hot tea. Store open M-Th and Sa 8am-7pm, F 7am-9pm; restaurant open M-F noon-2pm. AmEx/MC/V.

Sights

Palais Des Beaux-Arts. France’s second-largest art collection sits in this 19th-century mansion, surrounded by the gardens of pl. de la République. Sculptures and ceramics fill the museum’s lower levels; 15th- to 20th-century French and Flemish paintings hang in the hallways upstairs . Rubens’s colossal La Descente de Croix is a must-see, and a calming set of Monet’s oils is tucked away in a room of Impressionist works. Guides to each room are available in English and French. (Pl. de la République. République. ☎03 20 06 78 00. Open M 2-6pm, W-Su 10am-6pm. €10, students €7. French tours €4; call ahead for schedule.)

La Piscine. Still lifes have replaced lifeguards in this museum, which is situated in a former municipal bathhouse and displays its eclectic art collection around a renovated indoor pool. Shower stalls showcasing ceramics and textiles serve as nifty segues between the central hall’s sculpture garden and alcoves of 19th- and 20th-century paintings. Look out for Claudel’s marble bust of a bright-eyed ingénue; the stunning statue won the hearts of the town’s citizens, who pooled their money together to bring the piece to the museum. Every 15min., a short snippet of audio recorded from an indoor pool plays loudly throughout the building, a ghostly reminder of the funky museum’s past. (23 rue de l’Espérance. Note that the rue de l’Espérance on which the musée is found is not the same rue de l’Espérance on the tourist office map. It’s easiest to stick to the Métro. Take line 2 to Gare Jean Lebas. Follow av. Jean Lebas; turn right on rue des Champs and left on rue de l’Esperance. The museum is on the right. ☎03 20 69 23 60. Open Tu-Th 11am-6pm, F 11am-8pm, Sa-Su 1-6pm. €3.50, students of architecture and design €2.50; F all students free.)

Other Sights. The T Vieille Bourse, the old stock exchange, built between 1652 and 1653, epitomizes the Flemish Renaissance Baroque. The dignified structure now plays host to regular markets at which hundreds of postcards, letters, maps, and old books are sold. (Pl. du Général de Gaulle. Markets open Tu-Su 9:30am-7:30pm.) The Citadel on the city’s north side was redesigned in the 17th century by military genius Vauban and is still used by the French military today. (Open with tour in French Su 3pm. Make reservations at the tourist office.) The Jardin Vauban, an English garden designed in 1865, has a carousel and carnival games.

Entertainment And Festivals

Every year, the Marché aux Fleurs carpets the centre-ville at the end of April, while the huge flea market, La Braderie, occupies the city’s squares on the first weekend of September (10am-midnight). The tourist office has information on film festivals, held at Le Métropole, rue des Ponts de Comines (☎08 92 68 00 73), and the Majestic, 54 rue de Béthune (☎03 28 52 40 40; student tickets €6).

Théâtre du Nord, pl. du Général de Gaulle (☎03 20 14 24 24; www.theatredunord.fr). Hosts plays and concerts Sept.-June. Find schedules at the tourist office. Prices vary, most student tickets €8.50.
Orchestre Nationale de Lille, 3 pl. Mendes France (☎03 2 012 82 40; www.onlille.com). €18-30, students €10.
Opéra de Lille, 2 rue des Bons-Enfants (☎03 28 38 40 40; www.opera-lille.fr). Hosts concerts and musicals. From €8, students from €5.

Nightlife

Lille has thriving nightlife, with a spread of bars throughout the city that cater to all tastes. College students fill the pubs on rue Solférino and rue Masséna. Across town, the vieille ville offers trendier clubs and a less raucous scene. Look for the free magazine Going Out, often displayed near the entrance of bars, which lists up-to-date nightlife information.

Pub Mac Ewan’s, 8 pl. Sébastopol (☎03 20 42 04 42). Draws an energetic barley-loving crowd with its 140 beers (from €2). Open M-Th 11am-2am, F-Sa 11am-3am. MC/V.
Narguilé Café, 151 rue Solférino (☎03 20 63 91 05). Hookah bar with couches and plush pillows. Beer from €3.40. Mixed drinks from €7. Hookah €9.20. Open June-July M-Th 7pm-1am, F 7pm-2am, Sa 4:30pm-2am, Su 7pm-midnight. Aug.-May M-Th 4:30pm-1am, F 4:30pm-2am, Sa 2pm-2am, Su 4:30-11:30pm. MC/V.
Le Network Café, 15 rue Faisan (☎06 70 23 06 41; www.network-cafe.net). Admits only regulars on weekends. Packed dance floor. Laid-back lounge encourages socializing—hence the name. Dress to impress. Open Tu-Su 10:30pm-8am. MC/V.
La Mangrove, 36 rue d’Angleterre (☎03 20 51 88 89). Tropical-themed rhumerie (rum distillery) has a lively dance floor. Sporadic concerts. Beer from €2.40. Mojitos €6. Mixed drinks €6. Salsa nights and DJs Th-Sa from 10pm. Open M-Sa 5pm-3am. MC/V.
L’Irlandais, 160-162 rue Solférino (☎03 20 54 92 15). Popular Irish pub with a jovial crowd. Small dance floor. Beer €3. Open daily 5pm-3am. MC/V.