Self-guided walking tours in Lille

Lille's center is compact and largely pedestrian, so the old town, the Grand'Place and the main museums sit within an easy walk of each other, and the ground is flat almost everywhere. The metro and tram cover Wazemmes and the stations when you want a rest, and V'Lille, the docked bike share, covers the longer hops on its own subscription. The one thing to plan for is the cobblestones of Vieux Lille, which are hard going in thin soles or on wheels.

Spring and early autumn have the most comfortable walking weather. The first weekend of September brings the Braderie de Lille, a huge citywide flea market that fills the streets but also closes some museums and the zoo. Summer is lively, but remember the Palais des Beaux-Arts is closed every Tuesday whatever the season.

Lille-Flandres and Lille-Europe are two separate stations a short walk apart, and both sit close to the center. Lille-Flandres is the one nearest the Grand'Place and the start of the old town, about ten minutes on foot; Lille-Europe is the Eurostar and long-distance TGV hub, a few minutes further out past Euralille. Both sit directly on the metro, so if you arrive at the wrong one for your hotel the correction costs one stop rather than a taxi.

Lille uses the euro. Cards are standard in shops, museums and restaurants, contactless included, but some market stalls and small food stands prefer cash or a few coins, so a market morning is the one time to carry notes. The other thing to budget for is the tourist tax on your accommodation, charged per adult per night and added by the host rather than shown in the room rate.

Lille is a generally safe city. Use the same care you would in any French city after dark, especially around the two stations, and keep an eye on bags in the Sunday market crowd, where pickpockets work the press of people rather than the empty streets. For the police, the number is 17, or 112 from any phone.