Lille Audio guided walking tour 2h30 and 22 audio commentary

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. In this picturesque square, often considered the prettiest in the city, was not a huge Onion Point of Sale, but a dungeon, whose Latin name “dominium” turned into a “dominion” and then finally into onions.

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2. The narrow yellow facade you see is mistakenly considered to be the smallest house in Lille. It is actually a passage that allows to go to the Golden Lion Square on the other side, and this since the Middle Ages.

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3. So, yes, I admit, it’s not the kind of cathedral you’re used to seeing sitting proudly in the city centre. But you should know that it does not look at all like what was planned!

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4. Before 1750, Lille had 2 shores arranged on the Deûle, small ports for the exchange of goods. The present wharf of the Wault was called Petit Rivage on the Haute Deûle, and the other, Grand Rivage on the Basse Deûle on the other side of the city.

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5. This beautiful statue, so white of a woman carrying a child, is a tribute to the song of P’tit Quinquin, which is probably the first Lille hit in History. If the name vaguely rings a bell, but no more, know that it is a lullaby written in Chiti in 1853 by the Lille poet Alexandre Desrousseaux.

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6. This square, much larger than Grand Place in the end, was built after medieval times, when the town managed by Vauban was enlarged. It is the center of the new perimeter of Lille.

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7. On this round square, which was not originally round, were in the 13th century, the new ramparts of Lille, designed after the expansion of the city. Imagine that in those days, every time you added a district and its parish downtown, you had to sort of push back the ramparts.

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8. The Belfry, in the heart of the Saint-Sauveur district, was built in the early 20th century as an icing on the cake for the City Inn completed just before. It represents the industrial age of a booming city.

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9. This arch, classified as a historic monument, like the Inn it hides behind it, seems a little lost in this rather modern part of the city center. It is a piece of history that resists.

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10. Come on, it’s time for the creepy anecdote. This small dead end with a medieval look is an old passage to the Brigittine convent built in 1604. It was the scene of horrible and frankly bizarre events.

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11. The Church of Saint-Maurice could have been the cathedral of Lille. Its construction began in the 14th century, but it is only as you see it today since the 19th century.

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12. This Rihour palace on this place of the same name is the only vestige of the Burgundy era of the city. Lille has indeed passed through several dominations, changing hands roughly every 2 centuries.

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Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

Ratings come from 2 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

How it compares in Lille

• Its from-price is 83% below the median of the 63 experiences we list in Lille.
• Its length is typical for the group.
• By number of reviews it ranks 31 of 63.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Lille

Lille is the capital of French Flanders, a city of gabled brick façades, a large fine arts museum, and beer, mussels and a famous flea market.

Lille was Flemish until Louis XIV took it in 1667, and the old centre still looks it: the Grand'Place is framed by gabled brick façades, and the Vieille Bourse, a seventeenth-century courtyard of arcades, hosts book stalls and chess players. Vieux-Lille's cobbled streets are lined with Flemish houses, the town hall belfry gives a high view, and the Citadelle, a star-shaped fortress by Vauban, is ringed by parkland.

Top-ranked sights in Lille: Lille Old Town (Vieux Lille), Hospice Comtesse Museum (Musée de l'Hospice Comtesse), Lille Town Hall and Belfry (Beffroi de l'Hôtel de Ville de Lille).

See all 63 experiences in Lille