A Weekend in Lille from London: LeShuttle, Food & La Piscine

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By Timo — London-based creator of TheTimoTalks, sharing personal experiences of travel, hospitality and life abroad.

We could have taken the Eurostar from London to Lille. Instead, we drove our car onto a train and sat inside it underneath the sea. All that engineering, and there we were going to France for the weekend.

Lille surprised me. Beautiful buildings, independent shops, good food and streets that were still busy long after dinner. For the kind of weekend we wanted — walking, eating, drinking and one excellent museum — two days worked very well.

Is Lille worth a weekend from London?

For me, absolutely. I would recommend it to someone who enjoys exploring a city at street level, rather than working through a long list of headline attractions. The architecture kept making us look up, the shops kept making us stop, and the evening atmosphere was much livelier than I expected.

Our trip combined Vieux-Lille, food stops and a visit to La Piscine in nearby Roubaix. This is our own two-day route, not a claim that we saw every museum or exhausted everything the city offers.

Taking the car on LeShuttle

Our alarm was not the glamorous part. We were up before five, aiming for an early crossing so we could reach Lille and still have most of the day ahead of us.

At check-in, we confirmed our details on a screen and received a hanger for the car mirror. The terminal had places to eat, toilets and shops; departure boards showed when our group should head towards boarding. We also had an additional security check. It was straightforward, but a useful reminder to leave time for the whole process.

Driving onto the train was the unusual bit. The crossing itself felt smooth, and we stayed in our car. Once in France, it was time to adjust to driving our right-hand-drive car on the other side of the road.

Before travelling, read LeShuttle’s arrival and boarding guidance. At the time of checking, it asks drivers to arrive between one and two hours before departure and complete advance passenger information beforehand. Follow the requirements attached to your own booking.

Would I take the car or the Eurostar?

We chose the car for flexibility. But having brought it all the way to France, we still used the metro for Roubaix. You do not need a car for every part of this weekend.

Compare the total cost for your dates: crossing, fuel and parking against rail tickets and local transport. Our choice worked for us; it does not mean LeShuttle will always be cheaper. If your plan is simply Lille and a museum visit, the train deserves a serious look. If you want to extend the trip into the surrounding area, having your own car becomes more useful.

Day one: Vieux-Lille, shops and a very good dinner

Start by leaving room to wander. Vieux-Lille was full of small shops with an unexpectedly varied selection, and the buildings were as interesting as the windows. Look up occasionally. It is easy to miss a beautiful façade when you are deciding what to eat next.

We stopped at La Vieille Bourse, the old stock exchange, with its courtyard book market. Méert was another sweet stop on our route. I would keep the first afternoon flexible rather than turn every shop and pastry into an appointment.

For dinner, we went to La Part du Lion. It was cosy, and the food was outstanding. Afterwards, we walked through streets full of people, bars and restaurants. Lille did not quietly go to bed after dinner, which suited us very well.

Where we stayed: Maison Louise

We stayed in a deluxe room at Maison Louise — Handwritten Collection in Vieux-Lille. I liked the colours and materials: teal, mustard inside the wardrobe, and wallpaper that looked like tiles. The racing details around the hotel gave it a bit of personality.

The room had useful storage and a spacious bathroom. Our courtyard view was nothing special, so I would choose it for the location and the room itself rather than expect a spectacular outlook. Those small design choices made a fairly simple room feel warm and comfortable.

Day two: breakfast, warm buns and La Piscine

We started with breakfast at Tamper!, then coffee at Terres de Café, one of my favourite coffee chains in France. After that came Aux Merveilleux de Fred. My advice from this visit: go in the morning while the buns are warm. We liked them enough to return. Sharing was less successful.

Then we took the metro to Roubaix for La Piscine, an art museum in a former swimming pool. This was one of the highlights of the whole weekend.

The building is part of the experience. I loved the daylight, the way the pool’s history remained present, and the variety of the art. There were works that felt traditional, others that were playful, and rooms where I wanted to slow down rather than move on to the next thing. I left calling it one of the best museum experiences I had had.

Allow a proper part of the day for it rather than treating Roubaix as a quick stop between lunch and your return crossing. Our public-transport journey took around 45 minutes. The museum lists metro line 2 to Gare Jean Lebas or Roubaix Grand’Place, followed by a short walk. Check its current hours before setting off: it is closed on Mondays and certain public holidays.

What I would keep in mind before booking

Protect your first day. Arriving on Friday evening would avoid our very early Saturday start. If you travel on Saturday morning, factor in the drive to Folkestone, check-in and the journey from Calais, not just the Channel crossing.

Put shopping on Saturday. We found many shops closed on Sunday. Check any particular place you want to visit rather than assume every business follows the same hours.

Leave space for Roubaix. La Piscine was worth the detour, and I would keep it in the plan on another visit.

Check parking before choosing a hotel. Bringing a car is useful only if you have thought about where it will stay while you explore.

My verdict

I would happily return to Lille. Two days gave us a satisfying mix of architecture, shops, food, nightlife and art. On another trip, I would be curious to explore more of the surrounding towns, but I would not rush this weekend just to add more stops.

For another short escape, explore my South Wales road trip. Or browse more destination stories for trips built around what I actually enjoyed.

Watch our London-to-Lille weekend

The video follows the LeShuttle journey, our hotel stay, Lille’s streets and food stops, and the visit to La Piscine. Watch the full Lille video on YouTube.

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