Join Us in France · Sunday, October 25, 2026
Jennifer Hanniman recommends Lille as a vibrant, youthful university town and a strategic base for exploring World War I sites like Vimy Ridge and Ypres in Belgium. She notes that the city offers great Flemish food, open Sunday shops, and a lively atmosphere without the overwhelming tourist crowds found in other French regions.
“Honestly, I love Lille as a base for many reasons. One, it's a big enough city that in and of itself it's just a wonderful city to visit and explore. It has amazing restaurants. It has a very interesting, lively vibe.”
“It's relatively equidistant between the sites in Ypres in Belgium and in Vimy. So it makes for a very good itinerary if you want to kind of explore that area.”