Grey outside, warm inside.

A welcome Lille style

In the north of France the sky is often grey, but the people more than make up for it. In Lille you chat easily with the next table, settle into an estaminet (a cosy traditional tavern) for carbonade and a beer, and a night that starts as two often ends as six around the same table.

With its universities and grandes écoles, it’s a young city, and Rue Masséna and Rue Solférino are packed from Thursday night. Vieux-Lille has its cobbles and smarter bars, Wazemmes its down-to-earth feel, and on the first weekend of every September the Braderie turns the whole city into one giant flea market, day and night.

YesTonite carries that spirit on: you see who nearby is out tonight, you write, and you meet over a drink the same evening.

Thursday night is student night; on Friday and Saturday the whole city goes out. When it’s cold, the night moves indoors, and nobody complains.

Where to go out in Lille

• Vieux-LilleCobbles, Flemish facades and wine bars for a smarter evening.
• Rue MassénaThe student street, packed lively bars from Thursday on.
• Rue SolférinoRight next door, bars and pubs open late.
• WazemmesA down-to-earth area around the market, with cafés and a real neighbourhood feel.
• Grand’PlaceThe heart of the city, the meeting point before a night out.