Cathédrale Notre Dame

Top choice in Lille, Flanders & the Somme

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A model for several of its more famous Gothic sisters – Chartres, Reims, Dijon and Paris' Notre-Dame among them – this medieval jewel was built between 1150 and 1235 in the transitional Gothic style on Romanesque foundations. The remarkably well-lit 110m-long interior has three levels of superimposed columns and arches, and a gilded wrought-iron choir screen; some of the stained glass dates from the 12th century. To fully appreciate the splendid interior, rent an audioguide (€5) next door at the tourist office.

Inside the west façade, a plaque commemorates 'one million dead of the British Empire who fell in the Great War'. Half-hour tours (€3) of one of the cathedral's five towers are held at 2pm on Saturday and Sunday in English and French; sign up at the tourist office.

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