Discover Local Nord-Pas-de-Calais: What to Do Around Mercure Nord-Pas-de-Calais

At Mercure, we believe you shouldn't need a guidebook to feel like you belong somewhere. That's the idea behind Discover Local: since 1973, every Mercure hotel has been built around its neighbourhood, not just dropped into it — from the décor on the walls to the flavours on the menu. Step into any Mercure and our teams are on hand with the kind of tips you won't find in a guidebook: the market stall locals queue for, the bar where nobody speaks English, the walk that skips the crowds. They live here. They know. Discover Local isn't a generic city guide — it's a short, honest list of the restaurants, markets and neighbourhoods our own hotel teams actually recommend to guests, updated as the city changes around us. Below, you'll find our picks for Nord-Pas-de-Calais, an interactive map to help you find your way, and answers to the questions travellers ask us most. So — where will Discover Local take you?

Nord-Pas-de-Calais in 5 picks

Lille

Vieux Lille's Flemish gabled houses and the Grand Place set the tone — this is a city that feels as much Flemish as French. Wazemmes market, running since the 19th century, is where locals actually shop, not just tourists.

Arras

Two grand Baroque squares, Place des Héros and the Grand Place, both ringed with Flemish-style facades. Climb the belfry — part of the UNESCO-listed belfries of Belgium and France — for a rooftop view over both squares at once.

Cassel

A hilltop village crowning the Flanders plain, voted France's favourite village in 2018. On a clear day the view stretches for miles — bring a map and try to pick out the windmills.

Bergues

Star-shaped ramparts and cobbled streets that will look instantly familiar if you've seen 'Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis'. Much of the film was shot here. A quieter, smaller cousin to Lille, worth an afternoon.

Marais Audomarois

A UNESCO-recognised patchwork of canals and market gardens around Saint-Omer, still farmed by boat. Take one of the flat-bottomed boat trips through the waterways — it's the only way to really see it.

Where to eat
Order a Welsh if you want the local classic — melted cheese and beer sauce over ham on toast, built for a cold day. Maroilles, the region's pungent washed-rind cheese, turns up in tarts and sauces everywhere. And this is serious beer country — ask any bar which local brewery is pouring that week.
Where to wander
Lille's Wazemmes market on a Sunday morning is as much theatre as shopping. For quieter ground, Cassel's hilltop streets and the Marais Audomarois waterways offer the kind of slow wandering the bigger cities don't.
Getting around
Lille is the region's transport hub, with direct TGV links to Paris and Brussels, and short train hops out to Arras, Saint-Omer and Dunkirk. Cassel and Bergues are easiest reached by car. Wherever you're staying at one of our Mercure hotels across Nord-Pas-de-Calais, the team can point you to the day's best market or the quietest time to visit the belfry.
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FAQ

Yes — the film was shot around Bergues, and the nickname 'Ch'ti' for the local dialect and people comes from this part of northern France.

Spring through early autumn, when the market gardens are in full growth and boat trips run most regularly.

Arras is a quick train ride from Lille. Cassel is better reached by car, but it's still a manageable half-day trip from the city.

Where to sleep

See our Mercure hotels across Nord-Pas-de-Calais, ideally placed to explore these picks.

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Where to sleep

See our Mercure hotels across Nord-Pas-de-Calais, ideally placed to explore these picks

View hotels