Because great holidays don’t have to cost the Earth…

By Hollie Wicks

It’s that time of the year again with Christmas festivities hiding just around the corner. So with that in mind we’re sending you on Traincation to Lille this week…

Lille Christmas market
This year Lille is opening their city up to form a winter wonderland. It will be filled to the brim with unique market stalls and a festive Ferris wheel for a whole month. The market opened its doors on the November 21 and will be running right up until the December 30 (excluding Christmas day).

There will be more than 80 chalets full of gift ideas, nativity figurines, decorations and festive foods. You will also find arts and crafts hidden in the stalls all the way from Russia, Quebec and Poland, and gifts from Native America.

As well as the market stalls there are activities for the children, such as pony rides and face painting. And of course no Christmas fete would be complete without a visit from Father Christmas. Santa will be in town on December 19, 22 and 24 for that all important souvenir photo.

For the music lovers there are jazz bands and a gospel choir playing on various nights. And make sure you don’t leave without having a go on the Ferris wheel (pictured right) to see the stunning city views and soak up the wintery festive atmosphere.

Let us not forget there will be gingerbread men amongst other delicacies and glasses of mulled wine. So be sure to stop by there and relax with a glass or three.

Getting there
Travelling to Lille from London is very easy and quick. Just catch the Eurostar straight to Lille Europe station which is an easy 500m to the city centre. Remember to travel light to make room for all the gifts you’ll purchase at the market too. You could even download a Christmas music playlist for your journey to really get you in the mood!

Picture it

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And so you can start getting excited about your trip, here are some photos from last year’s market…

Here comes the science bit…

GC articles show you one of four ways (the one in bold) to live greener…

/ Be a winner (not a binner) /
/ Turn up the style (not the heat) /
/ Love the trend (not the spend) /
/ Do it in public (not the car/plane) /

All images from noel-a-lille.com