Lille rewards time. The Palais des Beaux-Arts alone justifies the trip — the finest regional art museum in France by some margin, and almost always uncrowded. Vieux-Lille is one of the best-preserved Flemish old towns anywhere, better than many Belgian equivalents and without the crowds. The Vieille Bourse courtyard, the Citadelle ramparts, the Hospice Comtesse, and the cathedral are all within comfortable walking distance of each other. For the rest, Wazemmes has the Sunday market; Porte de Paris has the Sun King's triumphal arch; and the Natural History Museum has a collection of taxidermied oddities that no one expects to find in northern France.