Escape in the French Flanders
3 centuries of coal exploitation
Stock up of discoveries
We organize your transport by coach, train or plane
Walk in the footsteps of the members of the Maquis, cross airdrop zone, discover fighters' quotidian life.
220€ / person
Indicated prices are with tax included.
Prices are all inclusive for little and big groups.
No stone will be left unturned, every detail will be completely explained, they know their subject like the back of their hand.
French
Our guides perfectly speak the languages indicated
Highlights
- Historic mining center of Lewarde, a history of 3 centuries of coal mining
- The Louvre-Lens Museum, the architecture of glass, metal and light
- The Roubaix Swimming Pool, the André-Diligent Museum of Art and Industry
- The capital of French Flanders and its unmissable architecture
Escape in the French Flanders
Benefit from a getaway in French Flanders to discover our regional heritage and exceptional industrial and economic know-how. This stay guarantees you nice surprises.
Lewarde Historic Center
Lewarde Historical Mining Center located 8 km from Douai, in the Nord department, is situated on the floor of the Delloye pit.
This 8-hectare site with mining architecture, representing the memory of the mining basin, is divided into 3 departments: the mining museum, the archives and a center for scientific culture of energy.
Prepare to live a complete immersion in the past life of these courageous miners who lived in this particular universe. Punctuated with surprising activities and discoveries, this course will amazingly mark your spirit.
Listed as a historical monument and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the center offers you a guided tour of 3 centuries of extraordinary mining!
Scientific and thematic exhibitions, projections, models and meetings with former workers will help you become more aware of this milestone era in the history of coal mines. The bowels of the earth that you borrow reveal the various technical developments, the hard work of the workers, their hobbies and demands.
A true witness to an exceptional industrial past that has now disappeared, the mining center of Lewarde, the most important museum in France, honours the memory of our ancestors. The buildings, open to the public since 1984, welcome many tourists every year. Live this exclusive and informative immersive experience.
Louvre-Lens Museum (62)
Thanks to the help of the Louvre Museum in Paris and the architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishiza, this space, built on a former mining area, inaugurated in 2012 and awarded for its contemporary architecture in 2013, brings you 5,000 years of history!
This huge building brings together exhibitions and workshops. The Galerie du Temps, an essential part of the Louvre-Lens, retraces the course of Humanity and showcases unique pieces ranging from Antiquity to the 19th century.
A scenography alone shows more than 200 masterpieces of the Louvre: sculptures, works of art, paintings, sketches, ceramics… This ultra-modern museum of glass and anodized aluminium on which the landscape is reflected, surrounded by a wonderful park, delights visitors of all ages.
The Roubaix Swimming Pool, the André-Diligent Museum of Art and Industry
The museum is located in a former municipal swimming pool in Roubaix (59) built by Albert Baert Architecte between 1927 and 1932. The inhabitants, from all social backgrounds, benefited from high-quality sports and health services until the establishment closed its doors in 1985 due to the fragility of the vault.
The City Council and the Directorate of Museums of France decided to renovate this magical place to safeguard a remarkable regional heritage and keep the soul of the site. The works took place from January 1998 until the end of autumn 2001 and the Museum of Art and Industry was born.
The swimming pool, located in the centerpiece of the museum, exudes all its splendour! You will be amazed by the beauty of the materials that surround it. Still, in water, poured by the figure of Neptune compared to the lion’s mouth, the Olympic basin lined with statues and sculptures offers a fascinating and overwhelming view.
Close your eyes when you hear the cries of the bathers (soundtrack), you will find the effervescent atmosphere that reigned in the premises.
The museum’s collections dedicated to the 19th and 20th centuries, notably, the paintings, textiles, ceramics, sketches, furniture and other masterpieces such as Claudel’s sculptures, would complete your journey.
The guided tour is punctuated with activities planned for adults and children. This swimming pool gallery, listed as a 20th-century heritage with its sumptuous decor, leaves an unforgettable memory.
Walk on the cobblestones of the capital of Hauts de France
This discovery tour of Lille, a city of arts and history, rich in events, culture and heritage, is full of breathtaking monuments! The tour by coach and on foot takes you back in time through the architectural diversity present in every corner of the city.
Often besieged, Lille has retained its charm and its buildings. Among the must-see places, you can admire the Place Îlot Comtesse, a vast green space in the heart of Lille and its old red brick buildings or the surprising Notre-Dame de la Treille Cathedral erected between 1854 and 2008, combining neo-Gothic and contemporary arts.
The Place du Général de Gaulle, the Rue de la Monnaie, the Palais de la Bourse, the cobbled streets, the district of Vieux-Lille and much more are also worth a visit. The colourful facades of houses, hotels and buildings adorn the city nicely.
Flemish architecture takes precedence over Spanish and Burgundian influences, but this mixture gives this northern city an atypical character that arouses curiosity and attracts all attention.
Book this incredible and unusual stay that allows you to impregnate the atmosphere of each site visited. Whether with family, group or friends, this trip remains an excellent way to discover new experiences and make interesting encounters.
Roadmap
Lewarde mining center and Le Louvre-Lens
6:30 am : Departure by coach to the Lewarde mining center located in the heights of France.
9:30 am : Welcome to the mining center with breakfast
10 am : Departure to visit the galleries in the company of your mediator from the mining center. One of the most iconic centers in the history of coal mining in northern France. The last pit in the mining area named Delloye was closed in 1990, after nearly 300 years of coal mining activity.
The visit will be followed by a meeting with a former miner who will tell you his story deep in the mine and his life as a miner.
12 am : Lunch at Briquet, the mining centre’s restaurant, 3-course menu and drinks included.
1:30 pm : Departure for the Louvre-Lens museum, inaugurated in 2012, the building is built on the former pit number 9 of the Lens mines. It is a symbol of the region’s economic reconversion.
After the visit, free time in the gardens.
5:00 pm: Departure for Lille, dinner at the restaurant (3 courses and drinks included) and overnight stay at the hotel.
The swimming pool museum in Roubaix and Lille, the capital of French Flanders
Breakfast at the hotel
9 am: Departure towards the Swimming Pool in Roubaix or the André-Diligent Museum of Art and Industry.
10 am: You will be greeted by your guides. The museum is located in the old swimming pool of Roubaix, an art deco style bath-shower complex built-in 1922. For security reasons, the site closed in 1985 and reopened in 2001 in charge of a new mission. The old swimming pool has now become a popular museum.
12 am : Lunch at the restaurant, with a 3-course menu and drinks included.
2 pm : The afternoon will be dedicated to the capital of French Flanders, Lille. You will go through a discovery tour of the different districts of the city with a guided tour aboard your coach. Then, accompanied by your guide, you will continue on foot to discover the ancient city of the Comtesse islet at the Notre-Dame de la Treille Cathedral.
4.30 pm : End of services and departure by coach to your home