A tourist city, a city of hospitality, a passageway at the intersection of three borders, Liege is a cosmopolitan metropolis, as attested to by the composition of its population. To realize this, one has only to stroll through the open market (la Batte) along the Meuse on a Sunday morning. The Italian and North-African immigrant populations have brought to this northern land the accents and warmth of the south. This cultural intermixing largely contributes to the charm of the 'Ardent City'.

Liege is proud of its reputation as a warm and welcoming city. Neither too small nor too large, it offers all the advantages of a real city, but remains on a human scale. The city centre is very commercial, with a multitude of shops, restaurants, cafés and brasseries, for all tastes and budgets. Students prefer the Carré (meaning 'square'), a network of back streets known for its animated nightlife. On the right bank of the river, in Outremeuse, the rue Routure attracts both gastronomes and aficionados of other cultures.