By rail
Lyon Part-Dieu, ~2 h by TGV from Paris
Europe · France
Lyon, France
France's food capital on two rivers
Getting there
By air
Lyon–Saint-Exupéry (LYS), ~25 km
Best time to visit
April to October; December for the Festival of Lights
Don't miss
The Basilica of Fourvière
Vieux Lyon
The Roman theatres
The Presqu'île
Things to do
Bouchon dinners
The Fourvière hill
The Festival of Lights
Where to eat
Sources: Photo: MickaëlG · CC BY-SA 3.0
What to pack
Comfortable shoes
A quieter corner
The traboules, secret passages through the old town
Questions travellers ask
When is the Festival of Lights in Lyon?
December. The rest of the year, April to October is a good time to visit.
What's the food like in Lyon?
It's France's food capital: have a bouchon dinner, and browse the Les Halles de Lyon food market.
What should I see in Lyon?
The Basilica of Fourvière on its hill, Vieux Lyon, the Roman theatres and the Presqu'île. Look for the traboules, secret passages through the old town; comfortable shoes help.
How long is the TGV from Paris to Lyon?
About 2 hours to Lyon Part-Dieu. Flying in, Lyon–Saint-Exupéry (LYS) is about 25 km out.
About Lyon
- Riverside
Where it is
Lyon is France's third-largest city and the prefecture of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, built where the Saône flows into the Rhône in east-central France, with the hills of Fourvière and La Croix-Rousse above the old town.
History
The Romans founded a settlement here in 43 BC, and as Lugdunum it became a capital of Roman Gaul and the birthplace of the emperors Claudius and Caracalla. Lyon later grew into a great centre of silk weaving, whose workers, the canuts, rose up in 1831 and 1834; the Lumière brothers invented the cinematograph here, and in the Second World War the city was a stronghold of the French Resistance.
People
The Lyonnais speak French, and the city is famous for its cooking, from quenelles and sausages served in bouchons to the food halls of Les Halles Paul Bocuse. The puppet Guignol was created here in the early 19th century, and on 8 December families set candles in their windows for the Festival of Lights.
Known for
- Bouchons, traditional Lyonnais restaurants
- The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière
- Vieux Lyon and its traboules
- The Festival of Lights in December
- The Roman theatres of Fourvière
Did you know?
In 1895 the Lumière brothers filmed workers leaving their factory in Lyon, one of the first motion pictures ever made; the site is now home to the Institut Lumière.
We haven't written a guide for this place yet — you can still plan a trip here.