Lyon

Vieux Lyon

Vieux Lyon

A Renaissance quarter beneath the Fourvière hill, in three sections — Saint-Paul, Saint-Jean and Saint-Georges — with fifteenth- and sixteenth-century houses, spiral staircase towers, arcaded courtyards and Saint-Jean Cathedral with its astronomical clock. One of the largest collections of Renaissance architecture in Europe.

Tip: Rue Saint-Jean and Rue du Bœuf are the main streets, but the real charm is in peeking into the courtyards — many entrances stand open by day. The cathedral's astronomical clock chimes at noon, 2pm, 3pm and 4pm. Restaurants right on Rue Saint-Jean are tourist traps serving fake bouchons — look for the Les Bouchons Lyonnais label for the genuine article.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

2 h

Traboules

Vieux Lyon and Croix-Rousse

A network of around four hundred hidden passageways running through buildings, courtyards and staircases between parallel streets in Vieux Lyon and Croix-Rousse. About forty are open to the public. Silk workers once used them to carry fabric, and the resistance used them during the Second World War.

Tip: Entrances hide behind ordinary doors marked with a small bronze plaque bearing a lion. The longest traboule runs from 54 Rue Saint-Jean to 27 Rue du Bœuf; the most famous is the Cour des Voraces in Croix-Rousse, with its six-storey staircase. These are residential buildings — keep quiet and don't ring doorbells. The tourist office hands out a map of the traboules open to the public.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1–2 h

Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière

Fourvière

A white basilica built between 1872 and 1896 on the hill above Lyon, richly decorated inside with mosaics, gold and marble. The terrace beside it offers the best view over the whole city and its rivers, reaching all the way to Mont Blanc on a clear day.

Tip: Take the funicular up from Vieux Lyon and walk back down through the Rosaire gardens. The terrace viewpoint is free; climbing to the basilica's roof requires a guided tour. The Chapel of the Virgin next to the basilica is older. Every 8 December, the basilica and the whole city light up for the Festival of Lights.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1 h

Ancient Theatre of Fourvière

Théâtres romains de Fourvière

Fourvière

A large Roman theatre from 15 BC seating ten thousand spectators, and a smaller odeon on the Fourvière hillside, remnants of the capital of Roman Gaul. Beside them, a Gallo-Roman museum set into the slope holds its most prized exhibit: a bronze tablet inscribed with a speech by Emperor Claudius, born in Lyon.

Tip: The theatres are freely open, a two-kilometre walk from the basilica. In June and July, the Nuits de Fourvière festival hosts concerts and open-air theatre here, with tickets going on sale in winter. The museum is small and good, free on the first Thursday of the month.

Admission:

theatres free, museum around €5

Time needed:

1–1.5 h

Presqu'île and Place Bellecour

Presqu'île et place Bellecour

Presqu'île

The peninsula between the Rhône and the Saône, home to the main squares and shopping streets. Place Bellecour is one of the largest squares in Europe, with an equestrian statue of Louis XIV; Place des Terreaux has the fountain by Bartholdi, sculptor of the Statue of Liberty, and the town hall.

Tip: Place des Terreaux has the Bartholdi fountain with its four horses, a design Bordeaux turned down, next to the Museum of Fine Arts. On Presqu'île, look for the murals — the Fresque des Lyonnais on Quai Saint-Vincent, depicting thirty famous Lyon residents, is the most celebrated. Rue Victor Hugo and Rue de la République are pedestrian zones.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1.5–2 h

Croix-Rousse

Croix-Rousse

A hill north of Presqu'île that, in the nineteenth century, was home to the silk-weaving canuts, who worked Jacquard looms in tall apartments with four-metre ceilings. The canuts' revolts of the 1830s were the first workers' uprising in Europe.

Tip: The Maison des Canuts demonstrates a working Jacquard loom and sells silk. The Cour des Voraces courtyard, with its giant outdoor staircase, is the most photogenic traboule. Up top there's a market on Boulevard de la Croix-Rousse every morning except Monday. The Mur des Canuts is the city's largest mural. The hill is steep — take metro line C to the top.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

2 h

Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse

Part-Dieu

A covered market named after Lyon's most famous chef, with around fifty stalls selling cheese, charcuterie, oysters, pastries and chocolate. Local chefs shop here, and on Sunday mornings people drink white wine with oysters.

Tip: Best on a Saturday or Sunday morning, sitting at the bar counters over oysters and a glass of white. Mère Richard cheeses, Sibilia charcuterie and Giraudet quenelles are the classics. Closed Mondays. The market sits in the Part-Dieu district, five minutes from the station.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

1 h

Musée des Confluences

Confluence

A museum of natural sciences and anthropology in a deconstructivist building of glass and steel at the tip of the peninsula, where the Rhône meets the Saône. The building resembles a cloud or a crystal, and the exhibits cover the origins of life, humanity and death.

Tip: The architecture is the main draw, but the exhibits are good for children too. The terrace looks out over the river confluence. The museum stands in the new Confluence district, redeveloped from an old port, with colourful buildings on the water. Take tram T1. Free on the first Thursday evening of the month.

Admission:

around €12

Time needed:

2 h

Parc de la Tête d'Or

Brotteaux

France's largest city park, with a lake, rowing boats, a botanical garden with large greenhouses, a rose garden with thousands of varieties, and a free zoo. Founded in 1857 along the Rhône.

Tip: The zoo and botanical garden are free. The large tropical greenhouse dates from 1880. The rose garden blooms in June. Rowing boats can be hired on the lake, and bikes near the entrance. The park is best for a Sunday afternoon picnic, the way locals do it.

Admission:

free

Time needed:

2 h