Travel Eye on Lyon (France)

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Overview:

The majestic city of Lyon - gateway to the Rhône Valley - has always benefited from the traffic of trade and visitors. Today, tourists come to enjoy an elegant city, set in a lovely landscape between two hills and two rivers, that has been the heart of French gastronomy and commercial dynamism for over 500 years. With its spreading suburbs, it's now the second biggest city in France.

The centre of Lyon (the peninsula or Presqu'île) around which the Rhône and the Saône rivers flow on either side, has gracious public squares, including the pink-gravelled Place Bellecour. Close by is the Mercière-St-Antoine district, the old commercial quarter clustered around a 14th-century church, the Eglise St-Niziers, whose bells used to signal the closing of the city gates at night.

The city's old town (Vieux Lyon) is situated across footbridges ( passerelles ) on the western bank. Vieux Lyon is a Unesco world heritage site, and boasts medieval and Renaissance buildings, but it is far from a museum piece.

The cobbled streets are lively and bursting with restaurants - proof, if it were needed, that Lyon loves to dine. Here you can also explore the city's famous underground passages ( traboules ), built in the Renaissance but used to great effect by the French Resistance during WWII. Both the Presqu'île and Vieux Lyon have a compact layout and can easily be explored on foot.

At the northern end of the Presqu'île is the hillside neighbourhood of Croix-Rousse, the old silk-weaving district where you can browse in the outdoor market or sit at a café and watch the locals play boules or chess. Fourvière, Lyon's other hill, is reached by a funicular railway that takes you up to the summit church and the Tour Métallique, an Eiffel Tower-like structure that offers fantastic views over the city.

Lyon is an intriguing destination, but the city is also a perfect base from which to explore the Rhône Alpes region - from the vineyards of the Côte du Rhone, to the Gallo-Roman towns of Valence and Vienne and the nougat town of Montélimar. The beaches of Provence and the Alps are also within easy reach of a city that has always been, and continues to be, at the centre of things.

Locality:

Lyon is 431km (268 miles) south east of Paris and 311km (193 miles) north of Marseille.

Entertainment/Facilities/Attractions/Things to do:

Popular attractions include:

Musee de l'Imprimerie de Lyon - 13 rue de la Poulaillerie. this museum occupies a 15th-century mansion, and is devoted to Lyon's role in the world of printing. Exhibits include a page from a Gutenberg Bible, 17th- to 20th-century presses, 16th- to 19th-century woodcuts, and engravings. This is one of the most important printing museums in Europe.

Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourviere - 8 place de Fourviere. On the hill's summit is this 19th-century Basilique, rising fortresslike with four octagonal towers and crenellated walls. Its interior is covered with colored mosaics, and an ancient chapel adjoins the church. A gilded statue of the Virgin surmounts the belfry.

Primatiale St Jean - This cathedral was built between the 12th and 15th centuries. Its apse is a masterpiece of Lyonnais Romanesque architecture. The beautiful stained-glass windows are from the 12th to the 15th centuries. A highlight is the Flamboyant Gothic chapel of the Bourbons.

Musee des Tissus - 34 rue de la Charite. The museum is housed in the 1730 Palais de Villeroy. On view are priceless fabrics from all over the world, spanning 2,000 years. Some of the finest fabrics made in Lyon from the 18th century to the present are displayed.