Everything you need to know before heading to Lyon for the first time.
For me, it started with worms. As a fashion reporter with a specialty in French couture, I often traveled to Lyon. Just two hours from Paris via the high-speed train, it’s the place to research Lyon’s silk industry, which dates back centuries, and to get to know the city’s current-day printed silk artisans. (Silk making is far from a dying art–Hermes’ famous scarves are made at silk workshops in Lyon.)
I made a point of picking out a restaurant for a nice lunch on each visit. Lyon may be France’s second biggest city in size, but it’s definitely France’s food capital, which arguably makes it the food capital of the world. On every visit, I discover how much else the city has going on. It’s really a city of firsts. This is where the fathers of cinema were born, and it’s the origin of a particular kind of street art. The silk industry may have left a bourgeois sheen, but Lyon has a real creative vibe as well.
If you’re traveling to Lyon for the first time–or even if you’ve already been–follow this guide to experience the best things to do, eat at the finest restaurants, stay at the top hotels for any budget, and learn a few things that should definitely be avoided.
INSIDER TIPYou can look forward to stellar gastronomic experiences and equally memorable meals at Bouchon restaurants, traditional bistros that you can only find in Lyon. And, while Parisian waiters can have a reputation as haughty, staff at a good Lyon bouchon will welcome you with warmth. Most are family-owned businesses with the matriarch and younger generations working the front of the house. Look for Bouchons that have a Bouchons Lyonnais seal in their window to know you’re going somewhere bona fide.
1 OF 24
Learn About the Silk Weavers at Maison des Canuts
WHERE: La Croix-Rousse
Canut was the name given to Lyon’s silk weavers. At the museum dedicated to their history, you can learn just how much silk is woven into the history of the city, down to the historical, social, and economic importance of the industry: the Canuts’ uprising in the early 19th century was among the first workers’ revolts of the Industrial Age. But it’s the magnificent panels of silk and yarns of every possible color that’ll leave the most lasting impression. Guides will lead you through exhibitions of the industry today, demonstrating weaving on antique looms and the art of hand painting on silk using intricate block prints.
2 OF 24
Discover the Origins of Cinema at the Institut Lumière
WHERE: Monplaisir District
When the Lumière brothers, Auguste and Louis, inventors of the cinematograph, projected the 50-second film The Arrival of a Train in 1895 on the wall, an industry around moving images was born. (Legend has it that the audience was so frightened that the train was coming right at them that they fled the theater). The brothers from Lyon invented other things, such as the autochrome press, and a visit to the Institut Lumière, a museum in the Lumière family home, includes displays of these innovations as well as a peek at the family’s rooms and their lovely gardens. Naturally, there’s also a cinema on site where you can watch a classic on 35 mm film and in the original language. On Music and Movies nights, there are silent films with live music. This museum is a must for any lover of the seventh art.
3 OF 24
Taste a Praline Tarte
WHERE: Les Halles Paul Bocuse, Le Part Dieu
A Praline Tart is a thin buttery crust holding a layer of cream and crushed bright pink candied pralines. It looks like a candy pie baked for Barbie. But it’s a serious part of Lyon’s culinary canon. You’ll find the tarte at any self-respecting Lyonnais patisserie and on the menu at many restaurants, but the version at Jocteur Boulangerie is the one to try. There are several branches of Jocteur in the city, but the one at the celebrated food market Les Halles Paul Bocuse, close to the train station, is a good choice. Pralines appear in other baked goods, notably a praline brioche with bright pink flecks. These will beckon to you from patisseries across town. I prefer the tarte, but if you insist on the brioche, try the one at Boulangerie Du Palais.
4 OF 24
Haggle at Les Puces du Canal
WHERE: Saint-Jean district of Villeurbanne
Want to haggle for Louis XV chairs? Head to Les Puces du Canal, one of France’s best flea markets and a favorite Sunday pastime for Lyonnais. The flea market is located next to the old Jonage canal on the outskirts of the city in the Saint Jean District of Villeurbanne. The location gives serious Wes Anderson vibes. Hundreds of vendors sell vintage furniture and fashion, gilded frames, antique toys, books, old French pop albums, or cameras, and the list goes on. The atmosphere is animated with the merchants who know each other given to some friendly chiding. Show up at seven in the morning when the merchants are unloading, and you’ll find the professionals scooping up the pick of the Puces to sell in their own antique businesses. There are oyster stands in between the stalls to fuel up on between haggling. It’s open Thursday and Saturday mornings between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m., and Sundays from 7 to 3 p.m.
5 OF 24
Wander Le Musée des Confluences
WHERE: Confluences
The point where the Saône and Rhône rivers meet has become the happening and arty Confluence district. At the heart of the district is the Museum of Confluence. This science-centric museum, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, is housed in a seriously whimsical bit of architecture by Vienna’s Coop Himmelblau. The building is an ode to deconstructionism, with transparent and opaque chunks melding together, playing into the theme and location. It’s a piece of starchitecture that has helped draw visitors to the city and the new neighborhood. But what’s inside is as alluring as the exterior. The museum’s mandate is to confront scientific knowledge as it applies to contemporary societies. Permanent exhibition spaces are dedicated to the origins of the world’s stories. It’s not dry like some science museums. Exhibitions are a mix of art, history, and science. It’s like a big curiosity shop with unusual artifacts and dinosaur bones you can hold in your hands.
6 OF 24
Roam the Traboules
WHERE: Vieux-Lyon
Silk literally built the city and made it wealthy, but it also shaped it architecturally. The city’s most famous feature is the traboules, secret covered passageways designed so that the silk workers could go from their workshops to the textile shops at the foot of the hill. (These mysterious passageways also came in handy during World War II when Resistance members sought to evade the occupying Nazis.) Most of the traboules are located in the Old City, or Vieux Lyon, one of Europe’s oldest and loveliest cobblestoned Renaissance districts. You can visit the traboules on guided tours or on your own, just make sure to avoid them at peak time. The crowds not only make the experience suffocating but take away from the clandestine idea of them. Four particularly wonderful traboules are the ones that wind down from pretty Rue Auguste Comte.
7 OF 24
Enjoy a Hearty Machon at Au Petit Bouchon Chez Georges
WHERE: Presqu’ile
Wine for breakfast. Why not? It’s great paired with pig trotters. The machon is a traditional hearty breakfast, now eaten mostly as a weekend brunch, that the Canuts, or silk workers, would eat after a night shift. They would gather at a bouchon for this ritual breakfast, which would typically start with “Cervelle de Canut” or silk workers’ brains. The dish contains neither; its creamy farmhouse cheese mixed with shallots, herbs, and oil. Following that is an assortment of offal, tripe and andouille sausages, trotters, and poached eggs cooked in red wine. This food was made by talented working-class French women who concocted highly flavorful meals with scraps and non-choice cuts that have become French classics. Partaking at a machon is a truly authentic experience, with each dish telling a story of Lyon. Try it for yourself at Au Petit Bouchon Chez Georges.
8 OF 24
Hang With the Lyonnais at Le Sucre @ La Sucrière
WHERE: La Confluence
Several former spaces in the once industrial area of the Confluence district have turned into arty and party venues. Among the best is La Sucrière, a one-time sugar warehouse. This is where you go for the Lyon Biennale art fair, increasingly a player on the art world calendar. But to hang with the Lyonnais year-round and to listen to global electronica, head to La Sucriere’s rooftop, where you’ll find the city’s hottest nightclub, Le Sucre. There’s usually a great lineup of internationally known acts across the music genre, from electro-jam to disco roller.
9 OF 24
Marvel at Street Art
WHERE: City Wide
Lyon’s many famous and impressive murals pay homage to 2,000 years of the city’s history. Standouts are The Wall of the Canuts in the Croix Rousse district, which celebrates the silk workers, and the one dedicated to the city’s other star attraction: gastronomy and its undisputed king, master chef Paul Bocuse, across from the food market that bears his name. The spirit of outdoor art carries on today with “flacking” artist Ememem. A native of Lyon, Ememem is an anonymous mosaic artist who “patches up” cracked public sidewalks, crumbling building facades, and potholed streets with colorful and elegant mosaics, giving unexpected splotches of joy to gloomy gray asphalt. (Flacking comes from the French word flaque for puddle). Ememem has flacked cities across Europe. But Lyon is where they first started. Their work is all over town, but you can take a bike tour with Comhic in search of Ememem’s works. The tour takes you along the banks of the Saône and up and down the Croix-Rousse hill: it’s a great way to see Lyon while getting to know one of its seminal street artists.
10 OF 24
Shop for Vintage Finds
WHERE: Croix-Rousse
Vintage shopping in Lyon is fantastic. But what would you expect from a city whose wealth was built on luxury textiles? Friperies (or vintage shops) are all over town but many of the best can be found in the boho-chic Croix Rousse. These include Carrie Bradshop, that, as many might guess, is inspired by the Sex and the City heroine. You can definitely shop for le total look, Carrie, but a more restrained French fashion approach would be to pick up a stand-out printed mini skirt or a big-shouldered ’80s jacket. Elephant, at the foot of Croix-Rousse hill, is another go-to. It’s a good source for the worker’s blue jackets that are the latest crush of French Fashion and many sportswear brands.
11 OF 24
Think About Cheese at the Orange Cube
WHERE: Confluence
Nicknamed “The Mimolette” after the French cheese, the Orange Cube is architecture firm Jakob + Macfarlane’s contribution to the art-centric metamorphosis of the Confluence. The striking perforated 6,300-square-foot steel orange cube is used for offices and as a furniture showroom and exhibition space. You might not be interested in what’s going inside, even though you are welcome to explore. But as a great piece of architecture, it’s definitely worth checking out while exploring the Confluence district. Most visitors are happy to take a picture peering through one of the perforated holes. It’s become an Insta-classic.
12 OF 24
Picnic in a Park
WHERE: Tête d’Or Park
Lyon feels like a city that was designed for the perfect picnic. You can pop into any of the stellar food markets to pick up products. I like the St. Antoine market along the Rhone, and I get the feeling it’s a local favorite, too. (The Lyonnais really do love and appreciate their river sides). After stocking up on cheese, pate, baguettes fruit, and carrying the bottle of Beaujolais you picked up on a side trip to a winery just outside of the city, you can continue on the pedestrian and cycle-friendly Rhône quayside to the beautiful Tête d’Or park, a 117-hectare oasis of English-garden inspired greenery. Find a shady spot to picnic at, and after, continue the romantic mood by renting a rowboat on the lake that is the centerpiece of the park.
13 OF 24
Gaze at History at the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière and Roman Ruins
WHERE: Fourvière
The Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is a city calling card, even if some visitors are disappointed to learn it’s only a hundred-odd years old. (It was consecrated in 1896). It’s still a very impressive Byzantine, Gothic, and Romanesque-inspired Basilica, with stunning stained-glass windows, beautiful mosaics and marble festooned throughout. The basilica is perched on the hill for which it’s named and has the best views in the city. The church is open all year round from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. and entrance is free. When I’m feeling ambitious, I head out very early to watch the spectacular sunrise and enjoy the Cathedral crowd free. In any case, it’s best to go on a bright day to get the full beauty of the stained-glass windows. From the Cathedral it’s just a short walk down the hill to the Antique Roman Theatre de Fourviers. Lyon was a Roman city in the times of Gaul, and this ancient theater (which hosts summer concerts) is an incredibly preserved relic.
14 OF 24
Stroll the Presque-Ile Neighborhood
WHERE: Presque-Ile
The little peninsula between the rivers Rhône and the Saône is the don’t miss Presque-Ile district. It’s the beating heart of modern Lyon, filled with parks and elegant French homes. It’s where you’ll also find most of the city’s authentic bouchons and artisan boutiques. Especially around Rue Président Edouard Herriot, you’ll find a number of luxury French-label boutiques to shop at. The rue de la Charité in the middle of the district is particularly picturesque, with elegant private 19th-century mansions where upper-crust ladies lived and wore the dresses made from the silk the Canut spun. The district includes Place Bellecour, the largest pedestrianized square in Europe. Many of the city’s lovely classical fountains are congregated here, and are particularly charming at night.
15 OF 24
Things to Avoid: The Nightlife Hub Around Rue Ste Catherine
WHERE: Rue Ste Catherine
Around Rue Ste Catherine, there are a lot of very mainstream, late-night English and Irish sports bars, cocktail lounges, and so-so dance clubs. It’s pretty boisterous and can get a little dodgy in the wee hours. If it’s your vibe, fine, but to me, it isn’t the best of what Lyon has to offer.
16 OF 24
Things to Avoid: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon
WHERE: Presque-Ile
I shouldn’t knock a museum full of Egyptian antiquities and its fair share of Picassos and Matisses, yet I can’t help but feel this museum is a little generic. That said, the garden in the Musee is lovely, and, in my mind one of the best parts of the place. After a day traipsing around Presque-ile, there’s nothing better than ducking into the shady gardens and taking a peaceful break under the watchful eye of the statues by Rodin and Bourdelle.
17 OF 24
Things to Avoid: Scammers
Lyon is overall a very safe city, but there is a growing scam industry hose members like to trade in fake metro tickets among other things. They tend to congregate in popular tourist areas trying to entice you into buying “discounted” metro tickets that turn out to be counterfeit. Be aware of pickpockets, too, who can be found round the train station and on metros.
18 OF 24
Must-Try Restaurant: Le Troquet
WHERE: Carnot-Gailleton
Le Troquet, not far from the Place Bellecour, is a locally loved wine bar and bistro appreciated for its cellar stocked with hundreds of biodynamic and organic bottles (you’re welcome to go down to the cave to choose your wine) and lively atmosphere. Owner /chef Florian Béal always welcomes guests, many of whom are regulars, with a smile. Béal whips local and regional products into inventive and flavorful dishes that are never precious. There’s always a plat du jour on the menu, some seasonally inspired dishes and favorites can always be counted on, like sweet and sour pork cheeks. The restaurant serves lunch or dinner. Evenings are better: it’s a great place to go to after a day of walking around the Old City, you can show up casually dressed–though not easily without a reservation.
19 OF 24
Must-Try Restaurant: Takao Takano
WHERE: 6th Arrondissement
Japanese chef Takao Takano thought he would be a lawyer but became a top chef in Paris’s premiere food city, working first with Nicolas Le Bec. His elegant Japanese French fusion restaurant has been drawing serious diners and accolades since almost the day it opened in 2013. (He has two Michelin stars). It’s located in a quiet residential neighborhood, and indeed, the intimate restaurant, with just a handful of tables, feels like you’re dining in someone’s home. Wall sculptures of recycled wood add to the pared-back zen vibe. Every ingredient is respected and results in really creative dishes with unique flavors. The cheese course, on display like art, should not be missed. The restaurant is pricey, with set menus ranging from €160 to over 600, with wine included. But the relatively reasonably priced lunch menu (€80) is a fantastic option for gourmands on more of a budget.
20 OF 24
Must-Try Restaurant: Le Cafe Comptoir Chez Abel
WHERE: 2nd Arrondissement
Choosing a bouchon is daunting. There are so many. But Le Cafe Comptoir gives you the quintessential experience. Located not far from the Saône, this Lyon institution has a decor straight out of central casting. Mirrors hang in the wood-paneled dining room. A wooden spiral staircase leads up to the first-floor dining. On the menu is a roll call of iconic hearty Lyonnais classics: Assiette de rosette, Terrine du Chef, saucisson de Lyon, Salade Lyonnaise. I usually go for the luscious chicken in a morel cream sauce or the quenelles. It’s been around forever (well, at least a century, but hasn’t lost its authenticity or deftness with Lyonnais fare. Lots of local Rhone wines can be found on the wine list, including some lovely Crozes-Hermitage. It fills up quickly, so best to reserve beforehand.
21 OF 24
Best Budget Hotel: Mob Hotel
WHERE: Confluence
In keeping with the Confluence district’s contemporary, industrial-style architecture, the Mob features rooms with cement walls. But this is Lyon, so there are accents of silk brocade on the walls as well. The hotel has got a Brooklyn vibe, with evening DJ sets, a busy bar, and guests working on their laptops in the library. The Sunday brunch is popular and a great deal. The food is also organic. The hotel has other eco-features, including using renewable energy throughout. Try and get a room with a Saône river view.
22 OF 24
Best Boutique Hotel: Mama Shelter
WHERE: Jean Mace
Mama Shelter started in Paris as a collaboration between design guru Philippe Starck and the owners of Club Med. They envisaged a fun and hip hotel brand in out-of-the-way, non-touristy neighborhoods, the better to mingle with locals. There are now Mama Shelters in cities all over the world. Mama Shelter Lyon is located in the more centrally located Jean Mace neighborhood, not far from the train station and close to the Rhone River. It’s a great hotel to stay in if you’re traveling alone and looking to meet people. It has one of the best rooftop bars in the city, and there’s always someone to play foosball within the street-art-themed lobby. Rooms are small but comfortable, with requisite cool amenities like iMacs. Some also have kitchenettes if you want to get items from the market and play Lyonnais chef.
23 OF 24
Best Luxury Hotel: Villa Maia
WHERE: Fourvière Hill
The Villa Maia come from two of France’s leading design luminaries: Jean-Michel Wilmotte and Jacques Grange. The 37-room hotel is located in the upper part of the city, not far from the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière, guaranteeing some pretty stellar views. It draws well-heeled (and often boldface) names. It has a glorious Roman spa with a hammam, steam room, and heated indoor pool and rooms with sober and chic decor and Carrara marble bathrooms. The hotel’s restaurant is helmed by stand-out chef Christian Têtedoie, who does modern reinterpretations of Lyonnaise culinary classics.
24 OF 24
Know Before You Go
The Lyon City Card is very handy, giving you free access to over 20 museums and unlimited access to public transport, including the metro, trams, buses, and funiculars. Biking is another easy and inexpensive way to get around, with lots of handy docking stations for the city bike share program. In a city of two rivers, water is key, and water taxis, known as vaporettos, are a legit way to get around. A vaporetto will take you across the city via the Saône with stops at key spots like Vieux Lyon and the Place Bellecour.
Lyon’s traffic jams are legendary, and it’s one custom you don’t want to partake in. So don’t rent a car for the city, and if you already have one, park it for the duration. The best time to visit is early fall when the weather is still warm, the harvest bounty is on full display at the markets, and the autumn leaves look great against the red roofs of the city.