Lyon – France’s gastronomic capital

Nature
The wow factor for nature - does it show nature at its best? Doesn't need to be the wildebeest migration or diving with hundreds of hammerheads. Rather make you pause as you realise just how awesome the natural world can be
6
Culture
How much does this experience showcase some of the better and finer things that us humans can offer? Sure, it can be ancient ruins and renaissance churches, but it can also be festivals or soaking up some of the great modern cities of the world
8
Fun factor/activity
Very simple - was it fun? This is usually linked in with doing some kind of activity - i mean, walking along some cliffs is nice, but paragliding from them, now that is fun. Its a vastly underrated factor in a truly great experience
6
Avoid the crowds
Big tour groups and being surrounded by loud fellow tourists can sap the life out of even the greatest of travel experiences. This score is to reflect just how much you can avoid this. But. . . The score also takes into account if the crowds actually add to the experience, such as with a party town or a bustling local market
7
World famous
How world famous is the experience?
5
unique
How hard is it to have a similar experience in other places round the world?
7
Overall TE Score
The overall travel experiences score:  fun factor + avoid the crowds + (best of nature or culture) + (best of world famous or unique). Then convert into a score out of 100
70 *What the scores mean and where do they come from
RANKING
How this travel experience ranks compared to all the other experiences on this site, based on the travel experience (te) score
157th/454
Top 40%
continent
Europe
country
France
Length of time
1 day or less
Typical daily price
This gives you a rough idea of the daily price based on 2 people travelling where they can split costs like accommodation. It excludes travel there and back, and factors in inflation the numbers in brackets show the price range for the full time of the experience (so not necessarily daily). It is a range to reflect different budget vs higher end
$50 (typically $30 - $80)
Time of year visited
September
Primary Tags
Click on any of the tags to see all travel experiences with the same tag
Wow Factor
The wow factor reflects just how much you’re likely to say “wow”. As there’s a lot of experiences in the world, and a lot of wows, i’ve gone with a simple ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ to ⭐️ score, and a separate category for the truly "gash"
⭐⭐⭐

Summary

Lyon has the title of France’s gastronomic capital (which is one hell of a standard), and this on its own is enough to justify a visit. 

 

But it is actually the general vibe of Lyon and the ease of walking around town that is its real draw.  I was blown away by how elegant it all was with stunning cathedrals, river walks and sophisticated squares – Lyon isn’t loud or showy, it’s quietly brilliant, and one of the easiest French cities to simply enjoy.  Wow

 

Lyon Checking out the St-Antoine-Celestins Market on the Saone River for cheese, ham, bread, everything French

Table of Contents

12 Highlights of a Day in Lyon

Lyon - #1 The restaurants that make Lyon France’s Gastronomic Capital - if you’ve spent much time in France, you will realise just how high quality that is

#1 The restaurants that make Lyon France’s Gastronomic Capital - if you’ve spent much time in France, you will realise just how high quality that is

Lyon #2 Chilling in one of the outrageously beautiful squares, grabbing some food, doing some people watching

#2 Chilling in one of the outrageously beautiful squares, grabbing some food, doing some people watching

Lyon #3 Inside the magnificent Basilique Notre Damn de Fourviere sat on top of the Fouviere Hill and easily accessible by the funicular

#3 Inside the magnificent Basilique Notre Damn de Fourviere sat on top of the Fouviere Hill and easily accessible by the funicular

IMG_3797-compressed-aspect-ratio-900-675

#4 Checking out the St-Antoine-Celestins Market on the Saone River for cheese, ham, bread, everything French

Lyon #5 The elegant Place des Terreaux with its incredible Bartholdi Fountain

#5 The elegant Place des Terreaux with its incredible Bartholdi Fountain

Lyon #6 The views from the top of the Fourviere Hill, out across the city and towards Mont Blanc

#6 The views from the top of the Fourviere Hill, out across the city and towards Mont Blanc

Lyon #7 Grabbing a dozen no.1 oysters for only €12 from the St-Antoine-Celestins Market and eating them by the river

#7 Grabbing a dozen no.1 oysters for only €12 from the St-Antoine-Celestins Market and eating them by the river

Lyon #8 The views all the way along the River Saone. Most beautiful when looking over to Fourviere

#8 The views all the way along the River Saone. Most beautiful when looking over to Fourviere

Lyon #9 The wonderful 10 bridges that cross the River Saone and River Rhone in such a compact area

#9 The wonderful 10 bridges that cross the River Saone and River Rhone in such a compact area

Lyon #10 The historic urban area of Lyon, covering its Fourvière, Old Lyon, Presqu'île, and Croix-Rousse slopes, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998

#10 The historic urban area of Lyon, covering its Fourvière, Old Lyon, Presqu'île, and Croix-Rousse slopes, and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998

Lyon #11 The astounding mosaics and paintings within the Basilique Notre Damn de Fourviere. I'm not usually bothered about these things, but they were fab

#11 The astounding mosaics and paintings within the Basilique Notre Damn de Fourviere. I'm not usually bothered about these things, but they were fab

Lyon #12 Did I mention the food? Getting served more foie gras than bread

#12 Did I mention the food? Getting served more foie gras than bread

5 Tips for Lyon

Most people only tend to have a day or half a day (we split into one afternoon / evening one day, and a morning another), so my suggestions are:

 

1. Focus your time on the the Fourviere / Saint Jean / Vieux Lyon area that is on the west side of the Saone River, and the area on the opposite eastern side of the river between the The Saone and The Rhone (all UNESCO World Heritage listed since 1998).  Its hard to go wrong with the water front, restaurants, square and the magnificent Notre Dame de Fourviere Cathedral on the hill

 

2. There are heaps of restaurants in these areas, but in particular we liked the alleys around the Place Saint-Jean and similarly the alleys to then north of Place des Jacobins

 

3. You MUST visit the Basilique Notre Damn de Fourviere – not only are the views the best of both Lyon and the distant mountains (including Mont Blanc), but the cathedral inside is one of the most impressive in the world with its magnificent mosaics and paintings

 

4. Be sure to grab some oysters from the St-Antoine-Celestins Market just on the river. €12 for a dozen no.1s is insane value!

 

5. The Opera buildings are grand and impressive, and in particular everything around the Place des Terreaux.  Be sure to wander the extra 10mins to see them.

 

Experiences Nearby

The below map shows experiences nearby with a colour that reflect the Overall Score of those experiences

Score Detail

The scores above are the real point of this site.

Over 20+ years and 100+ countries, I’ve tried to rank the world’s best travel experiences — from genuinely mind-blowing ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ to the properly gash.

Every one of the 500+ places on this site has both a Wow Factor rating and a more analytical Travel Experience (TE) score based on the things that actually make travel memorable.

If you're curious about the thinking behind it, head to the About page.

Otherwise, explore the map above or on the Home page and see which places truly deliver maximum wow.

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