Lyon

While Lyon can heat up in summer, it’s rarely unbearable in the city. Winters don’t get particularly cold. Spring and autumn are often lovely times, though it can remain cool until surprisingly late in springtime.

Culture is on the agenda in Lyon throughout the year, but big festivals add excitement to a visit, for example the diverse June to July festival, Nuits de Fourvière, in the Roman theatres, or the early December Festival of Lights.

Lyon St-Exupery airport lies 25km east of the centre. The Rhone Express shuttle bus to Vaulx-en-Velin La Soie metro station is the fastest route into town, though taxis may prove more straightforward for first-time visitors. The city has fantastic rail connections with Paris, Marseille and Lille, with a journey time from London of just five hours, via Lille and the Channel Tunnel. There are two big central stations: Perrache on the Presqu’ile, Part-Dieu east of the Rhône.

Lyon is blessed with excellent public transport. The metro is modern, comfortable and efficient. The bus services are good. Taxis are relatively easy to find. You can hire a car at the two central railway stations, among other places. In a car, the city is relatively hard to negotiate, because of one-way systems and the constraints imposed by the rivers and two big hills. For cyclists, the city-wide Velo’v bike-hire scheme is excellent.

First-time visitors plump for Vieux Lyon and Fourvière west of the Saone, the obvious, romantic choice. These parts are beautiful, if very touristy, with loads to see and do, plus an abundance of places to eat.

The Presqu’Ile is great for shops and the main art museums; there are also many French squares with cafés and restaurants here. East of the Rhone, the quarters near Tête d’Or Park are more residential, though smart, with some shops and restaurants.

The Cite Internationale north of the park has some big, comfortable chain hotels popular with business travellers and tourists alike.

While there are some interesting boutiques in Vieux Lyon, touristy shops dominate here. You’ll find the greatest concentration of stylish establishments on the Presqu’Ile.

Broad Rue de la Republique is lined with the big-name stores. The Carre d’Or between the Bellecour and Cordeliers squares, is the nickname for a little quarter of posh designer boutiques. Rue Auguste Comte is the main street for antiques.

For more experimental addresses, try Croix-Rousse, notably Passage Thiaffait.