Lyon

Trip preparation

Brief introduction Lyon is the third largest city in France and the capital of Rhone-Alpes. It's main economical fields are the chemical industry, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, and the university. It has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

General

Lyon is obligatory passage point for highways and rail lines in southern Europe.

Best travel time

Lyon has a continental climate, change is abrupt: the summers are warm, dry without rain, and winters  very cold with heavy snowfall. The best time of year to travel to Lyon is in Spring with an average of 20 ºC.

History

Lyon was created as a Roman colony in 43 AD. It soon became a great city and the starting point of major roads in Gallia. Later it was even capital thanks to its strategic location. A late second century was the scene of the battle of Lugdunum. Lyon was not part of France until the fourteenth century, but since then it remained French, even during the Hundred Years War. The Renaissance was a golden age for Lyon, it had the largest banking economy and the city was one of the largest in Europe. During the nineteenth century Lyon was an important industrial city, which necessitated the construction of one of the first railway lines (between Saint-Etienne and Lyon) and the first funicular in the world. During World War II it was occupied by the Nazis, but was also a stronghold of the Résistance.

By bus

Lyon has a system of public transport system with 1.4 million passengers a day: the TCL (Transports in Commun Lyonnais). It has four metro lines, four tram lines, two lifts, seven trolleybus lines and about 100 bus lines. Also since 2005 there is a bike rental system.

By plane

The Lyon-Saint Exupéry airport is 20 km from Lyon, and has a TGV station.

By train

Lyon has two train stations for the TGV: Lyon Perrache and Lyon Part-Dieu.

Sights

427 hectares of the city is a World Heritage Site since 1998, including: • The Vieux-Lyon • La Croix-Rousse • The Hill Fourvière • The Presqu'île

Events

Some of the events taking place in Lyon are: • La Fête des Lumières (8 December) • Les Nuits de Fourviere (summer) • Les Nuits sonores (May) Also in Lyon the biennial of contemporary art and dance is held, as well as the Salsa Festival (June), the Quais du polar (in March) and the Grand Lyon Film Festival.

Food

Some of the most famous dishes of French cuisine come from Lyon: quenelles, onion soup, grattons, andouillette and Lyon salsa. For dessert; the pralines and Coussins. Lyon is considered the cradle of hâute-cuisine.