Travel Tips for Lyon

There is no doubt that Lyon offers you a wide range of possibilities to do in the city, however, it is also clear that it is always necessary to know some recommendations to travel to this place.

By the time you make your travel itinerary, you will surely already know some of the best things to see and do in Lyon, however, I want to show you some tips that will surely help you a lot when you want to visit the city, regardless of the season in which you decide to travel.

If there is one thing you need to know when you go to Lyon, it is that it is one of those French cities where there will always be something delicious to try, that is why during your trip I recommend you to sign up for one of the best Lyon food tours, instead of going on your own to get to know the French cuisine.

The reason why you should sign up for a guided tour instead of going on your own to know restaurants, is because the tour guide knows very well what are those restaurants and special places that you should not miss if you want to know those dishes that mark the Lyon and French gastronomy in general.

On the other hand, if you go on your own you may miss many of the most special places in the city to taste the varied gastronomy. The best thing about all this is that if you go with a tour guide and you have some dietary requirements, it is much easier to find places where you can meet your expectations without missing out on one or another traditional dish.

But, to give you an idea of what you will taste on your own or on a tour, these are some of the dishes you will be presented with on the menu: flour fritter, vegetables, crème de leche, foie gras and the like, which are definitely specialties in this southern French city.

As everywhere in the world, in France and specifically in Lyon, there are also really dangerous places, where I recommend you to go only accompanied by a tour guide who knows exactly how are the laws and behaviors of these areas. That's why a good way to tour the city is to sign up for one of the best guided tours of Lyon.

Although the city is generally quite safe, it is also true that it scores on the lists of the most dangerous cities in France, because there are some specific neighborhoods that you should avoid for having a somewhat high crime rate.

Among the most dangerous places in Lyon and the ones I recommend you to go and visit with a guide, are the 7th, 8th and 9th districts, where you will find neighborhoods such as Gerland and la Duchère, the latter being the most affected by crime.

You should also take into consideration that, as a tourist, you are more at risk of being a victim of street robberies in these dangerous districts of Lyon, because local thieves look for unsuspecting tourists to steal some money and the rest of your belongings.

Although it may seem very obvious, in Lyon it is very important that you check the opening times before planning your itinerary for your trip, thanks to the fact that many attractions tend to change their opening times depending on the time of the year. Unlike other cities around the world, which tend to have the same or very similar schedules throughout the year, in Lyon it happens that, as it is a city with extreme climates, the schedule is often different.

Many attractions in the city tend to open earlier and close later in summer, while in winter they open later and close earlier, all due to the increase or decrease of temperature in each of the cases. If you pay attention to this, you will already know which attractions to include in your list of best things to do in Lyon.

The Opera House, the Basilica of Notre Dame, the Museum of Fine Arts and other museums throughout the city are some of the attractions that stand out for having a different schedule in each of the seasons of the year. That's why when making your travel itinerary, I recommend you check the schedules so you don't get an unpleasant surprise when you arrive.

Traveling to Lyon in high season is a real challenge, that's why one of the things you should do when you want to travel to this place during the months of July, August and September, which is the high season, is to make your reservations well in advance before going to the city.

It is true that the hotel and tourist offer in the city is enough to supply all the demand of the high season, but it is also true that you should make your reservations well in advance to avoid running out of hotel rooms, restaurants to eat at or tickets to some of the most popular attractions in the area.

If you plan to take the city's tourist bus to tour the entire town and visit its monuments and attractions, I recommend you make your reservation well in advance, taking into account that you can buy the ticket to go up to a year in advance.

It is best to make your reservations at least a month before you go to visit this city, because that way you will be sure that you will have an amazing place to arrive, where to eat and which places to visit, especially if you expect to stay in Lyon for 3 days or more.

One of the things you definitely have to do when traveling to the city, is to sign up for one of the best tours from Lyon, but when you do so I recommend asking before you book, if the tour includes refreshments and snacks for the road. This is because on many occasions, the tours do not include food on board and you will have to bring enough money to buy.

This tip is even more useful when you are traveling with children, because sometimes the meals offered during the excursions are not adapted for children. If you think it is a bit inconvenient to carry food during the trip, then I recommend you to bring enough money to buy on the way.

Also, I advise you to talk to your tour guide before you leave to find out if there will be food stops along the way. If there are no food or beverage stops along the way, then you should consider taking some food with you.

Lyon is quite an interesting and fun city, so one of the things I really recommend is to sign up for one of the best bike tours in Lyon, where you can go and see not only the most important monuments of the city, but also the flavors of French food.

These tours can last from three to five hours, depending on the number of places your tour guide suggests you to visit. The best thing about these tours is that you can go in the company of an expert to all the most incredible places in the city. That guide will explain everything you need to know about the city and its surroundings, all while you are on the bike.

You won't have to make much effort because usually these tours are done on an electric bike, in which you won't have to pedal too much to get around the city. It is certainly one of those experiences that you can not miss if you go to Lyon in 2 days or less, because it is one of the fastest ways to see the most sites in the city.

The Parc de la Tête d'Or is a large urban park of 117 hectares north of the city of Lyon, so I recommend you to go with enough time to this place, so you can enjoy all its attractions, and also do not forget to wear comfortable walking shoes.

Inside the park you will see numerous attractions, including a lake, several botanical gardens, a zoo, a tourist train, a greenhouse, a library and an art gallery, so to visit the entire complex, you will necessarily have to walk a lot. In fact, I recommend spending at least three hours walking around the park to get to know it all.

Visiting the Parc de la Tête d'Or is one of the best activities to do with children, but you should also take into account their comfort, that is why I also recommend that you put them in comfortable shoes, but also take enough water for them and if they are very young children, I recommend taking a stroller for when they are tired of walking.

The winter months are undoubtedly quite cold in the city of Lyon, and the month with the coldest weather is usually the month of January, when temperatures are usually 7ºC the highest and 0ºC the lowest. In that sense, it is important that you wear clothes that will keep you warm at night as well as during the sunny hours.

If you plan to travel in winter, although not necessarily in January, I recommend you to check some of the best things to do in Lyon in November, which is when winter begins in the city. The opposite is true if you are traveling in summer to this city. The summer months in Lyon are from June to September.

For those months, when temperatures can exceed 30ºC, it is best to wear light clothing and especially to check out some of the best things to do in June, which is the month when summer starts.

If you want to have beautiful pictures to remember your trip to Lyon, you have to go up to the Basilica of Notre Dame de Fourvière, an incredible place where you can take beautiful panoramic views of the city from the heights. But not only this, but also from the heights you can enjoy the cool climate of the city.

The Basilica of Notre Dame in Fourvière has a balcony from which you can see the whole city, and that is exactly where you should take the opportunity to take hundreds of pictures from the heights. To go up to this balcony you have to pay for a guided tour of the Basilica, where you will be taken to see the entire interior of the complex.

And to give you the full advice, I recommend you to go up to visit the Basilica early in the day, between 7:00 and 10:00, because after that time the influx of tourists is considerably higher and perhaps it will cost you a little more to enjoy the visit to the complex and the incredible views of the city.

By the way, to climb up to the Basilica you can do it by funicular because it is the easiest and fastest way, but if you are in good shape and do not mind walking up, as long as you enjoy the beautiful scenery from Vieux Lyon to the Basilica, I recommend you walk up and take pictures on the way.

For many people certain plants can cause allergies of all kinds, that is why one of the best recommendations I can give you is that if you intend to go to the Botanical Garden of Lyon, you should not miss some anti-allergic, because inside this enclosure there are many exotic plants that may cause some kind of allergy.

Inside the Botanical Garden you can see up to 15,000 botanical species, of which at least 1,400 are endangered, so some of these species, in fact, can cause some kind of allergy to those who suffer from this type of problem.

It is also important that you make this visit with a tour guide who will tell you which plants you can get close to and which ones you have to see from afar. In case you go on your own, you have to follow all the indications and precautions offered when you arrive at the Botanical Garden.