Must see attractions in Lyon

  • Musée des Beaux-Arts

    This stunning and eminently manageable museum showcases France's finest collection of sculptures and paintings outside of Paris, from antiquity onwards…

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    Musée des Confluences

    This eye-catching building, designed by the Viennese firm Coop Himmelb(l)au, is the crowning glory of Lyon's newest neighbourhood, the Confluence, at…

  • Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière

    Crowning the hill, with stunning city panoramas from its terrace, this superb example of late-19th-century French ecclesiastical architecture is lined…

  • Lyon Confluence

    Lyon's race toward the future is personified in this reborn industrial district near the southern tip of Presqu'île. Once a landscape of empty warehouses…

  • Cathédrale St-Jean-Baptiste

    Lyon's partly Romanesque cathedral was built between the late 11th and early 16th centuries. The portals of its Flamboyant Gothic facade, completed in…

  • Musées Gadagne

    Housed in a 16th-century mansion built for two rich Florentine bankers, this twin-themed exhibition space incorporates an excellent local history museum,…

  • Place des Terreaux

    The centrepiece of the Presqu'île's beautiful central square is a 19th-century fountain made of 21 tonnes of lead and sculpted by Frédéric-Auguste…

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    Opéra de Lyon

    Lyon's neoclassical 1831-built opera house was modernised in 1993 by renowned French architect Jean Nouvel, who added the striking semi-cylindrical glass…

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    Parc de la Tête d'Or

    If you're museumed out, head to this lovely space north of the centre, which provides a green haven for nature lovers and families. Spanning 117 hectares,…

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    Mur des Canuts

    Said to be Europe's largest fresco, this magnificent trompe l'oeil shows a slice of daily life among Lyon's residents. The work is packed with intricate…

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    Fresque des Lyonnais

    Well-known Lyonnais peer out from this beautifully executed seven-storey mural, including loom inventor Joseph-Marie Jacquard (1752–1834), Renaissance…

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    Musée Lumière

    Cinema's glorious beginnings are showcased at the art nouveau home of Antoine Lumière, who moved to Lyon with sons Auguste and Louis in 1870. The brothers…

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    Atelier de Passementerie

    Preserved for posterity by the Soierie Vivante association, this silk-trimmings workshop functioned until 1979, weaving braids and intricate pictures…

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    Musée des Arts Décoratifs

    This well-organised museum displays 18th-century furniture, tapestries, wallpaper, ceramics and silver. Ticket includes admission to the adjoining Musée…

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    Musée des Tissus

    Extraordinary Lyonnais and international silks are showcased here. Ticket includes admission to the adjoining Musée des Arts Décoratifs, which displays…

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    Musée Gallo-Romain de Fourvière

    For an enlightening historical perspective on the city's past, start your visit at this archaeological museum on the hillside of Fourvière. It hosts a…

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    Musée d'Art Contemporain

    Lyon's contemporary-art museum mounts edgy temporary exhibitions and a rotating permanent collection of post-1960 art. It sometimes closes for several…

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    Place Bellecour

    One of Europe’s largest public squares, gravel-strewn place Bellecour was laid out in the 17th century. In the centre is an equestrian statue of Louis XIV.

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    Palais de Justice

    Facing the river in old Lyon, the grandiose neo-classical Palais de Justice is well worth a gander.