Lyon the capital of gastronomy

France’s third city (and capital of the Rhone region) is also its internationally acclaimed capital of gastronomy, with more than its fair share of world class cuisine. Best discovered on foot, its historic centre is a perfectly preserved medieval city with a maze of alleyways hiding tiny boutiques and eateries. Elsewhere it’s an ultra-modern city – oozing 21st century French techno-charm, where everything actually works.

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Must see:
Head straight for the Saint-Jean and the Croix-Rousse areas and their narrow passageways (traboules) that seem to pass through whole buildings linking the streets on either side.

Must eat at:
Head over to Matthieu Viannay on Avenue du Marechal Foch for star-rated cuisine and contemporary (and very reasonably priced) dining with a distinctly Mediterranean twist.

Must be there for:
The city’s annual Festival of Lights has the decency to wait until it’s seriously dark and wintery to get going... and what began as a one-night religious ceremony has evolved over 150 years into a four day festival, from 5-8 December.

Well-travelled tips:
· Velo’v, the city’s public bicycle hire service, makes it very cheap to get around town. Just register a credit card to get the freedom of the system for as little as 1 euro per hour.
· If you want to shop ‘til you drop in all of the big French names, head straight to La Part Dieu, the largest mall in all of France.

Visa:
British citizens do not need a visa to visit France.