Lyon hotel advice
 

Will be in Lyon for 3 days in May and have never been. In terms of hotels, I always skew towards nicer ones yet as a single person, often find them too much in the "fancy" of town as opposed to the "fun" part.

In Lyon, I'm pondering the Hotel Le Royal (Accor chain) which is right at Bellacour OR the Grand Hotel Des Terreaux which seems to be closer to nightlife. The general thoughts online are that the former is a great place and the latter is not as nice (and may or may not have internet issues which would be a huge issue for me) but is more in the action.

Anyone have personal experience to share?

Thanks!

I only know the Hilton and the Sofitel Bellecour, both of which are quite nice. But if you stay at a lesser hotel in the center, and you really want to enjoy the city, you will be fine as the hotel is only for sleeping.

In my experience, one stay at each, Le Royal is by far the better choice.

Thanks guys - how about in terms of area. If I stay at Le Royal, how far am I from nightlife? How easy to get to and from? Am I correct that Terreaux is "in" the nightlife while Le Royal is more near the middle of the town proper?

BTW - can I easily take the Metro from the TGV station or do I need a car?

Just back from Lyon. Can't say that I've stayed in either hotel as mine was budget bordello style but I've had a quick look at the Royal and the Terraux and both are in very walkable locations for eating and drinking out of an evening. A lot of the bars and clubs are actually on the other side of the river in Vieux Lyon which would probably only take 15 - 20 minutes to walk to of an evening from either hotel. There are plenty of restaurants and bars as well within 5- 10 minutes of the Place Terraux in the back streets behind the Quai St Antoine and the Quai De La Pecherie on the same side of the river as Terraux. Any hotel will have a decent map. Can't vouch for the clubs as I was only bar hopping.

To the best of my knowledge the TGV station for Lyon is out near the airport and there is no metro link but I am sure that heads wiser than mine will correct me if there is a TGV near the centre. I would not rent a car as the streets are complicated with a one way system in operation across the bridges to further confuse tourists, taxi would be about 60 - 70 Euros one way to the centre from the St Exupery TGV station. There may be a rail or a rail bus link that could form part of your SNCF fare whch would be cheaper. Journey time by taxi approx 30 minutes. Have fun and beware the tripe sausages !!!

Yes, there are two main train stations in the center of Lyon. Perrache and Part Dieu. There is an extensive public transport system of metro, trams and buses. I've driven around Lyon many times, but I usually have a GPS. There are a lot of public parking lots, but they cost a few bucks. To save money, you should get on Google and study the transport system a bit so you know which bus or tram goes where.

Am in Lyon as I write this, from the "big crayon" building topped by Radisson hotel a few blocks from Lyon Part-Dieu gare. Having stayed previously near Perrache I can now say that the area between the rivers is much more interesting than anything I've seen near Part-Dieu. My employer preferred I stay here, so it seems time to get acquainted with the Lyon Metro. ;)

There is a good bus (Satobus) for those going to/from St Exupery airport from/to either Part-Dieu or Perrache. IIRC it was about 11e one-way back in Oct '08.

Odd thing about this hotel is the lobby is on the 32nd floor. One takes a dedicated elevator from entrance to lobby level. Other elevators serve only the hotel floors. Have to admit the rooms come with a spectacular view of the city.

bon voyage
benzguy80

Actually it costs €8.90 now. Or €15.80 round-trip. Used to be less. Check out http://www.satobus.com/welcome.html if you are interested. I'm a regular customer.

thanks for the correction, stimpy. I should have looked before posting.

OT: tried a Bouchon for dejeuner, Le Layon. it was very good! off to Le Garage for dinner. I have high expectations for this place.

à bientôt

You shouldn't need a car in Lyon, and probably don't want one. The one-way streets and parking are not a joy.

I agree with you completely with only one caveat: my absolutely favorite chocolatier (Bernachon) is withn walking distance of the gare Part-Dieu.

Excellent advice. To reiterate: you don't want to be lumbered with a car in Lyon.

a one day ticket for Metro subway, tram (very nice!) and bus transport is 4e40. taking TGV trains into Perrache is easy. it seemed (not sure about this!) that most from the North (Paris) continue on to Perrache. if not then there are trains every half hour or so during the day and into the evening. Metro works, too, but that's a little more effort.

the areas around Part-Dieu and the peninsula are very well served (found this out yesterday) by the Metro/tram/bus service.

tried a bouchon yesterday that I really liked: Le Layon, 52, rue Mercière (very close to Place Jacobins)

bon voyage
benzguy80

I was able to figure out trains from Paris to Perrache. I had originally thought they only went to the airport but a better search proved Perrache as an option. Then just two stops by metro to Bellecourt.

Now, though, I'm pondering taking the TGV from Paris to Avignon for one day/night and then two days/two nights in Lyon.

Can someone who has been to both tell me if I'm just trying to cram too much in and should enjoy three days in Lyon? I do tend to sightsee very quickly but also want some nice people watching downtime. If Avignon should just be part of a later bigger Provence trip, then I'll just spend the 3 days in Lyon.

Anyone with recommendations on a single traveler for bars/nightlife in Lyon, please share as well :)

So - no bar suggestions? :)

There are a bunch of good dance clubs (boite en francais) in the center of Lyon. Sorry I'm not current on what's good. Check out http://lyon2night.com/

There's one called Wall Street. Should be good for a New Yorker. ;)

Check out this thread on Lyon2night.com, http://lyon2night.com/forum_showpost...threadid=28987

It's a poll asking where the best place in town is. Seems to be "wood", short for Woodlands club. It's up the river a bit towards the N6 bridge. ie; you'll need a cab. http://www.woodland-club.com/contact.php

Keep in mind that YMMV. Reading through the thread listed above I found the following quote which I found "enormously" humorous: "le wood ce qui est enorme c'est les jeunettes qui ont des lunettes de grand mere des soutifs a leur grande soeur tout blanc décoloere tirant vers ole gris et quis ont persuadés d'etre sexy!!"

Also mentioned:
Le First
Le premier sous sol
DV1
La chappelle
Le Trou
Le Bunker Club
Le Space disco