3 nights in Lyon from London without a car
Lyon from London by train: London St Pancras → Lille Europe (Eurostar) → Lyon Part-Dieu (TGV), one change, about 6 h; about 7h 54m door to door, checked against the timetable on 2026-09-14. 21.8 kg CO₂e return per person, against 185 kg to fly (4h 30m with the airport). Lyon suits travellers interested in food, Roman remains, museums and several contrasting neighbourhoods connected by métro, tram and funicular.
2026-11-06 to 2026-11-09, 2 people in 1 room. Carbon per person: 31.9 kg by train (journey 21.8 + stay 10.1), against 195 kg flying with the same stay.
The stay uses the UK Government 2026 hotel factor for France, 6.7 kg CO₂e per occupied room-night — a country average, not any particular hotel — shared by the people in each room.
The journey
- Out
- London St Pancras International → Lille Europe (Eurostar, 1h 22m); Lille Europe → Lyon Part-Dieu (SNCF TGV INOUI, 3h 3m) — 1 change, 91 min allowed. Daily.
- Back
- Lyon Part-Dieu → Lille Europe (SNCF TGV INOUI 12562, 3h 28m); Lille Europe → London St Pancras International (Eurostar ES 9141, 1h 27m) — 1 change, 62 min allowed.
- Arriving
- Part-Dieu is the TGV station, east of the centre, on Métro line B and the tram network. Lyon Perrache is the other mainline station; the Lille TGVs use Part-Dieu. Part-Dieu is a large interchange served by Métro B, trams and buses; follow signs for the Vivier-Merle side for the métro. Presqu'île requires a change to Métro D, while Vieux Lyon continues west on line D. Station luggage-storage details were not found. source
- Checked
- 2026-09-14, for out 2026-10-16 (Fri), back 2026-10-19 (Mon). Timetables change by season.
Check times and fares with the operator → (not an affiliate link)
Where to stay
- Presqu'îleThe most central base: Bellecour, the shops, restaurants and the principal city-centre sights, per the Lyon tourism office. Suits a first visit.Métro B from Lyon Part-Dieu to Saxe-Gambetta, change to Métro D for Bellecour. Elapsed time not checked on the journey planner; two lines, one change.Search stays in Presqu'île for your dates →
- Vieux LyonThe Renaissance old town: traboules, the cathedral quarter and the funicular up to Fourvière. Suits a visitor who wants the historic district over the shopping centre.Métro B from Lyon Part-Dieu to Saxe-Gambetta, change to Métro D for Vieux Lyon. Elapsed time not checked.Search stays in Vieux Lyon for your dates →
- Part-DieuThe district around the arrival station: convenient for the train, shopping and onward transport, not the historic centre.On foot from Lyon Part-Dieu.Search stays in Part-Dieu for your dates →
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3 nights, day by day
Lyon suits travellers interested in food, Roman remains, museums and several contrasting neighbourhoods connected by métro, tram and funicular. It can fill five nights more readily than Lille or Bruges. Vieux Lyon and Fourvière are less suitable for visitors who find steep streets or cobbles difficult.
- arrive, take the métro to Presqu'île and walk around Bellecour and the riverbanks.
- Vieux Lyon, funicular to Fourvière and the Roman archaeological area.
- one museum, the Croix-Rousse slopes or Parc de la Tête d'Or.
- central market or river walk, then Métro B to Part-Dieu.
Getting about without a car
- Explore Vieux Lyon's Renaissance streets and covered passageways. — Métro B to Saxe–Gambetta, then Métro D to Vieux Lyon source
- Visit Fourvière hill, the basilica and the Roman archaeological area. — Métro D to Vieux Lyon, then funicular source
- Walk the Presqu'île between Bellecour, the Saône and the Rhône. — Métro B then Métro D to Bellecour source
- Visit Parc de la Tête d'Or and its extensive paths and gardens. — local bus or walk from Masséna métro source
What is on when
- October–December
- The city's museums and neighbourhoods remain available, and the tourism office lists the Lumière Festival and December Festival of Lights among Lyon's major recurring events. Exact 2026 dates and access arrangements must be checked.
- March–May
- Permanent museums, neighbourhood walks and parks remain available. The tourism office lists Nuits Sonores among Lyon's major events, but confirmed spring 2027 dates were not found.
Reasons you might not
- The verified rail journey is considerably longer than Lille or Bruges.
- Part-Dieu is a busy interchange rather than an atmospheric base for a first visit.
- Vieux Lyon and Fourvière involve cobbles, slopes and sometimes crowded visitor routes.
Researched 2026-09-14. Sources: Lyon Tourist Office; Lyon Part-Dieu station access; TCL Lyon network map; Lonely Planet: Lyon. Some sub-page links supplied by the research pass returned 404 on 2026-09-15 and were replaced by the site's root; the facts were not re-verified against the root page.
Where to stay in Lyon
Places to stay in Lyon, France, on a live map. Prices and availability come from Stay22 and its booking partners.
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Affiliate disclosure. A booking made through this map may earn 0xCarbon a commission, at no extra cost to you. It changes nothing above it: the emissions figures come from UK Government conversion factors and are computed before anyone is paid anything.See the method.
Lyon in detail
Carbon from every departure city, the year's weather, and when to go.
Lyon is the capital of the French administrative region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. — Wikivoyage, CC BY-SA 4.0
When to go: Lyon is warmest in August (23.3 °C), sunniest in July (13.0 h a day); coldest in January (4.3 °C). Month by month
Getting there
| From | Distance | By rail | Rail time | By air | Air time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amsterdam | 737 km | 21.7 kg | 8h 12m | 185 kg | 4h 30m |
| Barcelona | 531 km | 15.7 kg | 6h 30m | 134 kg | 4h 12m |
| Berlin | 976 km | 28.8 kg | 13h 36m | 246 kg | 4h 48m |
| Birmingham | 894 km | 34.8 kg | 10h 24m | 225 kg | 4h 42m |
| Bristol | 837 km | 35.5 kg | 10h 36m | 211 kg | 4h 36m |
| Brussels | 568 km | 16.8 kg | 6h 12m | 143 kg | 4h 18m |
| Cardiff | 868 km | 38.7 kg | 10h 54m | 218 kg | 4h 42m |
| Copenhagen | 1,229 km | 36.3 kg | 19h 6m | 309 kg | 5h 6m |
| Dublin | 1,160 km | — | — | 292 kg | 5h |
| Edinburgh | 1,265 km | 64.7 kg | 13h 24m | 318 kg | 5h 12m |
| Frankfurt | 563 km | 16.6 kg | 8h 30m | 142 kg | 4h 18m |
| Glasgow | 1,292 km | 66.4 kg | 13h 30m | 325 kg | 5h 12m |
| Leeds | 1,005 km | 43.6 kg | 11h 12m | 253 kg | 4h 48m |
| Lisbon | 1,389 km | 41.0 kg | 22h | 349 kg | 5h 24m |
| Liverpool | 1,020 km | 44.8 kg | 11h 12m | 257 kg | 4h 54m |
| London | 737 km | 21.8 kg | 7h 54m ✓ | 185 kg | 4h 30m |
| Madrid | 912 km | 26.9 kg | 10h 6m | 229 kg | 4h 42m |
| Manchester | 999 km | 42.8 kg | 11h 6m | 251 kg | 4h 48m |
| Milan | 339 km | 10.0 kg | 6h 54m | 85.3 kg | 4h |
| Munich | 575 km | 17.0 kg | 10h 18m | 145 kg | 4h 18m |
| Newcastle | 1,122 km | 53.7 kg | 11h 54m | 282 kg | 5h |
| Nottingham | 911 km | 35.8 kg | 10h 42m | 229 kg | 4h 42m |
| Oslo | 1,622 km | 47.9 kg | 25h 24m | 408 kg | 5h 42m |
| Paris | 393 km | 11.6 kg | 3h 30m | 98.9 kg | 4h |
| Prague | 860 km | 25.4 kg | 14h 24m | 216 kg | 4h 36m |
| Rome | 749 km | 22.1 kg | 10h 24m | 188 kg | 4h 30m |
| Sheffield | 962 km | 40.0 kg | 11h | 242 kg | 4h 48m |
| Southampton | 736 km | 30.7 kg | 10h 18m | 185 kg | 4h 30m |
| Stockholm | 1,748 km | 51.6 kg | 24h 54m | 440 kg | 5h 48m |
| Vienna | 915 km | 27.0 kg | 14h 36m | 230 kg | 4h 42m |
| Warsaw | 1,378 km | 40.7 kg | 21h 6m | 347 kg | 5h 18m |
| Zurich | 335 km | 9.9 kg | 6h 48m | 84.3 kg | 3h 54m |
The year in Lyon
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temp °C | 4.3 | 6.1 | 9.2 | 11.1 | 15.3 | 20.4 | 22.5 | 23.3 | 18.4 | 15.2 | 8.1 | 4.3 |
| Sun h/day | 4.2 | 6.3 | 8.1 | 9.1 | 9.9 | 12.2 | 13.0 | 12.0 | 10.0 | 7.8 | 5.4 | 4.8 |
| Rain mm/day | 1.9 | 1.3 | 4.3 | 2.8 | 3.9 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 1.3 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 2.7 | 2.6 |
When to go
Lyon is warmest in August at 23.3 °C but brightest in July, averaging 13.0 hours of sun a day — the two do not always coincide, which is worth knowing before booking. Its coldest is January at 4.3 °C.
On these lists
- Warmest from London in June · low-carbon pick
- Warmest from London in July · low-carbon pick
- Warmest from London in August · low-carbon pick
Staying there
A hotel room in France emits about 6.7 kg CO₂e per night under UK Government 2026 factors — a country average per occupied room, not this or any particular hotel. 7 nights in one room adds roughly 47 kg — about 2.2× the carbon of one person getting there by rail from London. Two sharing the room halve that share each; the journey does not halve.
How busy it gets
Rhône records 4.3 overnight stays per resident a year (8,279,966 nights in 2025). Comparatively quiet by European standards.
Eurostat, nights spent at tourist accommodation by NUTS 3 region, against resident population. Shown for context only — it plays no part in which destinations appear or in what order. Eurostat does not cover the United Kingdom after 2016, nor North Africa or the Levant at all, so this figure is absent for roughly a third of the destinations here.
Distances are great-circle. Rail assumes international rail at 0.01135 kg CO₂e per passenger-km with a 1.3× track detour allowance; flights use 0.12576 kg per passenger-km including radiative forcing. Journey times are modelled, not timetabled. Full method.