Day 1: Arrival

You are met on arrival at Lyon airport and transferred to your city centre hotel, where we stay for five nights. Meet your tour director and fellow travellers for an included evening meal.

Day 2: Vieux Lyon & Fourvière

We begin by taking the funicular to the top of Fourvière Hill where a fine, panoramic view allows us to appreciate the setting of this lovely city. It was on this higher ground overlooking the rivers Saône and Rhône that the Roman city was founded in 43 BC. We explore the Roman remains, including a large theatre, an odeon, a bathing complex and a succession of early churches. Blending almost invisibly into this archaeological landscape, the exceptional Musée Gallo-Romain de Lyon-Fourvière contains a staggering collection of artefacts, one of the finest in France.

Standing on the site of the Roman forum of Trajan we now find the Basilica of Notre Dame of Fourvière, a symbol of Lyon which looms impressively over the city, and over the actually more important Cathédrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste at the base of the hill. Making our way down the slope between the two, we come to Vieux Lyon, literally ‘Old Lyon’ although in fact the medieval successor to the upper Roman town.

Vieux Lyon became the district of the high clergy and the aristocracy, and by the 16th century was a flagship of the Renaissance. The district’s paved streets, colourful façades, Renaissance architecture and secret passageways (les Traboules) now form the heart of Lyon’s World Heritage Site. Here in the Jardin Archéologique we see the 4th century group of episcopal buildings which preceded the medieval Cathedral of St Jean, construction of which began in 1165 in Romanesque style and continued with the more flamboyant Gothic. This is the seat of the Primate of Gaul, a title given to the Archbishop of Lyon since 1079 in recognition of the city’s spiritual and temporal importance since Roman times. You might choose to linger in the Quartier St Jean, exploring more of its charming streets and perhaps picking a traditional bouchon Lyonnais for your evening meal.

Day 3: Lyon Presqu’île

For our second full day in Lyon, we explore the peninsula between the rivers Rhône and Saône, known as Lyon Presqu’île. We begin with the Eglise St Nizier, the principal church of the peninsula and a majestic example of the flamboyant Gothic style of the 14th century. It is built on top of the remains of a 5th century church whose crypt was the burial place of Lyon’s martyrs and saints, including St Nizier himself.

We continue to the Museum of Fine Arts, whose encyclopaedic collections offer an exceptional journey through 5000 years of the decorative arts, from Egyptian antiquities to modern art. Highlights from the museum’s vast collections include wonderful Egyptian sarcophagi, sculptures by Rodin, and paintings by Poussin, Rubens, Renoir, Manet, Cezanne, Gauguin and Van Goch.

We continue our exploration of Presqu’île with a visit to the Roman Amphitheatre in the Sanctuary of the Three Gauls. An annual meeting place for representatives of the Gallic tribes, the sanctuary was the focal structure which served to federalize and develop the imperial province of Gaul. Dedicated to the imperial cult, it embodied a policy of integrating the Gallic tribes into the newly established Principate of Augustus, and was the earliest and most important institution of its kind in the Western Roman empire.

We end the day with a meander through the famous Traboules de Croix Rousse. These are the traditional passages through buildings which acted as shortcuts for traders, notably the silk workers who have been crucial to Lyon’s economy since the 17th century. Take your time this evening to sample another of Lyon’s wonderful selection of French restaurants.

Day 4: Saint Romaine en Gal, Vienne, Ampuis Wine-Tasting & Aqueduc du Gier

Following the Rhône river downstream for 35 km brings us to the attractive riverside town of Vienne. Before the Romans founded Lyon in 43 BC, Vienne was the largest settlement in the region, a tribal capital of the Gallic Allobroges. It continued to hold importance as a trading centre, and was given colonia status by the Emperor Augustus, which made all of its increasingly Romanised inhabitants into Roman citizens.

On the west bank of the Rhône at Vienne lies the impressive archaeological site and museum of Saint Romaine en Gal, one of the largest archaeological sites in France. Here archaeologists are gradually uncovering an entire urban landscape, the residential and commercial sector of Gallo-Roman Vienne, including houses, shops and baths. The museum displays a number of splendid mosaics, murals and everyday objects which attest to the wealth of Vienne’s inhabitants.

We include lunch and a wine-tasting at a local Ampuis estate before concluding our exploration of Vienne on the east bank of the river. Here we find the superbly well-preserved Temple of Augustus and Livia, a very large Roman theatre, and the Archaeological Gardens of Cybele where we see remnants of the ancient Roman forum.

On our way back to Lyon, we stop at the Aqueduc du Gier at Chaponost on the western outskirts of the city. At 86 km long, it is one of the longest known Roman aqueducts, and is so finely engineered that the flow of water is optimal; just enough for the flow to be regular but not too fierce. It is particularly well preserved where it crosses the Chaponost plateaux on a series of impressive arches, 70 of which still stand to their original height.

Day 5: Cluny, Oingt & Beaujolais Wine-Tasting

A one hour drive from Lyon takes us through Beaujolais country and into the Burgundy region, and to the picturesque, historic town of Cluny. Founded in the 10th century by William I of Aquitaine, the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny rose to become the most important religious institution of the mediaeval period, spawning 1,500 daughter monasteries which housed more than 10,000 monks. Notable for its strict adherence to the Rule of St. Benedict, the abbey became acknowledged as the leader of western monasticism, a place of pilgrimage and the recipient of numerous donations from all over Europe.

The scale of the abbey buildings reflected its importance, its 11th century church remaining the largest in Western Christendom until the 16th century, when the new Basilica of St Peter was built in Rome. But financial problems set in, followed by religious and political wars and then final destruction during the French Revolution. The abbey we see today is a fraction of its former size, but still impressive enough to give us a sense of its former glory. Sights include the remains of the great abbey church, the abbot’s palace, the cloister and the hostelry. We also visit the Museum of Art and Archaeology for its fabulous collection of medieval sculpture, and there will be time to enjoy the views from the top of the Tour des Fromages, for those with the energy to climb its 120 steps!

On our way back to Lyon we stop at the medieval village of Oignt, ranked amongst the most beautiful villages in France. It sits in the heart of the Beaujolais region, which is synonymous with excellent wines, so we have arranged for a wine-tasting at one of the local vineyards.

Returning to Lyon, we enjoy an included dinner in one of the city’s excellent restaurants, a celebration of the new found knowledge and friendships from your time together in this lovely part of France.

Day 6: Departure

Time to head home, or why not staying longer in France?