What are nice day trips from Lyon?
Short answer
Pérouges, Cremieu, Saint-Chamond and Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne are some potential day trips within 50 km of Lyon. Cluny, Belley, Annonay and Montbrison are within 100 km of Lyon. Salins-les-Bains, Mende, Saint-Claude and Dole are within 200 km of Lyon by train. We list 47 places below, including 28 lake or river towns (Villefranche-sur-Saône and Montmelian), 25 old-world towns (Nantua and Bourg-en-Bresse), 20 food and café towns (Tournus and Tournon-sur-Rhône) and 16 wine towns (Voiron and Cerdon). More below.
Within 50 km 5 places
Within 100 km 21 places
By train, within 200 km 21 places
Places with a railway station within a 10-minute drive. Each one links to public-transport directions from Lyon, so you can check the route and journey time.
Saint-Claude
Small mountain town in eastern France's Jura department, Saint-Claude sits on the river Bienne amid highland terrain with scenic viewpoints in the surroundin…
Moulins
This heritage-dense town on the river Allier in central France, Moulins is the historic capital of the Bourbonnais province and holds a walkable centre with…
Decize
This stone arched bridge crosses a wide river into this compact Burgundian town, where a Romanesque church tower and slate-roofed buildings rise above a live…
Beaune
Widely regarded as the wine capital of Burgundy, Beaune is a walled town in eastern France whose historic centre holds the cellars and facilities of wine pro…
Le Puy-en-Velay
One of the principal starting points for the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Le Puy-en-Velay is a heritage-dense town in south-central France's A…
Morbier
Morbier, a village in the Jura mountains of eastern France, lent its name to the cheese produced across the wider Jura region and was, alongside Morez, the c…
Murat
Compact mountain town in the Cantal department of south-central France, Murat sits in volcanic highland terrain with scenic surrounds and a concentration of…
Marvejols
This little town in the Lozère department of southern France, Marvejols sits on the Colagne river in mountain terrain and served as a royal town and capital…
Cluses
Sitting on the Arve river in the Alps of Haute-Savoie, Cluses is a town with a walkable centre, a café scene, and steep mountain slopes rising on either side.
Salins-les-Bains
Salt has shaped Salins-les-Bains since the fifth millennium BC, and the town's historic saltworks — added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2009 as an ext…
Mende
Mende is the little prefecture of France's Lozère department in Occitania, set along the River Lot amid mountain terrain and offering a café and restaurant s…
Bonneville
This flower-filled stone fountain anchors Bonneville's cobbled main square, backed by a salmon-pink town hall and Alpine ridgelines, making this Haute-Savoie…
Abbans-Dessus
This tiny stone-and-orange-tile village in the rolling hills of Doubs, Abbans-Dessus commands sweeping views over a wide pastoral valley with a river glintin…
Sisteron
Wedged into a narrow gap between two long mountain ridges where the Durance, Buëch, and Sasse rivers converge, Sisteron has served as the gateway between Pro…
Dole
Birthplace of Louis Pasteur, Dole preserves the scientist's childhood home as a dedicated museum and retains a rich architectural legacy from its time as the…
Issoire
This compact French town in the Auvergne, its dense orange-tile rooftops dominated by a striking Romanesque church with twin towers, set against rolling upla…
Morteau
Morteau, a small town in the Doubs department of eastern France's Jura massif, is known nationally for its smoked sausage, the saucisse de Morteau, and has a…
Port-Lesney
A small village on the banks of the Loue river in the Jura, Port-Lesney draws visitors with a five-star château hotel, a Michelin-starred restaurant, and a r…
Gap
France's highest prefecture sits in a mountain valley in the southern Alps, with a walkable centre that supports a dense food-and-drink scene and access to s…
