I knew that France is expensive but i didn’t realize that it is so expensive! I am a ‘savvy spirit’ Pole who love to do a lot and enjoy life. And on top of that I am a shopaholic and person who loves to travel so I really need to watch out on money…but who doesn’t nowadays? Anyway, this expensive life in France did not put me off…I believe that you can enjoy life and not spend a lot of money because there are some ways you can always save .. you just need to be a little bit more organized and prepared. I have already been doing some researches and started my new life in Lyon on a budget. I do continue discovering new ways of saving money and this time I want to share with you The Top 10 Free Things to do in Lyon !
Parc Tête d’Or
- Go for a walk and chill out in the Parc de la Tete d’Or. The park is huge and offers a lot of things to do. It covers the green area of 105 hectares. Its beautiful and unique each season of the year. So you can and should go there to discover it again and again. It is an ideal place for a date, family time together and socializing with friends…not to mention, it’s a great spot for a picnic, walk, lunch break and bike ride! It has a Botanic Garden. So you can admire the flowers, roses outdoors in the spring and summer and also you can explore more exotic plants indoors throughout the whole year. It is all for Free.
Free Zoo
- Visit Lyonnais Zoo also for free. It is located in the Parc de laTete d’Or. The zoo is pretty impressive. It has lions, giraffes, monkeys, crocodiles, pelicans, flamingos. The deers, ducks and emus are walking just next to you when you rest on one of the benches, having your lunch or reading a book. It’s relaxing and calming to watch animals being just next to you.
Notre Dame De Fourviere
- Walk Up The Fourviere Hill for the amazing view, for your good health and to appreciate the beauty of the Basilique Notre Dame de Fourviere. The climbing is a bit tiring and you can use the very famous Funicular but this will cost you the ticket fare. It is not expensive as you will have a fun experience with the old style metro going up but it will not be free. Anyway the climbing is worth doing as it takes you through the sensational views of Lyon’s cityscape and surrounding areas. The Basilique is an impressive church which reaches to a height of 130 meters above the Saone River. It has been built in between 1872 to 1884 and it represents the Gothic and Byzantine styles. The services are impressive to attend, the richly decorated interior is impressive to admire…cannot be missed!
Vieux Lyon
- Discover the rich history of the silk production and feel the amazing atmosphere of the old city by visiting the Vieux Lyon. Lyon witnessed strong development in textiles and was manufacturing it. Especially the Vieux-Lyon district conserves the memory of this prosperous era. The boutiques display the silk textiles, the traboules show the way people transported the precious material, the salesman of the local textiles’ shops, will share with you some details of the production process if you ask kindly…
Croix Rousse Traboules
- Carry on exploring the silk history of Lyon by discovering the famous Traboules of Lyon. Once you started in the Old Lyon, you will continue in the Croix Rousse. Colline de la Croix-Rousse was an important centre of weaving in the early 19th-century. Follow the collection of ‘traboules’. There is a Special Route you can take to discover all yourself and without the need to pay the guide. You can learn it here or get the useful application for your mobile here but this will cost you 0.79 Euro.
Modern Part of Lyon
- Explore the Confluence district, the modern part of Lyon located in between the Saône and Rhône. Thanks to the latest investments, the Confluence is becoming one of the most sustainable and exemplary districts in Europe. It has impressive new buildings which you can admire and great view of the city which you can get in the Confluence shopping centre and at the terrace of the Confluence Museum. It’s all for free as well
Galo RomanTheater
- Learn about the history of Lyon by visiting the Gallo-Roman theatre. The city is believed to be founded on October 9, 43 B.C., by a Roman legate, on the Fourvière Hill. That is why the Gallo-Roman theatre is the most visible remains of Lyon’s historical heritage. You should then visit the museum and the good news is that on Thursdays it is free for everyone!
Tony Garnier Murals
- Admire the FREE Street Art! I don’t think you will be able to see all, but make sure you find and admire the most famous fresques of Lyon. My most popular is Fresque des Lyonnais (The Mural of Famous People from Lyon) and my favourite one is Le Mur Des Canuts. You can visit them for free and if you need a small helper to locate them easily you can explore this online website. If you liked the Lyon’s frescoes you can carry on with discovering more of those in the Etats-Unis district. There are over 25 unique murals celebrating the works of this Lyon architect and town planner – Tony Garnier Urban. You can visit his open-air museum museum but there is a fee.
Marche De Creation
- Visit the ‘Outdoor FREE Art Gallery’. Go to the Marche de Creation – the Sunday market which attracts art lovers since 1979. There are over 150 artists registered who represent different ranges of the paintings, photography, crafts, sculptures and engravings.
Sightseeing In Lyon
- Do the FREE sightseeing in Lyon. Make sure you have seen and you can tick off all the most important monuments of Lyon! So here you are:
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- The Place des Terreaux with its stunning fountain by F.A. Bartholdi, Hôtel de Ville and Musée des Beaux Arts with its beautiful garden.
- The impressive building of the Opéra
- The Place Tolozan with its bizarre yet interesting sculpture « L’Homme de la Liberté » by César.The famous shopping Rue de la République and impressive building of the Palais de la Bourse et du Commerce.
- Eglise Saint-Bonaventure – a former Franciscan church.
- Place des Jacobins with its central impressive fountain by the architect Gaspard André.
- Théâtre des Célestins the truly beautiful building with an Italian-style façade operating since 1877. Check out the interesting periscope located in the middle of the centre..interesting!
- The Place Bellecour with the impressive statue of Louis XIV and the elegant 19th-century buildings lined around such as Hôtel-Dieu de Lyon.
- The Place Carnot – the square located at the end of the Presqu’île, near the Perrache railway station, with the immense monument Allegory of the Republic.
- The Brotteaux former train station built in the 1900
BONUS FREE THINGS:
FREE Toilets – This is useful & important! Don’t pay for toilets! Find places where you can use them for FREE. This is a useful website if you want investigate beforehand. Otherwise, you will find the Free WC in Bellecour and Vieux Lyon – they are being provided to you by ONLYLYON! And if you are desperate…get this Toilettes à Lyon mobile app which will show you not free but all Lyonnais toilets.
Take part in the FREE events in Lyon. We have in our « Evènements » category a bunch of free events to share with you every week !
So who says you need to be rich to enjoy life fully? I hope you found that useful. Let’s keep exploring Lyon and finding those things which we can do cheaply and for FREE…let’s share them always!
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