For couples · Lyon · France
Romantic things to do in Lyon
Ideas for a couples' trip, from small moments to a special day out.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Gonedelyon, CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answer
Lyon is quietly romantic: river light at dusk, candlelit bouchons, Renaissance courtyards and views from Fourvière over the city's rooftops. Couples tend to stay in Vieux Lyon.
Key facts
- Romantic ideas
- 5
- Couple-friendly sights
- 1
- Area for couples
- Vieux Lyon
- Best months
- April–May and October
Romantic ideas
1.Sunset from Fourvière
Watch the city turn orange from the esplanade beside the basilica, then walk down through the gardens.
2.Evening on the Saône footbridges
Cross the Passerelle Saint-Georges or the Palais de Justice footbridge as Vieux Lyon lights up.
3.Dinner in a bouchon
Share a pot of Beaujolais and a quenelle in a small, candlelit bouchon in Vieux Lyon or the Terreaux.
4.Boating in the Parc de la Tête d'Or
Rent a rowing boat on the lake on a summer afternoon.
5.Concert in the Roman theatre
Catch a show during the Nuits de Fourvière in the 2,000-year-old theatre under the stars.
Sights couples love
Park · 6th arrondissement
Parc de la Tête d'Or
Enter by the Porte des Enfants du Rhône and rent a rowing boat on the lake on summer afternoons.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Kids
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Couples
Where couples should stay
$$$ · Best for first-timers, couples and culture
Vieux Lyon
On the west bank of the Saône, the Saint-Jean, Saint-Paul and Saint-Georges quarters are a dense grid of 15th- and 16th-century houses with courtyards and spiral staircases, the cathedral and the funicular up to Fourvière. Hotels are small and characterful, and the area is busy with visitors by day.
- Good
- Historic atmosphere; Funicular to Fourvière on the doorstep; Riverside walks along the Saône
- Watch out
- Touristy restaurants on rue Saint-Jean; Cobbles and stairs, few lifts
- Nearby
- Lyon Cathedral, Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, Musée Gadagne, Traboule
Romantic day trips
- Pérouges (About 35 minutes by train, then a 30-minute walk) — A small walled medieval village on a hilltop, with cobbled lanes, half-timbered houses and a central square shaded by a lime tree.
- Beaujolais villages (About 45 minutes by car) — Rolling vineyards dotted with golden-stone villages such as Oingt, plus wine cellars where you can taste the Beaujolais crus.
- Annecy (About 2 hours by train) — An Alpine lakeside town with canals running through its old town, the Palais de l'Isle prison on an island and swimming and boating on clear Lake Annecy.
- Beaune (About 1 hour 45 minutes by train) — The wine capital of Burgundy is known for the Hospices de Beaune, a 15th-century hospital with a glazed-tile roof, and for wine cellars beneath the old town.
For dinner
Share local specialities such as Pike quenelles, Sausage in brioche and Lyonnaise salad. Tap water (une carafe d'eau) is free on request.
Questions travellers ask
+Is Lyon romantic?
Lyon is quietly romantic: river light at dusk, candlelit bouchons, Renaissance courtyards and views from Fourvière over the city's rooftops.
+What is the most romantic thing to do in Lyon?
Sunset from Fourvière: Watch the city turn orange from the esplanade beside the basilica, then walk down through the gardens.
+Where should couples stay in Lyon?
Vieux Lyon: Renaissance lanes, traboules and bouchons beneath Fourvière hill.