Discussion
Lyon is a nice place and much a better stop over than Dijon.
There is now a motorway by pass to the east of the city. If you take that you miss the chance to drive on one of the most hair raising motorway sections in the world in my view as the original motorway plunges right through the middle of the city. Blind dark 90 degree bends in tunnels into brilliant sunshine and stationary traffic gets the heart racing let me tell you.
Whenever I leave Lyon heading south it always feels like we are getting closer to the sun.
I normally stay in the outskirts in a Campanile or something as there are kids in tow. Keep promising myself a long weekend in Lyon though.
There is now a motorway by pass to the east of the city. If you take that you miss the chance to drive on one of the most hair raising motorway sections in the world in my view as the original motorway plunges right through the middle of the city. Blind dark 90 degree bends in tunnels into brilliant sunshine and stationary traffic gets the heart racing let me tell you.
Whenever I leave Lyon heading south it always feels like we are getting closer to the sun.
I normally stay in the outskirts in a Campanile or something as there are kids in tow. Keep promising myself a long weekend in Lyon though.
The best thing about Dijon is the mustard, and the best Dijon mustard can seldom be found there. Little else is memorable about it.
Of your two choices, Lyon, by some margin, but there's far more interesting and altogether nicer places to stay over. chalon sur saone for example is fairly equidistant between the two and is a nice part of the world, and it's got what's thought to be the world's first combustion engine, apt, non?
Lyon is a lovely place though, definitely worth checking off if you've never been - if you've got some free time check out the UNESCO world heritage sites, some amazing architecture etc, particularly the Roman district.
Of your two choices, Lyon, by some margin, but there's far more interesting and altogether nicer places to stay over. chalon sur saone for example is fairly equidistant between the two and is a nice part of the world, and it's got what's thought to be the world's first combustion engine, apt, non?
Lyon is a lovely place though, definitely worth checking off if you've never been - if you've got some free time check out the UNESCO world heritage sites, some amazing architecture etc, particularly the Roman district.
I currently live in Lyon and have done for the past few years. Midweek it can be a bit quiet, but for me this is a good thing.
For a one night stay, find a hotel in the 6th arrondisement and walk towards the opera, along the river and onto the Presque isle. Lots of restaurants to choose from.
Beaune is equally a good call, hotels in the centre aren't great, but some fine restaurants and always a selection of Bourgognes.
For a one night stay, find a hotel in the 6th arrondisement and walk towards the opera, along the river and onto the Presque isle. Lots of restaurants to choose from.
Beaune is equally a good call, hotels in the centre aren't great, but some fine restaurants and always a selection of Bourgognes.
silverthorn2151 said:
Lyon is a nice place and much a better stop over than Dijon.
There is now a motorway by pass to the east of the city. If you take that you miss the chance to drive on one of the most hair raising motorway sections in the world in my view as the original motorway plunges right through the middle of the city. Blind dark 90 degree bends in tunnels into brilliant sunshine and stationary traffic gets the heart racing let me tell you.
Whenever I leave Lyon heading south it always feels like we are getting closer to the sun.
I normally stay in the outskirts in a Campanile or something as there are kids in tow. Keep promising myself a long weekend in Lyon though.
This is true. I ended up semi-lost in the centre of Lyon, with a caravan behind mw thanks to an ambulance shoving me into the wrong lane and a junction with no notice. Reversing my direction was 'interesting'.There is now a motorway by pass to the east of the city. If you take that you miss the chance to drive on one of the most hair raising motorway sections in the world in my view as the original motorway plunges right through the middle of the city. Blind dark 90 degree bends in tunnels into brilliant sunshine and stationary traffic gets the heart racing let me tell you.
Whenever I leave Lyon heading south it always feels like we are getting closer to the sun.
I normally stay in the outskirts in a Campanile or something as there are kids in tow. Keep promising myself a long weekend in Lyon though.
Puggit said:
Why stop in a big city?!
Beaune is a good bet, or failing that Chalon-sur-Soane (make sure you find the fresh mussel restaurant!)
+ 1 Finding a Hotel in an unfamiliar city after a long drive is a pain, you (I) always get lost in one way systems. Cute small place is ideal rock up dump luggage explore a bit, drink, dinner, night cap, bed. Perfect no stress.Beaune is a good bet, or failing that Chalon-sur-Soane (make sure you find the fresh mussel restaurant!)
P.S. I'm doing an overnighter @ Troyes this year
chard said:
Puggit said:
Why stop in a big city?!
Beaune is a good bet, or failing that Chalon-sur-Soane (make sure you find the fresh mussel restaurant!)
+ 1 Finding a Hotel in an unfamiliar city after a long drive is a pain, you (I) always get lost in one way systems. Cute small place is ideal rock up dump luggage explore a bit, drink, dinner, night cap, bed. Perfect no stress.Beaune is a good bet, or failing that Chalon-sur-Soane (make sure you find the fresh mussel restaurant!)
P.S. I'm doing an overnighter @ Troyes this year
The way I avoided that stress was to find the area I wanted to stop and book a hotel that I could find easily.
For instance, just north of Lyon is an area of typical motels. I can book a room or two in one of them, download a map, and find it easily. No stress.
It's important to aim for somewhere and stop when you get there. The temptation is to hammer through France and get into some sort of zone that makes you think you can drive for hours and hours.
Booking into somewhere means that you are sure of a room if you are delayed, and if you make good time, well you stop anyway.
Driving to the South of France has always been one of the highlights of my driving life. I love it.
We stopped off in Lyon last summer on the way back from Nice. Had a good run up the Route Napoleon.
We stayed in the Hotel Le Royal right in the centre, a very nice Hotel easy to find though the Hotel parked the car (I was a bit concerned, but it was not a problem). Driving through the city was straight forward with Tom Tom.
We stayed over for two nights and so had a pleasant days walk round the centre of Lyon and found some nice places to eat out in the evening.
Year before we visited Dijon, in my opinion much more compact around the centre and had to drive round the system a couple of times to get into the right lane for the underground car park, tricky even with Tom Tom.
I liked both places, both old cites with lots of interesting things to see, if you like cities that is. I did find the drive back to Calais from Lyon a bit more tiring than from Dijon, but we had probably covered more miles on the overall trip so it was probably just general fatigue.
Cheers,
Simon.
We stayed in the Hotel Le Royal right in the centre, a very nice Hotel easy to find though the Hotel parked the car (I was a bit concerned, but it was not a problem). Driving through the city was straight forward with Tom Tom.
We stayed over for two nights and so had a pleasant days walk round the centre of Lyon and found some nice places to eat out in the evening.
Year before we visited Dijon, in my opinion much more compact around the centre and had to drive round the system a couple of times to get into the right lane for the underground car park, tricky even with Tom Tom.
I liked both places, both old cites with lots of interesting things to see, if you like cities that is. I did find the drive back to Calais from Lyon a bit more tiring than from Dijon, but we had probably covered more miles on the overall trip so it was probably just general fatigue.
Cheers,
Simon.
chard said:
+ 1 Finding a Hotel in an unfamiliar city after a long drive is a pain, you (I) always get lost in one way systems. Cute small place is ideal rock up dump luggage explore a bit, drink, dinner, night cap, bed. Perfect no stress.
P.S. I'm doing an overnighter @ Troyes this year
You will love Troyes. I usually stay there and it has more eateries than you can poke a stick at.P.S. I'm doing an overnighter @ Troyes this year
On the same theme, can anyone recommend a nice town to stay in the vicinity of Reims? Preferably slightly west or south? I wasn't overly impressed with Reims itself last time, so a nice pictoresque town maybe on a hillside or river with a few bars would be nice for an overnight stop.
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