We'll be part of a tour riding and spectating the Tour de France in the Pyrenees July 6-July 10. Then we have a river cruise out of Lyon starting July 15. We'd like to have a base somewhere for the five days in between (July 10-15) We're envisioning a beautiful, charming, little place that is relaxing but yet has some things to do (hiking, restaurants, walking). We will not have a car. Thoughts??? TIA.
Posted by
Fort Myers, FL
2252 posts
Annecy is only a two hour train trip from Lyon. Take a look at it and see if it fits what you want. Definitely a relaxing place on a gorgeous lake.
Posted by
France Southwest - Occitanie
3758 posts
Suggesting an intermediate location requires specifying where your Tour de France riding trip ends on July 10th, (probably Bordeaux?) since you'll need to take the train to get there, and then another train to finally arrive in Lyon by July 15th. Without this information, you'll receive suggestions like Annecy, which aren't relevant from a transport perspective when coming from the Pyrenees Mountains
If you're finishing your "Tour de France trip" in Bordeaux, note that there are direct flights from Bordeaux to Lyon.
Posted by
OP
7 posts
On July 10, the tour company transports us to Toulouse. The river cruise is in Lyon on July 15 in the afternoon. I see how we can take trains from Toulouse to some destination, and then probably take a train to Lyon on July 15. I anticipate July 10 being a full travel day and July 15 being a half-day travel. We don't see a need to go to Lyon earlier as it's part of the itinerary on river cruise for a couple days. Really appreciate people's thoughts........ TIA
Posted by
OP
7 posts
Annecy---we're considering that and is top on my husband's list. I'm wondering if it could get boring after a few days. We want to relax but also have things to do,
Posted by
France Southwest - Occitanie
3758 posts
Have you considered Toulouse "the pink city" as a destination? Toulouse itself deserves at least two full days, with the possibility of day trips by train to Albi and Carcassonne, among other places.
https://www.toulouse-tourisme.com/en/
Bus and train routes for a tourist stay (click on Discover the Map at the bottom of the page)
https://www.visit-occitanie.com/en/rail-tour/
There are direct trains from Toulouse to Lyon (approximately a 4-hour journey).
Posted by
373 posts
We just got back from a short trip to France. 3 nights in Lyon was definitely not enough time. I could have spent 4 or 5 days just in that city. Also, we did a day trip to Perouges from Lyon, it's an easy train ride then a 25 minute walk up to the historic village. If you include having lunch there, you could easily spend 4-6 hours in the area.
So, if you want to limit your stays, consider going directly to Lyon and take a slower pace.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
11761 posts
Toulouse has several day trip possibilities, and/or add a trip to Vienne for a day if you add time to Lyon. Halfway to Lyon from Toulouse along the coastal route is Sète, an interesting seaport town, or Montpellier with an interesting preserved city center. Toulouse to Montpellier is 2 or 3 hours depending on the train, and Montpellier to Lyon is two hours by TGV