Location: Genève
Day 1 - 18 Nov 2021
Hôtel Kipling Manotel
Content: Drove to Geneva from Zurich and checked into our hotel for the night, the Hotel Kipling. It’s a cute small boutique hotel.
Location: Geneva
Day 1 - 18 Nov 2021
Restaurant Hôtel-de-Ville
Content: Walked around Geneva old town. Lots of pretty buildings. Geneva is a very walkable city with clean wide sidewalks, lots of pedestrian crossings, and attentive drivers.
Restaurant Hôtel-de-Ville
Content: The city hall has some cannons outside. Probably from the last conflict Geneva was involved in. 😄
Pont du Mont-Blanc
Content: It is a really nice walk from the old town across one of the bridges and then along the lake. Views of the Alps in the distance.
Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues Geneva
Content: We had dinner at the Four Seasons. It’s a beautiful hotel and of course the food and wine were both excellent.
Ladurée
Content: Walked back to our hotel enjoying the evening lights of the city.
Location: Ampuis
Day 2 - 19 Nov 2021
Ampuis
Content: In the morning we drove to Vienne, France, in the heart of the Côte du Rhône wine region. We arranged a private tasting by email at Domaine G&J Bott. It was interesting to learn both about wines of the region and the winemaker family.
Le Caveau Du Château
Content: We did a second tour and tasting at Le Caveau Du Château winery. They have a very nice wine museum also. Visiting the museum is free.
Location: Vienne
Day 2 - 19 Nov 2021
Temple d'Auguste et de Livie
Content: In the evening we had dinner in Vienne and walked around the city center. The Temple of Augustus and Livia is a highlight of any visit to Vienne.
Location: Lyon
Day 2 - 19 Nov 2021
ibis Lyon Gerland Musée des Confluences
Content: This was our hotel in Lyon for two nights. It is located where the Rhône and Saône rivers flow together. It has parking and very reasonable prices.
Location: Lyon
Day 3 - 20 Nov 2021
Marché de Monplaisir
Content: In the morning we first checked out a market. Visiting (and shopping at) food markets is a must do when in France.
Institut Lumière
Content: This museum which is housed in the building the Lumière brothers grew up in and ran their business from is a wonderful collection of the early beaus of cinematography.
Institut Lumière
Content: Housed in a beautiful Art Deco villa, the museum was a highlight of our visit to Lyon.
Rue Saint-Jean
Content: Next stop was Vieux Lyon. The center of town is busy, picturesque, and is full of great restaurants and bakeries. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Vieux Lyon
Content: We found parking by the Sâone river, and wondered the streets of Old Lyon.
Parc des Hauteurs
Content: From old town you can take the stairs and path up through this garden to the hilltop basilica that was our next stop.
Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière (Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière)
Content: This basilica is breathtakingly beautiful! It is not as old as some other French churches, as it was built in the 19th century. Competed in 1884, It is only slightly older than the Sacre Coeur Basilica in Paris. Both the architecture and the art inside is gorgeous. A must see!
Théâtre Antique de Fourvière (Théâtre antique de Fourvière)
Content: A short walk from the basilica is a the Ancient Theatre of Fourvière, the site of not one but two Roman amphitheaters built side by side around 15 BC.
Vieux Lyon
Content: From the ruins we walked the winding streets back to the center of Vieux Lyon.
L'illustre
Content: After a very late lunch at a cute food mall, (Excellent food! Sadly I can’t remember the name. It was recommended to us.) we wandered back to the car and drive over to the neighborhood on hill on the other side of the Sâone.
Place de l'Esplanade
Content: The late November sun was setting over Lyon and we found a park with a lookout over the city.
Mur des Canuts
Content: Next up we went to see two murals that Lyon is famous for. They are both so life like, on a photo they look as if they were real.
Fresque des Lyonnais
Content: This second one was near the Rhône and we took a short a walk along the river.
Tour Métallique de Fourvière
Content: As a last stop we drove back up the hill we climbed in the early afternoon, parked near the Basilica and went to check out this tower which looks like a small version of the Eiffel Tower.
Location: Lyon
Day 4 - 21 Nov 2021
Musée des Confluences
Content: The next morning after breakfast we walked across the river to the Musee des Confluences. The building is a superb example of modern architecture. Inside is a natural history museum which we did not visit, as our interest mostly lay with the exterior of this stunning building.
Brasserie des Confluences
Content: We walked around the building and admired it from every angle.
ONLY LYON
Content: At the confluence of the two rivers is this large sign that’s great for photo ops, even on a foggy November day.
Location: Pérouges
Day 4 - 21 Nov 2021
Cité médiévale de Pérouges
Content: We said goodby to Lyon and headed back towards Switzerland. On our way we stopped at this charming medieval town, called Pérouges.
Hostellerie Du Vieux Perouges
Content: For lunch we had some galette de Pèrpuges - a local specialty. This small town has been preserved so well that numerous films used it as their setting.