Tour of Lyon & Ski Resorts, France

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Alpe d'Huez is one of Europe's premier skiing venues. The site of the areas first surface lift in the mid thirties, the resort gained popularity when it hosted the bobsleigh events of the 1968 Winter Olympics.

Alpe d'Huez is also one of the main mountains in the Tour de France. It has been a stage finish almost every year since 1976..

Alpe d'Huez is situated about 40 miles southeast of Grenoble Airport.

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Les Deux Alpes (also Les 2 Alpes or Les 2 Alpes 3600) is a ski resort in the French Isere departement. The village sits at 1650m (5,413 ft.) and lifts run to 3600m (11,811 ft.). It has the largest skiable glacier in Europe and is France's second oldest ski resort behind Chamonix, where the largest mountain in western Europe is located, Mont Blanc.

Les Deux Alpes is situated about 43 miles southeast of Grenoble.

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The square named Place desTerraux is in the center of Lyon. It has a good atmosphere with the surrounding buildings, the special one being the Hotel De Ville. Don't be confused by the name though, Hotel De Ville is the City Hall.

With its 65 bells, the Lyon City Hall's carillon is one of the most important in Europe. The bells are played on Sunday evenings during the summer, and once a week the rest of the year.

France Map . Lyon Map.

The Bartholdi Fountain is also situated in the Place des Terreaux. This fountain was originally commissioned by Bordeaux. However, Bordeaux was unable to pay for it, so Lyon stepped in. Or so the Lyonnais tell it.

The Bordese claim that they could have paid for it, but that after the Lyonnais had seen how beautiful it was, they outbid Bordeaux for it. Whom to believe!

The Place Bellecour is a large plaza in the centre of Lyon.

Measuring 312m by 200m, it is the largest clear square (i.e., without any patches of greenery, trees or any other kind of obstacles) in Europe. In the middle is a statue of king Louis XIV mounted on a horse, made by François-Frederic Lemot in 1825.

It forms the focal centre point of the city, and is thus the site of the largest metro station, Bellecour, which connects the A and D lines. It also links the major shopping streets Rue de la Republique and Rue Victor Hugo, as well as hosting the Lyon tourist office.

The Basilica Notre-Dame de Fourviere is sits high abobe the The Place Bellecour. It was built with private funds between 1872 and 1896 in a dominating position in the city, as a mark of the triumph of Christian values over the socialists of the Lyon commune of 1870.

Its design, by Pierre Bossan, draws from both Romanesque and Byzantine architecture, two non-Gothic models that were unusual choices at the time. It features fine mosaics, superb stained glass, and a crypt of Saint Joseph. The basilica, which offers guided tours and contains a Museum of Sacred Art, receives 1.5 million visitors annually

Lyon Cathedral (Cathedrale Saint-Jean-Baptiste de Lyon) is a Roman Catholic cathedral, the seat of the Archbishop of Lyon. It was founded by Saint Pothinus and Saint Irenaeus, the first two bishops of Lyon.

The cathedral is also known as "Primatiale" because in 1079 the Pope granted to the archbishop of Lyon the title of Primate of Gaul with the legal supremacy over the principal archbishops of the kingdom.

Begun in the twelfth century on the ruins of a 6th century church, it was completed in 1476.

The Lyon Roman Theatre (Antique theatre of Fourvière) was originally built about 15 BC, about 90 meters in diameter.

The Theatre was extended in the beginning of the 2nd century, with the final construction allowing up to 10,000 spectators.

Nowadays, the theatre normally serves as a touristical attraction, but it is still occasionally used as a cultural place. Each year, the Nuits de Fourviere festival takes place in the theatre.

The Parc de la Tete d'Or (literally, Golden Head Park), in central Lyon, is the largest urban park in France at 117 hectares.

It features a large lake on which boating takes place during the summer months. Due to the relatively small number of other parks in Lyon, it receives a huge number of visitors over summer, and is a frequent destination for joggers and cyclists.

At the northern end of the park, there is a small zoo, with giraffes, elephants, tigers and other animals. There is also sporting equipment, such as a velodrome, boules court, mini-golf, horse riding, and even a miniature train.

The River Saone and River Rhone join at Lyon, with both rivers running through the city centre.

A novel way to discover for yourself or to allow others to discover Lyons, and its surroundings, is a guided river boat cruise on the Rhone and the Saone, to rediscover the charm of a two thousand year old town and its rivers which are the pride of our city. A guaranteed change of scenery!

Tours options are: tour only, or tour with lunches and dinners.

Tours.

Grenoble is a city situated at the foot of the Alps, 57 miles southeast of Lyon. The proximity of the mountains leads to Grenoble being referred to as " Capital of the Alps."

The Bastille Hill, an ancient series of fortifications overlooking Grenoble, is the main attraction in the city. It is reached cable car.

More Information.

Grenoble Website.

For more information on Lyon, visit: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyon.