70 Best Sights in Lyon and the Alps, France

It has a reputation as one of the most luxurious ski resorts in the French Alps, and Courchevel doesn't do much to dispel that notion. Ski shops glitter like designer boutiques, and ski valets place your skis and poles outside on the snow so you don't have to carry them. But it turns out that Courchevel is also one of the area's most inviting towns. None of the locals seem stiff or snooty. The sommelier in the restaurant written up in all the food magazines is happy to give you a tour of the wine cellar, even when the dining room is crowded. Leave behind your voltage converter, and the front desk staff might just give you one for free.

And the skiing itself is amazing, with a huge variety of slopes that cater to skiers of every skill level. It's heaven for intermediate skiers, and beginners will find plenty to keep them occupied (including a run that has a great view of Courchevel's postage-stamp airport). The lifts are unusually speedy, keeping lines to a minimum. What's more, the scenery just doesn't get better than this in the French Alps.

A marvel of the Flamboyant Gothic style, the Église de Brou is no longer in religious use. The church was built between 1513 and 1532 by Margaret of Austria in memory of her husband, Philibert le Beau, duke of Savoy, and their finely sculpted tombs highlight the rich interior. Outside, a massive restoration of the roof has brought it back to its 16th-century state, with the same gorgeous, multicolor, intricate patterns found throughout Burgundy. The museum in the nearby cloister stands out for its paintings: 16th- and 17th-century Flemish and Dutch artists keep company with 17th- and 18th-century French and Italian masters, 19th-century artists of the Lyon School, Gustave Doré, and contemporary local painters.

The 12th-century church of St-Paul is noted for its octagonal lantern, its frieze of animal heads in the chancel, and its late-period Flamboyant Gothic chapel.

Built in 1874 after the famous Les Halles in Paris (which was infamously destroyed in the early 1970s), this soaring glass and cast iron structure serves as Grenoble's bustling central market, where you can stock up on all the ingredients for a picnic or a fine French meal, along with prepared Italian and Asian specialties. The covered market is open Tuesday through Sunday until 7 pm (it's closed at lunchtime) with an outdoor farmers' market Tuesday through Friday mornings.

This superb Renaissance mansion, close to the Hôtel Paterin, is noted for its courtyard, with an ingenious gallery built in 1536 by Philibert Delorme, one of France's earliest and most accomplished exponents of classical architecture. Delorme also worked on several spectacular châteaux in central France, including those at Fontainebleau and Chenonceaux.

Architects Jules Hardouin-Mansart and Robert de Cotte redesigned the very impressive facade of the Town Hall after a 1674 fire. The rest of the building dates to the early 17th century. The tourist office organizes visits to the hall's salons.

On the site where the Lumière brothers, Auguste and Louis, invented cinematography in their family home, this museum has daily showings of early film classics and contemporary movies as well as a permanent exhibit about the Lumières.

Inside this garden are the excavated ruins of two churches that succeeded one another. The foundations of the churches were unearthed during a time when apartment buildings—constructed here after churches had been destroyed during the Revolution—were being demolished. One arch forms part of the ornamentation in the garden.

One of several small, leafy parks in Lyon, this one is a peaceful place to take a break while admiring the splendid vistas of the river and Fourvière Hill.

In these luxurious botanical gardens you'll find remnants of the once-huge Amphithéâtre des Trois Gaules (Three Gauls Amphitheater), built in AD 19.

Starting at Quai St-Stéphane-Jay, this téléphérique (cable car) whisks you over the River Isère and up to the hilltop where there are splendid views and a good restaurant. Walk back down via the footpath through the Jardin Dauphinoise.

One of the Rhône's great names and a leader in biodynamic wine-making, this is a stellar place for tasting and stocking up on all the best Chapoutier vintages from both sides of the river and around France. Tastings are free for parties of five or fewer, and an extensive program of workshops, evenings, and events pairing wines with food, truffles, and chocolate (many in English) helps you explore the full range of these world-class wines. Chapoutier also offers full- or half-day tours of the vineyards on electric bikes, with backpack, water, helmet, and snacks provided.

Old-time Jacquard looms are still in action at this historic house in La Croix Rousse, and the weavers are happy to show children how the process works. The boutique is a great place to stock up on a colorful range of silk, wool, and linen scarves—all made in Lyon.

This 17th-century mansion is one of Lyon's oldest. In the courtyard you can glimpse a charming garden and the original Tour Rose, an elegant pink tower. In those days, the higher the tower, the greater the prestige. This one was owned by a tax collector.

Méribel's first ski lift was built in 1938, and within a year construction had started on the accommodations that would turn this into a world-class ski resort. But because it sits inside Vanoise National Park, Méribel never experienced a period of rampant growth. Done up in the traditional Savoyard style, its rows of gorgeous chalets make Méribel feel like a village that's been here for centuries.

Back in 1992, the Winter Olympics were held in nearby Albertville. Méribel was the site for women's alpine skiing events, a testament to its world-class slopes. There are 150 km (93 miles) of ski trails, serviced by more than 50 lifts. There are some gentle green runs, but most of the slopes here are best for intermediate skiers.

The church of St-Laurent, near the Musée Dauphinois, has a hauntingly ancient 6th-century crypt—one of the country's oldest Christian monuments—supported by a row of formidable marble pillars. A tour of the church traces the emergence of Christianity in the Dauphiné.

On the north side of the River Isère is Rue Maurice-Gignoux, lined with gardens, cafés, mansions, and a 17th-century convent that contains the Musée Dauphinois, detailing the history of mountaineering and skiing. The Premiers Alpins section explores the evolution of the Alps and its inhabitants.

Place de Lavalette—on the south side of the river, where most of Grenoble is concentrated—is where you'll find the Musée de Grenoble. Founded in 1796, it's one of France's oldest museums and was the first to concentrate on modern art (Picasso donated his Femme Lisant in 1921). An addition incorporates the medieval Tour de l'Isle (Island Tower), a Grenoble landmark. The collection includes 4,000 paintings and 5,500 drawings, among them works by Impressionists such as Renoir and Monet, and 20th-century masters like Matisse, Signac, Derain, Vlaminck, Magritte, Ernst, Miró, and Dubuffet. Artists from the Italian Renaissance and Flemish School are also represented.

In the elegant 17th-century Palais St-Pierre, formerly a Benedictine abbey, this museum houses one of France's largest art collections after that of the Louvre. Byzantine ivories, Etruscan statues, Egyptian artifacts, and top-notch sculptures (most notably Rodin's Walker) are all on display; however, paintings remain the highlight. Amid old master, Impressionist, and modern paintings are works by the tight-knit Lyon School, characterized by exquisitely rendered flowers and overbearing religious sentimentality. Note Louis Janmot's Poem of the Soul, immaculately painted visions that are by turns heavenly, hellish, and downright spooky. A newer trove of treasures includes works by Manet, Monet, Degas, Bacon, Braque, and Picasso.

To one side of Place de la Halle, the Musée du Vieux Pérouges contains local artifacts and a reconstructed weaver's workshop. The medieval garden is noted for its array of rare medicinal plants.

Lyon's long history as a center for the silk industry is well charted at several Lyon arts centers, but this jewel of a museum, set inside the Grand Hôtel-Dieu complex, gives you a close look at the industry through the work of a single family. For 130 years, the Brochiers manufactured the finest silks, imported worldwide and favored by France's great couturiers, including Paul Poiret—the father of haute couture—Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy, Christian Lacroix, and many more. Many of these elegant creations are on exhibit here. You'll also see rare works on silk by the likes of artists Raoul Dufy, Miró, Calder, and Jean Cocteau. Afterward, stock up on chic silk scarves and accessories at the irresistible museum boutique.

Built between 1920 and 1933, this project (also known as the Cité de la Création), was France's first attempt at low-income housing. Over the years, several tenants have contributed artwork in an effort to beautify the space. Most notably, 22 giant murals depicting the work of Tony Garnier, the turn-of-the-20th-century Lyon architect, were painted on the walls. Artists from around the world, with the support of UNESCO, have added their vision to the creation of the ideal housing project.

These two museums are housed in the city's largest ensemble of Renaissance buildings, the Hôtel de Gadagne, built between the 14th and 16th century. The Musée d'Histoire de Lyon traces the city's history from its pre-Roman days onward, displaying sculpture, furniture, pottery, paintings, and engravings. The Musée des Marionnettes du Monde focuses on the history of puppets, beginning with Guignol and Madelon—Lyon's Punch and Judy—created by Laurent Mourguet in 1795. It includes two hanging gardens, a café, and a shop.

The barrel-vaulted Lyon Opera, a reincarnation of a moribund 1831 building, was designed by star French architect Jean Nouvel and built in the early 1990s. It incorporates a columned exterior, soaring glass vaulting, neoclassical public spaces, and an all-black interior.

Meander through the Vieille Ville, starting on the small island in the River Thiou, at the 12th-century Palais de l'Isle, once site of law courts and a prison, now a landmark. Like a stone ship, the small islet perches in midstream, surrounded by cobblestone quays, and is easily one of France's most photographed sites.

The 56-acre Parc des Oiseaux, one of Europe's finest bird sanctuaries, is home sweet home to 400 species of birds from five continents. More than 400 aviaries house species from waders to birds of prey, and tropical birds in vivid hues fill the indoor birdhouse. Allow two hours for a visit.

Shady, imposing Place Bellecour is one of the largest squares in France, and is Lyon's fashionable center, midway between the Saône and the Rhône. Classical facades erected along its narrower sides in 1800 lend architectural interest. The large, bronze equestrian statue of Louis XIV, installed in 1828, is the work of local sculptor Jean Lemot.

The four majestic horses rearing up from a monumental 19th-century fountain in the middle of this large square are an allegory of the River Saône by Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi, who sculpted New York Harbor's Statue of Liberty. The 69 fountains embedded in the wide expanse of the square are illuminated by fiber-optic technology at night. The notable buildings on either side are the Hôtel de Ville and the Musée des Beaux-Arts.