The Rhone Valley

Burgundy : The Rhone Valley : French Alps : Auvergne and the Massif Central

Car Hire (main collection points only) : Lyon Airport : Lyon Railway

South of the Jura Mountains lies the Rhone Valley.

Meandering from the Alps to the Mediterranean, the mighty Rhone flows through the lush farming region which includes a thriving speciality in farm-fattened chickens and capons; the centre of which is Bourg-en-Bresse.

A weekly poultry market is held here with specially prepared birds placed in milk baths snapped up by professional buyers.

Southwest of Bourg-en-Bresse is the Dombes, a marshy plateau with more than 100 lakes, most artificial. A large sector of the area is used as private hunting grounds, with waterfowl and fish.

The principal city of the Rhone Valley and second city in France, is Lyon. A gourmet's paradise, awash with fine restaurants, the daily rhythm of life there centres on meals.

Never turning its back on its long and fascinating past, Lyon is full of exciting and interesting museums including Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Musee de I'Imprimerie and the newly restored Musee des Beaux Arts, which ranks next in importance to the Louvre today a vibrant, modern city of culture and industry.

Perhaps the most unusual of Lyon's many museums is the Musee Historique des Tissus which covers the development of textiles techniques in all ages and from all over the world, displaying some of the rarest and most beautiful materials ever made.

Today Lyon is a vibrant, modern city of culture and industry.

In this area you can obtain your hire car from Annecy Airport, Annecy Railway Station , Lyon Railway Station and Lyon St Exupery Airport.