Presqu'ile
Unusual
Find out how, thanks to its botanists, Lyon extended its influence across the world’s seas in the eighteenth century
Beginning in the Age of Enlightenment, a flourishing period for grand expeditions and travelling botanists, a number of adventurous souls from Lyon left to explore faraway lands.
Among them was the intrepid Pierre Poivre, a hunter of spices, who was a thorn in the side of the Dutch and managed to put an end to their long-standing monopoly.
There was also Philibert Commerson, born near Lyon, in Châtillon-sur-Chalaronne, who was a doctor and expert in natural history, famous for accompanying Bougainville as a naturalist on his circumnavigation of the globe.
However, these great explorers are today better known in their countries of adoption than in their city of birth!
This original guided tour will take you on an adventure from the famous mural known as the ‘Mur des Lyonnais’ all the way to Saint-Nizier.
Tour provided by ONLYLYON Tourisme et Congrès's tour guides
Worth knowing
Please ensure you arrive 10 minutes before the tour commences
Booking is necessary
Cancellation free of charge 72 hours before schedule activity
Children and minors remain under the responsibility of their parents during this visit. The participation of an adult is mandatory for each reservation
Duration
1h30
Kind
Walking guided tour
Access
Metro A or C > Hôtel de Ville Louis Pradel
Meeting point
In front of the Fresque des Lyonnais célèbres, rue de la Martinière - Lyon 1st
Prices
A fitting name
The French word for ‘pepper’, ‘poivre’ is a fitting name for a botanist who spent much of his time hunting spices, wouldn’t you say? An ‘aptronym’ such as this refers to a name that is appropriate to the bearer’s occupation. Maybe it’s fate.
for groups
30 anthusiastic guides : an unprecedented offer indeed!
Tourism Professionals | Group of people
offer
guaranteed
Tour guides
Delphine
Hej, hallo, hello, bonjour
I'm Delphine, one of the twenty or so lecturing guides that work for the Guides' Bureau.
Our service is incredibly rich: we all have our own profiles, our own interests, our own areas of study and our own favourite type of public.
And we all have one thing in common: LYON
What I love is the variety of its districts and their architecture, the wealth and diversity of its history and the Men who built it, the beauty of its monuments, particularly the light reflected from the façades that border the Saône early in the morning or at the end of the day; it's a trip in itself!
So after language studies which took me to live in Denmark and Germany, I returned to Lyon to work as a guide to lift the veil on "Myrelingues la Brumeuse"* and to share my enthusiasm with you who have come here to discover it or immerse yourself in it. (*title of a book by Claude le Marguet, set in 1536 in Lyon)
Paa gensyn, bis bald, see you soon, à bientôt !
Anne
I started out by working as a lecturing guide for a travel agency for 7 years. Then I decided to settle permanently and resumed my initial job as a guide in my hometown.
I have a passion for History, and the Middle Ages and the Renaissance in particular, and the history of art, and therefore particularly enjoy being in this city which boasts several centuries of history.
I love good food, and really blossom in this capital of gastronomy, where good food is part of local culture. So I quite naturally took an interest in the history of food and chefs.
So many passions I intend to share with you during your next visit.
Kind regards from Lyon!
with the Lyon City Card
you need for your next stay in Lyon.
GUIDED TOURS | PUPPET SHOW | SHOPPING | WIFI
unlimited
transport
€29