Eavesdrop on any group of Gen X-ers, and you’ll likely overhear someone bemoaning the end of the cheap flights era. It’s not that we don’t get it: it’s more that discovering random European cities through bargain EasyJet trips landing in shed-airports at least 50km from town at midnight was a formative experience.     

So yay for Lyon. France’s third biggest city almost flies under the radar, but it’s highly accessible for a cheap (by today’s standards) city break. It’s also somewhat... familiar, what with its old town, a new town that isn’t, secret traboules (or closes) linking the two, and plenty of hills.

Jump on the tram and head for Presqu’île (‘almost an island’) formed by the meeting of the Rhône and Saône rivers. Plenty of accommodation options make this a great base, but the whole centre is highly walkable. Well, apart from the achingly hip Croix-Rousse: the former weavers’ quarter is well worth a visit, with its shabby charm, great brunch spots and cute bars with hidden terraces and real-life Saturday-afternoon pétanque leagues. But it’s also at the very top of what can only be described as ‘that bastarding hill’, and therefore not ideal for getting back home after a pot or two of wine. 

Pot, you say? Yep, pot. A pot is Lyon’s very own wine bottle, a heavy-bottomed 46cl that formed part of the highly skilled and highly paid weavers’ wages back in the 16th century. It’s still the best way to drink house wine, and in some ways it’s the key to this city. Shops, sights, architecture, river walks and culture abound but a highly specific tradition of food and wine is Lyon’s heart. 

Take the bouchon. Established as simple cafés to feed those hungry weavers, there’s still one on every corner of the old town. Practically unchanged in décor or menu, they preserve all that tradition without falling into tourist-trappery (take note, our own whisky-and-haggis bars). Expect lyonnaise sausage, pike dumplings (honestly, lush), duck and offal, plus pots, brisk service and tourists elbow-to-elbow with locals who all have their favourite. Their very similarities can lead to choice-paralysis, but Le Vieux Lyon will not disappoint. 

The bouchons sit side by side with hyper-modern choices such as the gorgeous Söma, which offers a precise, thoughtful and surprisingly reasonable take on modern French cooking. True, veggies and vegans will (still) be met with the traditional Gallic shrug but everyone else can eat well here and get a little closer to the city at the same time. And don’t disregard the Lyonnais love of an Irish bar: the James Joyce Pub’s banner (Live, Laugh, Love, Leave) raises a giggle as well as a nightcap, particularly when there’s still a million stairs between you and your bed. 

Visit the Lyon’s official tourist board site.