Living in Fourvière, Lyon

Fourvière is the hill that stands over the right bank of the Saône, in the 5e Arrondissement, and it is the reason Lyon exists: the Roman town was up here before it came down to the water. Today it holds the basilica, the ancient theatres, a museum, several religious institutions and a small number of homes. Before you consider living on it, understand the vertical. The esplanade of the basilica sits at 287 metres, about 120 metres above the river, and every single trip home ends with that climb or with a funicular.

What it is

A wooded ridge with monuments on it. The basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière, built between 1872 and 1884 on the site of the Roman forum, is the landmark you see from everywhere in the city, and the metal tower beside it, nicknamed the little Eiffel Tower, is lit at night. On the slope below sit the Roman theatre, the odeon and the museum of Gallo-Roman Lyon. The Jardin du Rosaire climbs the hillside from Vieux Lyon; the Parc des Hauteurs runs along the crest and is crossed by a footbridge. Much of the remaining ground belongs to convents, seminaries and private schools, plus a large hillside cemetery. Housing is a thin scatter of houses and small blocks along the montées and the ridge.

Who lives here

Not many people, and that is the first thing to know. Families in houses with gardens and a view over the city, older households who have been here for decades, clergy and staff of the religious institutions, people connected to the schools and the museum. Almost no students and very few young sharers, because there is no cheap stock and nothing to walk to. A room here is usually a room in somebody's house rather than in a block of flats.

What it's like during the day

Two different places at once. Around the basilica and the theatres there is a steady flow of visitors all year, with coaches on the esplanade and people at the railing looking east across the whole city towards the Alps. Two hundred metres away, on the paths of the Parc des Hauteurs or on the montées, there is nobody: birds, trees, and the noise of the city arriving from below. It is the quietest inhabited ground in Lyon.

What it's like in the evening

Silent. The basilica and the tower are floodlit, the visitors leave, and there is nothing to do on the hill after dark. There are a few restaurants and cafés serving the monuments, and that is the extent of it. Every evening out means going down to Vieux Lyon or the Presqu'île, which is quick, and coming back up, which is not, once the funiculars have stopped for the night.

Getting around

Two funicular lines climb from the Vieux Lyon - Cathédrale Saint-Jean station on metro line D, and they are part of the ordinary transport network, on the same ticket. One goes straight up to Fourvière, by the basilica; the other runs to Saint-Just along the ridge, stopping at Minimes - Théâtres Romains halfway. They are the practical way up and down, and they do not run through the night. The alternatives are the montées, the steep roads named Saint-Barthélemy, du Chemin-Neuf and de Choulans, and a great many staircases. Bus lines use the roads on the flanks rather than the crest. Cycling up is realistic only with an electric bike. From the bottom, metro D puts you in Bellecour in one stop.

Eating and shopping

This is the constraint that decides it. There are no food shops on the crest. The nearest bakery, butcher, chemist and convenience store are all at the bottom of the hill in Vieux Lyon, which means the shopping comes home by funicular or by car. The restaurants on the hill exist for visitors and are priced accordingly. Anyone living here plans their week around going down once and carrying a lot back up, or drives.

When NOT to pick it

Wrong for anyone with a mobility problem, a heavy shopping habit or a dislike of stairs. Wrong if you want neighbours, shops, a café you go to every day or any kind of evening. Wrong if you keep late hours, because the funiculars stop and the walk up in the dark is long. Wrong for students, who will find neither the rents nor the life they need. It is the right choice if you want silence, trees, clean air and one of the great views in Europe from your own window, and you either drive or genuinely enjoy the climb. If you want the same hill with a functioning neighbourhood on it, look along the ridge to Saint-Just; if you want to be at the foot of it with everything open, look down at Vieux Lyon; if you want the 5e with flat streets, shops and buses, look west to Point du Jour.