Lyon

Lyon often Anglicized as Lyons, is a city in east-central France in the region Rhône-Alpes, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at 470 km from Paris, 320 km from Marseille, 160 km from Geneva, 280 km from Turin, 450 km from Milan and 600 km from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais.

Lyon is a major centre of business with a reputation as the French capital of gastronomy and having a significant role in the history of cinema due to Auguste and Louis Lumière. The local professional football team, Olympique Lyonnais, has increased the profile of Lyon internationally through participation in European football championships.

Together with its suburbs and satellite towns, Lyon forms the second-largest metropolitan area in France after that of Paris, with the population of its urban area estimated to be 1,783,400 and that of its metropolitan area 4,415,000 (2007). Its urban region, represents half of the Rhône-Alpes région population with three million inhabitants. Lyon is also a major industrial centre specializing in chemical, pharmaceutical, and biotech industries. The city also contains a significant software industry with a particular focus on video games.

Lyon is the préfecture of the Rhône département, and also the capital of the Rhône-Alpes région. The city is known for its historical and architectural landmarks and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lyon was historically known as the silk capital of the world. The city is known as the culinary capital of France. It also hosts the international headquarters of Interpol, Euronews, International Agency for Research on Cancer. Lyon is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural cities programme.

The tourism industry is really beneficial to Lyon with one billion euros in 2007 and 3.5 million hotel nights from foreigners in 2006. Approximately 60% of tourists visit for business, with the rest for leisure. In January 2009, Lyon is in first place of the hostels business in France. The main tourist festivals are the Fête des lumières also known as the festival of lights. The Nuits de Fourvière, annual festival in June and August. The Biennale d'art contemporain.

The Saint-Exupéry International Airport is located 20 km east of Lyon, and serves as a base for domestic and international flights. With its in-house train station the airport is also connected to the TGV network. The Lyon-Bron Airport is a smaller airport dedicated to General Aviation, located 10 km east of the city centre. Having helipads, the facility hosts a Gendarmerie and a Sécurité Civile Base. This smaller airport used to be Lyon's international airport before all the airline's activities got transferred to Lyon Saint-Exupéry.