Lyon Saint-Exupery Airport to Lyon city centre is roughly 29 km and takes a little under forty minutes in good traffic conditions. The Montivo transfer is private and door to door: the driver meets you inside the terminal and takes you to your hotel, flat or office, for one price per vehicle fixed at booking, whether you are two people or eight.
Tram or private car?
The Rhonexpress tram runs from the airport to Part-Dieu, and for one person with a small case heading for that side of the city it does the job. A private transfer makes more sense when there are several of you, when you have children or heavy luggage, when your hotel is on the Presqu'ile or in Vieux Lyon rather than near the station, or when your flight lands late in the evening. It goes to the door, so there is no change at Part-Dieu with the bags.
Meeting you at the terminal
Your flight is monitored, so the pick-up follows the time you actually land, and late arrivals are met in the same way. The driver waits inside the terminal and walks you to the vehicle, which helps after a long or late flight, and suits business travellers who would rather make a call on the way in than queue at a taxi rank.
The drive into Lyon
The airport lies east of the city, and most of the way in is motorway: the A43 through the eastern suburbs, then the ring road or the boulevards to your part of town. Outside the rush hours it is a simple run. The final few kilometres are city streets, where one-way systems and the bridges over the Rhone and the Saone decide the route.
Rush hour, not changeover
There is no ski changeover on this route; the pressure point is the weekday rush hour, when the roads into Lyon slow down in the morning and again in the early evening. An arrival at those times can take noticeably longer than the time above. As on every route, weekday, Saturday and Sunday rates differ, and the booking form shows the one for your date.
Transfer to Lyon city centrefrom €80 per vehicle, Saturday €150
Price for your dateStandard or VIP
Standard carries up to eight passengers, which suits families and small groups; VIP carries up to seven in a higher-specification vehicle, which some business travellers prefer. Conference groups and wedding parties needing more than one vehicle are priced for the number of vehicles required.
Children and luggage
Child seats are provided free when requested at booking with the ages of the children. Large suitcases, pushchairs, and ski bags if Lyon is the first night of an Alpine trip, should be declared so the vehicle has room.
Presqu'ile, Vieux Lyon or Part-Dieu
The Presqu'ile, the strip of city between the Rhone and the Saone around Bellecour and the Terreaux, has pedestrian streets and busy one-way traffic. Vieux Lyon, on the far bank of the Saone below Fourviere, is a warren of narrow, partly pedestrian lanes, and there the driver stops at the nearest point to your hotel. Part-Dieu, the business district around the main railway station, is the simplest drop of the three. Give the exact address so the approach is planned before you arrive.
Going to the airport
For a departure, the pick-up is worked back from your flight: the drive out, which depends heavily on the time of day, then check-in and security. A weekday morning flight needs more margin for the rush hour than an early flight at the weekend. You can book both legs together; each is priced at the rate for its own day.
