Renting a car in Lyon: the honest guide

To rent a car in Lyon you have three options: a neighbourhood agency in the city centre, a counter at one of the two main stations (Part-Dieu or Perrache), or the rental hub at Lyon-Saint-Exupéry airport. The right choice comes down to your arrival time and one question: do you need the car inside Lyon itself, or only to get out of it?

If it is only to get out of it, which is true of most travellers, pick the vehicle up as close to your departure as possible and as late as possible. Lyon is easy to explore on foot and by public transport; the car becomes essential the moment you set your sights on the Beaujolais, the Rhône valley, the Ardèche or the Alps.

Where to collect your car in Lyon

The three families of pick-up point are not equivalent, and the difference is not only about price. A station counter puts you at the heart of the rail network, but in a dense district that is frequently a building site around Part-Dieu. A neighbourhood agency is calmer and more human, except that it closes at lunchtime and on Sundays.

Always check the closing time of the drop-off point, not just its opening time: an agency shut when you get back means an out-of-hours return procedure, and the fees that go with it.

ZFE and Crit'Air: what they mean for a rental car

The Métropole de Lyon operates a ZFE, a low-emission zone. The mechanism is straightforward: every vehicle is given a Crit'Air sticker grading it by emissions, from 0 for electric to 5 for the oldest, and the authority decides which classes may drive inside the perimeter. Paris, Marseille and Grenoble are among the other cities running one.

• Ask the agency for the vehicle's Crit'Air class, and check that the sticker is actually on the windscreen.
• The perimeter reaches well beyond the historic centre: it takes in several Métropole municipalities, Villeurbanne and Bron among them.
• The classes affected, the timetable and the penalties change frequently. Do not rely on any article, this one included, for the state of the law on the day you travel.
• Check the official Métropole de Lyon ZFE platform and the French public-service page for the air-quality certificate before you leave. The risk concentrates on older models and on removal vans.

Parking in Lyon: what locals actually do

Parking is paid in almost every central arrondissement. The rule Lyonnais apply without thinking: you do not look for an on-street space on the Presqu'île, you drive straight into a multi-storey car park.

• The central car parks (Bellecour, Célestins, République, Part-Dieu) can often be booked online at a better rate than at the barrier.
• Vieux Lyon and much of the Presqu'île are pedestrianised or heavily restricted: do not take a van in there.
• Watch for temporary signs announcing a market day or roadworks: being towed always costs more than a car park.
• Bus lanes and tram platforms are closed to general traffic. If you are staying out of town, the park-and-ride sites on the Lyon transport network are the simplest answer.

What the advertised price should include

A price only means something if you know what sits inside it. All of this should be stated before you pay rather than discovered at the counter: the compulsory insurance and the excess you remain liable for, the mileage included, the fuel policy (usually full on collection, full on return), the taxes and the premium-location fees at a station or an airport, additional-driver fees, the intermediary's service fee, and finally the deposit and when it is released.

The deposit, the most common reason a rental is refused

The deposit is not a payment: it is a hold placed on a card and released after the vehicle comes back. Two traps come up again and again. Most agencies insist on a genuine credit card rather than a debit card, and it must be in the main driver's name, so a card in a partner's name is enough to sink the rental on the spot. And the amount held reduces your available limit by the same amount.

Mistakes that cost money at the counter

1. 1Showing a photo of your licence instead of the original, and forgetting your ID document.
2. 2Forgetting the international driving permit when your own licence requires one: it depends on the issuing country.
3. 3Signing the condition report without walking round the vehicle. Photograph every side, the wheels, the windscreen and the fuel gauge.
4. 4Buying extra protection under pressure when your bank card may already cover the excess.
5. 5Getting the fuel wrong: diesel is still very common in French rental fleets.
6. 6Returning the car after closing time without having confirmed the out-of-hours procedure.

Lyon as a base camp: Beaujolais, Rhône, Ardèche, Alps

• To the north, the Pierres Dorées of the Beaujolais and villages such as Oingt: narrow, winding roads where a small car is an advantage.
• To the south, the Rhône valley and its vineyard slopes. Take the route nationale that follows the river rather than the motorway: no toll, and some scenery.
• To the south-west, the Ardèche gorges: magnificent, and saturated at the height of summer. Leave early and book accommodation ahead.
• To the east, the Alps: Chartreuse, Vercors, Savoie and Haute-Savoie.

The season changes everything. In winter, driving in certain mountain ranges is subject to vehicle equipment obligations, suitable tyres or removable devices, depending on the municipalities concerned and the time of year. The scheme evolves: check with the French public service, and above all ask what the agency actually supplies. A rental car is not fitted out for the mountains by default.

French driving rules worth knowing before you set off

• Maximum speeds: 130 km/h on the motorway in dry weather, 110 km/h in rain; 110 km/h on a dual carriageway with a central separator, 100 km/h in rain; 80 km/h on ordinary two-way roads, raised to 90 km/h on some roads by the département; 50 km/h in built-up areas.
• In fog, or whenever visibility drops below 50 m, the limit is 50 km/h everywhere. Licence held under 3 years: 110 km/h on the motorway, 100 km/h in rain.
• Drink-driving: the limit is 0.5 g/L of blood, or 0.25 mg/L of exhaled air. For a licence held under 3 years it falls to 0.2 g/L, which is effectively zero tolerance.
• Compulsory equipment on board: a warning triangle and a high-visibility vest. Check they are there before you drive away.
• Most French motorways are tolled, payable by card or by an electronic télépéage badge. Priorité à droite, giving way to traffic from the right, still applies at some unmarked junctions, especially in older towns.

Local agency, private owner, or a big counter?

The big chains have the network and the opening hours on their side. Independent agencies and local operators are often more flexible, provided you know where to find them. That is what DRIVO does: a European marketplace for renting directly from trusted independent and local rental agencies, and from private owners, across Europe and North Africa. Every cost is shown before you pay, including the DRIVO service fee on the rental, shown as its own line and refunded with a free cancellation or an agency cancellation. Confirmation is instant, cancellation is free up to 48 hours before pick-up, and you see the security deposit and what is included before you book. An optional full-protection add-on can be added at checkout to lower the excess. Listings and support exist in five languages, English, French, Spanish, Italian and Arabic, with WhatsApp and in-app concierge support.