Frequently asked questions
You can consult the Festival of Lights programme on the festival website.
Printed copies are available from the Tourist Office, the city centre festival booths, OnlyLyon information points and local shops which belong to the My Presqu'île network.
Festival opening hours of the Tourist Office on place Bellecour: December 8 to 10 from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. and December 11 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Festival booths:
- Place Louis Pradel
- Place de la République
- Place Edouard Commette (Old town)
Opening times:
- Saturday December 3 and Sunday December 4 from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
- Wednesday December 7 from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Thursday December 8 to Saturday December 10 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Saturday December 8 to Sunday December 10 from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
- Sunday December 11 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Sunday December 11 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
►List of OnlyLyon information points
►List of shops in the My Presqu'île network
Festival of Lights 2022: from Thursday 8 to Sunday 11 December.
Thursday and Friday : 8 p.m. to midnight.
Saturday : 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday : 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Parc Blandan / Institut Lumière : 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Please note that the park entrance will close 30 minutes before the end of each evening.
Discover the 6 thematic universes of the 2022 programme proposed by the Fête des Lumières team:
Visitors with a disability can find all the information they need on our dedicated page.
For families with children, the selection Family Friendly has been specially designed for them.
For the Tête d'Or Park :
- The general entrance is located at the Porte des enfants du Rhône Place Général Leclerc.
- The general exit is at the Porte de la Roseraie for the general public and at the Porte des enfants du Rhône for people with disabilities
For the Parc Blandan:
- The general entrance is located opposite number 34 rue du Repos
The Festival of Lights is taking place in the city centre in a delimited, pedestrian zone. There are about forty pedestrian entry points, roughly one every 100 metres. Cars, motorcycles, scooters, bicycles and e-scooters are not authorised in the zone.
The best way to get around is to use public transport (TCL).
► Journey planner
► Further information
Lyon offers a 24/7 self-service bike-sharing scheme (Vélo’v) with docking stations located throughout the city centre and surrounding area. Please note that Vélo'v bikes like all other individual modes of transport (e-scooters, bikes etc.) are not authorized in the pedestrian zone.
The disabled car park is rue du Garet. The parking spaces are situated between rue du Bat d’Argent and rue de L’Arbre Sec and can be accessed via quai Jean Moulin.
Parking bays for coaches can be found on :
Quai Sarrail and Quai Augagneur
Quai Victor Augagneur on the west side, between Pont Wilson and Pont de la Guillotière.
Quai Rambaud car park (on 10 and 11/12)
On the Saône side between Cours Bayard and Rue Dugas Montbel.
Depending on your departure point, you have a wide choice of travel options during the Festival of Lights.
4 special food zones have been installed in the city centre and festival:
- Place Bellecour
- Parc Blandan
- Les SUBS
- Jardin de l'Institut Lumière
You can find the location of public toilets on the lyon.fr interactive map.
Masks are not compulsory during the Festival of Lights but are strongly recommended in public transport and enclosed areas.
You can buy a candle for €2 from any Festival of Lights information points*, the Tourist Office and many city centre shops.
The proceeds from the sale of candles go to a different charity each year. This year’s charity cause is the Salvation Army Foundation which carries out social work and community healthcare, provides protection and support for children and adolescents, works with people living with disabilities and addiction, and supplies food aid.
(*) Festival booths:
- Place Louis Pradel
- Place de la République
- Place Edouard Commette (Old town)
Opening times:
- Saturday December 3 and Sunday December 4 from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
- Wednesday December 7 from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Thursday December 8 to Saturday December 10 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Saturday December 8 to Sunday December 10 from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
- Sunday December 11 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel, Place de la République, Place Edouard Commette
- Sunday December 11 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.: Place Louis Pradel and Place de la République
The Lumignons du Cœur campaign supports a different charity every year. A collaborative light installation is created using the candles bought by visitors and the proceeds go to charity.
Volunteers are needed to work on the Lumignons du Cœur campaign. If you would like to volunteer, you can contact the Salvation Army Foundation by telephone (+33 6 09 78 08 90) or email: lumignonsducoeur@armeedusalut.fr
If you are a bright spark with a great idea for a festival installation, you need to submit your project during the call for projects launched every year in April on the Festival of Lights website.
The City of Lyon’s energy-efficiency plan does not impact the Festival of Lights. This year, after two years of health crisis, the city council - which has a Green majority - wants to celebrate this important community event which contributes to Lyon’s international reputation.
The main purpose of ISO 20121 is to factor sustainable development into events organisation.
The City of Lyon has carefully controlled the energy consumption of the Festival of Lights for many years. Based on the findings of a study conducted in 2019, the energy consumption of the Festival of Lights only accounts for 0.1% of the total annual lighting bill, i.e., 0.36 days of annual energy consumption. This figure can be explained as follows:
- the light installations mainly use LEDs which are highly energy-efficient,
- the equipment used offers good energy performance,
- the permanent lighting of a number of heritage sites (Saint-Jean Cathedral, the Law Courts, Fourvière Basilica, Les Célestins theatre) is switched off during the Festival.
In line with the City’s sustainability and energy transition policy, the Festival of Lights is preparing for ISO 20121 Events Sustainability certification which will induce adaptations to the event from 2023.
In parallel, an environmental impact criterion will be included in the selection of artworks.