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Lyon Secret Passageways Walk, Lyon

Lyon Secret Passageways Walk (Self Guided), Lyon

Lyon’s secret passageways, known as traboules, form a hidden network of covered corridors that wind through courtyards, staircases, and buildings, revealing a colourful and little-seen side of the city’s past. The name comes from the Latin trans-ambulare, meaning “to pass through,” and their origins date as far back as the 4th century, when the inhabitants of Lugdunum (ancient Lyon) used them to reach the Saône River quickly after aqueducts failed. Later, during the Renaissance, they multiplied in Old Lyon, where narrow streets ran parallel to the river, providing shortcuts for artisans and merchants transporting goods.

The passageways became especially significant in the 19th century, when Lyon was at the heart of the French silk trade. The canuts-silk workers of the Red-Cross district-used the passageways to move heavy rolls of fabric from workshops down to merchants at the foot of the hill. They also served as gathering places during the Canut revolts of the 1830s, uprisings that highlighted the workers’ struggles against exploitation. The most famous example is the passageway of Court of the Voracious Ones , known both for its role in these revolts and for featuring the city’s oldest reinforced concrete stairwell.

Passageways also carry stories from the Second World War, when their hidden twists and turns provided safe meeting points and escape routes for the French Resistance. Today, while many remain part of private residences, about 40 are open to the public, marked with small identifying seals. Each passageway is unique, with pastel walls, spiral staircases, vaulted ceilings, or Renaissance arches, making every discovery different from the last.

Exploring these passageways offers more than shortcuts-it’s a chance to walk through layers of Lyon’s history. From Roman ingenuity to silk industry struggles and wartime resilience, the passageways embody the city’s spirit of adaptation and survival. To be a true Lyonnais, locals say, is to know your passageways-and for visitors, stepping inside one is to uncover a living, secret heritage at the heart of Lyon.
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Lyon Secret Passageways Walk Map

Guide Name: Lyon Secret Passageways Walk
Guide Location: France » Lyon (See other walking tours in Lyon)
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Sightseeing)
# of Attractions: 8
Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.8 Km or 1.1 Miles
Author: jenny
Sight(s) Featured in This Guide:
  • Cour des Voraces (Court of the Voracious Ones)
  • Thiaffait Passage
  • Mermet Passage
  • Traboule des Droits de l'Homme (Human Rights Passageway)
  • Place des Terreaux Traboule (Terreaux Square Passageway)
  • HĂ´tel de Bullioud Traboule (Bullioud Hotel Passageway)
  • La Tour Rose Traboule (The Pink Tower Passageway)
  • La Longue Traboule (The Long Passageway)
1
Cour des Voraces (Court of the Voracious Ones)

1) Cour des Voraces (Court of the Voracious Ones)

The Court of the Voracious (Cour des Voraces) is one of Lyon’s most famous traboules-covered passageways that cut through buildings and courtyards. Located in the Pentes Quarter, it connects Colbert Square, Saint-Sebastien Climb, and Imbert-Colomes Street. Built in 1840, the site is best known for its striking six-floor stairway, a bold example of the popular architecture linked to the silk-weaving industry that shaped the Red Cross District. For visitors, it offers both an architectural curiosity and a glimpse into Lyon’s working-class past.

The courtyard is deeply tied to the history of the canuts, the silk workers who gave the Red Cross its identity. A plaque on the building still commemorates their struggles, noting how they fought “for their lives and their dignity.” The name “Voraces” comes from groups of weavers associated with the republican uprisings of 1848 and 1849, during which the Court is believed to have served as a refuge.

Its role as a place of defiance extended into the 20th century. During the Second World War, the traboules of Lyon-including the Court of the Voracious-became valuable escape routes for resistance networks, their twisting passages helping fighters evade the occupying German forces. This history has made the courtyard a lasting symbol of resilience and solidarity in Lyon.

After a period of decline, the site was restored in 1995. Today, the Court of the Voracious is listed as a Historical Monument and remains a highlight for visitors. Walking through its dramatic stairways and passageways, tourists can experience not only a distinctive architectural landmark but also one of the city’s symbols of community and resistance.
2
Thiaffait Passage

2) Thiaffait Passage

The Thiaffait Passage, located in Lyon’s Red Cross District, is one of the city’s most atmospheric traboules, the famous hidden passageways that weave through courtyards and buildings. Dating back to the early 19th century, this passage was originally used by the canuts, Lyon’s silk workers, who relied on such shortcuts to transport their fabrics across the steep slopes of the neighborhood. The passage declined over time but was revived in the early 2000s, becoming a hub of creativity and culture.

Today, the Thiaffait Passage is known as the “Village of Creators”, a space dedicated to promoting young designers and artisans. The former canut workshops have been repurposed into stylish boutiques and studios, where visitors can browse clothing, jewelry, accessories, and decorative objects crafted by emerging talents. It is both a shopping destination and a showcase of contemporary Lyonnais innovation, maintaining a link between the city’s industrial past and its modern cultural identity.

Architecturally, the passage retains much of its historic charm, with stone staircases, arched entryways, and the enclosed character typical of traboules. Walking through it offers a sense of discovery, much like stepping into a secret enclave hidden within the urban fabric of the Red Cross. The restored façades and vibrant shopfronts create a lively contrast with the passage’s centuries-old bones, making it a rewarding stop for those interested in both history and design.

For tourists, the Thiaffait Passage provides a layered experience-part historical landmark, part creative marketplace. It embodies the spirit of the Red Cross, a district shaped by industry, rebellion, and artistic reinvention.
3
Mermet Passage

3) Mermet Passage

The Mermet Passage is one of Lyon’s lesser-known traboules, the network of covered passageways that weave through the city’s historic districts. Found on the slopes of the Red Cross, a neighborhood once defined by the silk-weaving industry, the passage dates back to the 19th century and reflects the everyday movements of workers climbing between their homes, workshops, and the steep stairways that linked the hilltop to central Lyon.

This passage connects Rene-Leynaud Street with Burdeau Street through a sequence of narrow walkways and stone staircases, creating different levels and perspectives as you climb. Entering through its arched doorway on Rene-Leynaud Street, visitors find themselves in a striking corridor of stone steps that gradually reveal glimpses of the surrounding architecture. The verticality of the route and the interplay of light and shadow give the space a unique character, offering a more authentic, less curated experience than other traboules in the city.

In 2019, the stairs of the Mermet Passage were given a new dimension thanks to Belgian artist WENC, who transformed them into a vibrant canvas. This artistic intervention breathed new life into the historic passage, blending Lyon’s heritage with contemporary street art and making it an open-air gallery for residents and visitors alike.

The passage takes its name from Doctor Mermet, a municipal councilor of Lyon around 1830, whose house provided direct access to the traboule. Today, the Mermet Passage stands as a place where history and creativity converge, inviting travelers to walk through layers of the city’s past while discovering its present-day cultural vitality.
4
Traboule des Droits de l'Homme (Human Rights Passageway)

4) Traboule des Droits de l'Homme (Human Rights Passageway)

The Human Rights Passageway (Traboule des Droits de l’Homme) is one of the most symbolically charged passageways in Lyon’s network of traboules. Although not originally built with this name, the designation reflects its complex history as both a practical passage and a site tied to the ideals of freedom and resistance. Like other traboules across the Red Cross and Old Lyon districts, this narrow passage-made up of a courtyard and a covered staircase within an 18th-century building-was once used by silk workers to carry delicate bolts of fabric from their workshops down to the river without exposing them to rain or wind.

Its importance, however, grew during the 20th century. During World War II, Lyon’s traboules became crucial escape routes and safe havens for the French Resistance. Fighters and couriers used these hidden paths to slip away from Nazi patrols, deliver messages, and transport weapons. The Human Rights Passageway is remembered today as part of that larger network of clandestine lifelines, embodying the city’s resilience in a dark chapter of history.

The passageway’s more recent history gave it its striking nickname. In October 1999, Chinese dissident Wei Jingshen famously addressed the visiting Chinese president from one of the balconies above the traboule, turning this quiet courtyard into a stage for human rights advocacy. Since then, it has carried the symbolic title “Human Rights Passageway,” blending Lyon’s centuries-old architectural heritage with a modern story of political courage. For visitors, stepping through this passage is both a glimpse into the city’s silk-weaving and wartime past and a reminder of its enduring role as a place of expression and freedom.
5
Place des Terreaux Traboule (Terreaux Square Passageway)

5) Place des Terreaux Traboule (Terreaux Square Passageway)

The Terreaux Square Passageway (Place des Terreaux Traboule) begins at one of Lyon’s most historic and lively squares. The Terreaux Square, set at the foot of the Red Cross district, is home to the grand City Hall, the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, and the celebrated Bartholdi Fountain. While the square dazzles with monumental architecture and public life, it also marks the starting point of a network of traboules that wind toward the famous Court of the Voracious. This makes it an ideal place to combine sightseeing with exploration, moving from the open grandeur of the square into Lyon’s hidden passageways.

Though there is a traboule entrance at 6 Terreaux Square, it is currently closed. Instead, visitors can begin at the corner of Terreaux Square and Sainte-Marie-des-Terreaux, where signs on nearby buildings help guide the way. The passageway here may not be as polished as others in Lyon-its upkeep is modest, and some of its charm has faded-but it remains accessible. This traboule once sheltered silk workers carrying delicate goods from the Red Cross workshops to merchants.

The Terreaux Passageway also carries memories from a darker chapter of history. In 1944, 80 Jews were arrested in its courtyard during the German occupation, a reminder of how these passageways, once practical arteries of trade, became charged with the weight of wartime events. Like many traboules across Lyon, it also offered discreet routes to members of the French Resistance.

For today’s visitor, the Terreaux Square Passageway may seem modest compared to the bustling square outside, yet it offers a powerful sense of continuity with the city’s past. Walking through its narrow corridors and courtyards connects you to centuries of local life-commerce, community, resilience, and memory-woven into Lyon’s urban fabric.
6
HĂ´tel de Bullioud Traboule (Bullioud Hotel Passageway)

6) HĂ´tel de Bullioud Traboule (Bullioud Hotel Passageway)

The Bullioud Hotel Passageway is one of the most striking examples of Renaissance architecture in the city. To enter, step into the first courtyard, where a well topped with a Renaissance canopy and shell immediately catches the eye. Beyond it lies the second courtyard, where the highlight of the site-the famous gallery-awaits. Built in 1536, this masterpiece was the work of Philibert de L’Orme, often considered the greatest architect of the second French Renaissance.

The commission came from Antoine Bullioud, the mansion’s owner, who faced a practical dilemma: he wanted a gallery that would connect two buildings without reducing the courtyard’s size or removing the central well. De L’Orme’s solution was both inventive and elegant. He designed a raised gallery that preserved the courtyard’s openness while adding an architectural jewel that blended function and beauty. The resulting structure became a model of Renaissance ingenuity, integrating new ideas without sacrificing the integrity of the original space.

The gallery itself is decorated in the antique style, showcasing a refined combination of Doric and Ionic elements. Columns on both levels feature alternating fluting, while the volute capitals add a touch of sophistication. Inside, traces of frescoes bring further depth and color, animating the space with a sense of life and artistry. This blend of classical harmony and decorative richness reflects de L’Orme’s genius for balancing tradition with innovation, a quality that defined his career.

Today, the Bullioud Hotel Passageway stands as a testament to Lyon’s Renaissance heritage. With its carefully preserved gallery, distinctive architectural details, and connection to one of France’s most celebrated architects, it offers visitors a vivid glimpse into the artistic and cultural achievements that shaped Old Lyon.
7
La Tour Rose Traboule (The Pink Tower Passageway)

7) La Tour Rose Traboule (The Pink Tower Passageway)

The House of the Sieve (Maison du Crible), better known as The Pink Tower (La Tour Rose), is one of the most distinctive landmarks in Lyon’s Saint-Jean neighborhood. Built in the 16th century, it is attributed to the Italian architect Sebastiano Serlio of Bologna. The building retains its Renaissance character throughout, though its courtyard was restored in the 17th century. The name “House of the Sieve” remains somewhat mysterious, but historians suggest it may be linked to Martin de Troyes, a 16th-century tax collector whose coat of arms possibly displayed a sieve.

While the exterior shows little sign of grandeur beyond its gate, the interior courtyard reveals a striking surprise: a monumental circular tower coated in pink plaster, entirely hidden from the outside. The tower houses a vast spiral staircase-belvedere and is punctuated by semicircular bay windows overlooking terraces and gardens that rise across several floors. A well still stands at the courtyard’s edge, adding to its historic charm.

The Pink Tower has welcomed notable figures over the centuries, including King Henri IV of France, who stayed here briefly in 1600 during his marriage to Marie de Medici. In recognition of its heritage, the property was listed as a historic monument in 1937. Despite its grandeur, it later fell into long periods of neglect until new projects brought the site back to life.

Known as the tallest building in the Saint-Jean district, the Pink Tower draws thousands of visitors each year and remains a centerpiece of Old Lyon, enhancing the appeal of the neighborhood and its famous traboules.
8
La Longue Traboule (The Long Passageway)

8) La Longue Traboule (The Long Passageway)

The Long Passageway is one of the most iconic hidden passageways in Old Lyon. Stretching from 54 Saint-Jean Street to 27 Bœuf Street, it weaves its way through four historic buildings and five courtyards, making it the longest traboule in the district. Dating back to the Renaissance, the passage features architectural details typical of the era, including stone arches, vaulted corridors, and a striking 16th-century façade visible as you enter from Bœuf Street. The first courtyard even houses a spiral staircase, a reminder of the craftsmanship and elegance that once defined Lyon’s urban design.

For centuries, traboules like this one played a practical role in the city’s daily life. They allowed silk weavers, merchants, and residents to move quickly and discreetly between streets, protected from the weather. The Long Passageway in particular became an essential link between two of Old Lyon’s busiest thoroughfares, a role it continues to play today for locals who use it as a shortcut. Unlike many private traboules, this one remains open to the public, inviting visitors to step off the main street and into a world of hidden courtyards and covered passages.

Walking through the Long Passageway is more than just a shortcut; it is a journey through time. The succession of courtyards, semi-covered galleries, and stone staircases creates a layered atmosphere that reflects the district’s long history. As you pass from one courtyard to the next, you get a glimpse of how Lyon’s architecture was designed not just for beauty, but also for function and community life. It is one of the best places in Old Lyon to understand how the city’s past still shapes its streets today.

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