The People Lyon Hostel
The biggest social hostel in Lyon — at the base of the Croix-Rousse slopes, three blocks from the Pentes bars
French-chain 180-bed hostel on Montée des Carmélites, at the base of the Croix-Rousse slopes (the Pentes) in Lyon's 1st arrondissement. The biggest social hostel in Lyon: on-site restaurant-bar, air-conditioned rooms with city views, lift to all floors. Base-of-the-Pentes location puts you three blocks from the Rue Sainte-Catherine bar circuit.
The People Lyon is part of the French hostel chain also running in Paris and Marseille, and like its siblings it's the polished-professional choice: 180 beds, air conditioning that actually works in summer, lift to all floors, and a proper on-site restaurant-bar that operates as a public venue (non-guests can come in, which gives the bar a neighbourhood-pub energy rather than a dead hostel-lounge feel). Opened 2018 on Montée des Carmélites, the building is a modern conversion with big windows and city views from upper floors.
Rooms are 4-bed, 6-bed, 8-bed and 10-bed mixed dorms, all with air conditioning, private bathrooms (en-suite), and walk-in showers. This is unusual — most Lyon hostels share bathrooms, The People gives you the hotel-grade equivalent. Upper-floor rooms catch views of the Pentes hillside and the Saône valley beyond. Private doubles and twins also available, popular with couples who want the social scene without the bunks.
The location is the thing: Montée des Carmélites is the base of the Pentes, Lyon's bohemian hillside full of bars, indie shops and traboules. Rue Sainte-Catherine (Lyon's pub-crawl street) is a 3-block, 7-minute walk uphill. Place des Terreaux with the town hall is an 8-minute walk south. Hôtel de Ville metro (Line A, also Line C to the top of the Pentes) is 6 minutes on foot. The one compromise: Montée des Carmélites is uphill, and if you return from the Pentes bars late at night you're walking UP to the hostel. No funicular on this side.
Reviewers flag the on-site restaurant specifically: it runs all day, does a €12 lunch formula, and the bar opens into the ground-floor plaza during summer. There's a communal kitchen as well, though reviewers say most guests use the restaurant instead. Breakfast buffet is €9 add-on, decent but not the YASI-level reviewer-favourite.
- 01180 beds with private en-suite bathrooms in every dorm — rare for Lyon
- 02Air conditioning works; lift to all floors
- 03On-site restaurant-bar with €12 lunch formula, open to non-guests
- 04Base-of-the-Pentes location — 7-min walk to Lyon's bar circuit
- 05Upper-floor west-facing rooms catch Saône-valley sunsets
- 180-bed social hostel with private en-suite bathrooms in every room
- 7-min walk to Rue Sainte-Catherine (Lyon's bar circuit)
- 6-min walk to Hôtel-de-Ville metro (Lines A + C)
- On-site restaurant with €12 lunch formula, bar until late
“Very well equipped and clean. The staff members were nice. There is a lift in the building. Private en-suite bathroom even in a dorm is a game-changer at this price.”
“The atmosphere, location and staff were amazing. I was on a mother and daughter break and we felt welcome in the common areas. Great base for the Pentes bars.”
“Large modern hostel with friendly professional staff. The dormitory rooms are well thought out, proper lockers, privacy curtains and air conditioning. Restaurant downstairs for lunch was a find.”
- Hôtel-de-Ville metro (Lines A + C)6 min walk
- Rue Sainte-Catherine (bar circuit)7 min walk uphill
- Place des Terreaux + Town Hall8 min walk
- Place Bellecour (city centre)12 min walk
- Vieux Lyon (UNESCO old town)15 min walk across Saône
- Halles Paul Bocuse food market15 min by metro
