Description
The Centre de Congrès de Lyon sits within the Cité Internationale, in the 6th arrondissement, between a bend of the Rhône and the Parc de la Tête d'Or. The site is part of the Cité Internationale development project designed by architect Renzo Piano (RPBW), delivered in several phases between 1996 and 2006. The Centre is operated by GL Events Venues under a public service delegation awarded by the Métropole de Lyon, which owns the site.
The site spans roughly 24,000 sqm of modular space, combining auditoriums, breakout rooms and exhibition areas. Its positioning is clearly geared towards medical and scientific congresses, corporate conventions and cultural events (concerts, screenings), with a residual share of trade shows. The riverside location on the Rhône, the proximity of the Parc de la Tête d'Or and the presence of an integrated hotel complex make it one of the most recognisable urban congress venues in France.
Halls
The site is built around a large auditorium, two further auditoriums and a set of modular rooms, complemented by substantial exhibition space.
- Amphithéâtre 3000 (Salle 3000): around 3,000 seats in theatre configuration, the site's main plenary hall and one of the largest congress auditoriums in France.
- Auditorium Lumière: around 900 seats, the site's second plenary hall.
- Auditorium Pasteur: around 300 seats, an intermediate conference format.
- 35 modular breakout rooms, with capacities from 50 to 450 seats.
- Exhibition areas of around 8,400 sqm dedicated to trade shows and exhibitions attached to congresses.
The spaces are connected by a central hall and allow several events to be staged simultaneously, with a total capacity of up to 19,000 people.
Access and transport
The site benefits from multimodal connections provided by the Métropole de Lyon's TCL networks.
- Tram: line T1, stop Cité Internationale - Centre de Congrès. Line T4 extended to the Cité Internationale, also accessible via Charpennes.
- Bus: lines C1, C2, C5 and 70 serve the Cité Internationale directly.
- Car: access from the A42 and A43, Cité Internationale exit; northern ring road.
- Parking: underground car park of the Cité Internationale, with direct access to the Centre de Congrès.
- Airport: Lyon-Saint-Exupéry around 30 minutes away by car, with the Rhônexpress shuttle from Lyon Part-Dieu station.
- Cycling and soft mobility: Vélo'v station and landscaped banks of the Rhône.
The official address is 50 Quai Charles de Gaulle, 69006 Lyon.
Services
The Centre de Congrès operates as an integrated events complex within the Cité Internationale.
- Adjacent accommodation: the Marriott Lyon Cité Internationale (formerly Hilton Lyon) within the Cité Internationale, along with the Crowne Plaza Lyon Cité Internationale, both within walking distance of the Centre.
- Catering: restaurants and bars within the Cité Internationale, plus a wider offering across the 6th arrondissement (the banks of the Rhône, the Parc de la Tête d'Or).
- Business centre and congress services: equipped meeting rooms, audiovisual services, dedicated GL Events Venues teams.
- WiFi throughout the site, fibre-optic connectivity and dynamic signage.
- GL Events event services: concierge desk, technical teams, integrated management of audiovisual and logistics service providers.
News
The Centre de Congrès is part of a strategy of continuous modernisation led by GL Events Venues in conjunction with the Métropole de Lyon.
- Strong scientific programme: the site regularly hosts the annual congresses of French and European learned societies in cardiology, oncology and other medical specialities.
- GL Events CSR approach: an environmental policy aligned with the standard of the GL Events Venues group, which operates several major congress venues in France.
Flagship trade shows
The Centre de Congrès de Lyon is positioned above all around professional and medical congresses, corporate conventions and cultural events, rather than trade shows with a large exhibition component. Among the site's key fixtures:
- Medical and scientific congresses: annual gatherings of learned societies in cardiology, oncology, ophthalmology and other specialities, including several European congresses held on a rotating basis.
- Innorobo by SIDO: the meeting point for professional robotics and industrial technology players, organised by Infopro Digital Trade Shows.
- Corporate conventions and international symposia in the Lumière and Pasteur auditoriums.
- Concerts, screenings and corporate evenings: the modularity of the Amphithéâtre 3000 allows for a complementary cultural programme, notably as part of the Festival Lumière.
Worth noting for B2B exhibitors: Pollutec, France's leading environmental trade show, is held at Eurexpo Lyon and not at the Centre de Congrès. The site remains geared above all towards congresses and conventions rather than trade shows with a large exhibition component.