Positive: Excellent staff, very friendly, very helpful. Negative: Sadly, everything else. The hotel is showing its age. The rooms are showing significant wear and tear, have poor lighting, uncomfortable beds and generally extremely poor value for money. The breakfast is nothing special, very average quality.

We cam for the rugby and my wife is. Currently disabled. The concierge team Sebastian paul8be kara were as good as it gets. Helpful and intelligent. Well done for a complex rugby job. Eslene was polite and helpful with breakfast Our room - get a view of the rhone- was spacious and comfortable. Altogether a great hotel experience.

Please know that this hotel has not been renovated since it was built in the 1950’s. A staff member told me it was the first Sofitel to open, and will be the last to be renovated. It is a dreadful, dated, decrepid hotel that the Sofitel management should close immediately. I booked it thinking it was, of course, up to the usual Sofitel standard. How unfair to let people think that. Unless it’s the cheapest or only hotel left in Lyon, please do not book this hotel. The staff, however, is excellent.

I travelled to Lyon with my wife and kids. We arrived later during our check in day (16hes) and the second room was not ready.. after we went out and returned later, finally we got the second key. When we entered the room there had a terrible smell apparently of cigarette and some sent trying to hide the smell. They should have had changed us from the room instead of delaying our checkin.. After this event, we tried to have dinner at the hotel restaurant and the maître was very impolite and said that were not more tables available even for guest of the hotel, even when it was clear that he could easily accommodate 4 (2 kids) in a table that were for 3. Clearly they are running low in staff compromising service.

One of the first Sofitel properties in the world but I am afraid on it’s last legs. If the building is not upgraded and soon the title of Sofitel and 5 star must be removed as this property will continue to inflict embarrassment on both the Sofitel and Accor brands. I feel for the staff who are now trying to do the best they can with what is a very dated product. This comes across in the check in experience which on arrival all be it a couple of hours before 4 we were basically told to go away. Accor status or not staff should still do there best to accommodate customers. Maybe take all the staff to the Asia Pacific region and see how style service and quality of Accor properties can be achieved. A premium experience is expected with the Sofitel brand this was our worst experience this trip to Europe including ibis, ibis styles,Novotel and other Sofitel properties.