Lyons-la-Forêt
Our guide
Our favourite places, our walks, and answers to the questions our guests ask us most. Everything here we have tried, recommended, or heard about from guests back from a day out. For the rest, the tourist office on the square knows the area better than anyone.
01
Where to eat
It's the question we're asked most. Here are our places, from the simplest to the most refined. Book ahead, especially at weekends.
On foot, in the village
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Le Petit Lyons
A village bar with a lovely back room and delicious homemade pizzas.
Lunch Thursday to Monday; takeaway pizzas on Friday and Saturday evenings. Café open Thursday to Monday, 8am–7pm, and Tuesday morning.
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Le Café du Commerce
Homely home cooking and a big terrace facing the market hall.
Tuesday to Sunday, 8.30am–8pm.
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Le Restaurant de la Halle
Traditional cooking, three dining rooms with fireplaces, a terrace, and music evenings around the fountain in summer. Tell them we sent you.
Monday 8.30am–9pm; Tuesday to Friday 10am–2.30pm and 6–9pm (closed Wednesday lunchtime); Saturday and Sunday 10am–9pm. Closed 1–15 November.
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Le Bistrot du Grand Cerf
A forest-lodge feel and careful local cooking from the Licorne chef's team. A very good table, and a quiet one.
12–2pm and 7–9.30pm, closed Monday and Tuesday.
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La Licorne Royale
One Michelin star: chef Christophe Poirier pairs Normandy produce with flavours of the South, in a red and black First Empire dining room. For a special occasion.
12.30–1.30pm and 7.30–9pm, closed Wednesday and Thursday.
A short drive away
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L'Unique
1 rue du Général-de-Gaulle, Ménesqueville
7 km away, on the road to Rouen. A very good table serving the great French classics.
Tuesday to Sunday lunchtime, 12–1.30pm and 7–8.30pm; closed in January.
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L'Auberge de Papa
21 place de l'Église, Auzouville-sur-Ry
Next to the Jardin Plume. Creative cooking with fresh, seasonal produce, a warm welcome and a festive mood: our first choice for a meal with friends. Tell them we sent you.
Wednesday to Saturday, 12–1.30pm and 7–9.30pm; Sunday lunch; wine bar on Tuesday evening.
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L'Auberge de la Forêt
Beams, half-timbering and generous Normandy cooking.
April to September: Wednesday to Saturday, lunch and dinner; Sunday lunch. October to March: Wednesday to Sunday lunch, plus Friday and Saturday dinner.
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Terrovia
Near the château. Seasonal cooking and a fine wine list.
Wednesday to Saturday, 12–2.30pm and 7–9.30pm; Sunday 12–3pm.
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La Potinière
4 place de la République, Fleury-sur-Andelle
Local cooking, with a menu that changes every season.
12–2pm every day except Wednesday; also 7–9pm on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
For the atmosphere
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La Guinguette Insulaire
Between Charleval and Perriers-sur-Andelle, on the Brasserie Insulaire's island: sharing boards, beer, chips, pétanque, and live music every weekend.
April to early September: Thursday and Friday 5–11pm, Saturday 12–11pm, Sunday 12–9pm, plus Wednesday evenings in July and August.
On Sunday evening and Monday, many places are closed. Sunday evening: the Bistrot du Grand Cerf, the Restaurant de la Halle and La Licorne Royale. Monday: the Restaurant de la Halle and La Licorne Royale, Le Petit Lyons at lunchtime, and La Potinière in Fleury-sur-Andelle.
If you arrive late, the restaurants will be closed: bring something for dinner on the way.
02
Market and shops
The village is a 5 to 8-minute walk from the Duplex and the Apartment, and just steps from L’Annexe. It has all the essentials: a grocer, a pharmacy, a newsagent, a bar.
The market
Under the market hall, in the morning: a small market on Thursday and Saturday, and the big market on Sunday. Fruit and vegetables, a fishmonger, a charcutier, a cheesemonger and many local producers. From mid-April to mid-October there is also a craft market on the third Saturday of the month. On the day you leave, walk round the market, have lunch in the village and set off in the early afternoon.
In the village
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Vival
The village grocer. It also sells firewood for the stove.
8.30am–9pm.
In Charleval, the next village
- A Carrefour supermarket and a petrol station.
- A delicatessen, two butchers, an organic grocer.
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Papa & Primeur
Fruit and vegetables, but also cheese, charcuterie and wine. Tell them we sent you.
Tuesday to Saturday, 9am–12pm and 3–7pm; Sunday 9am–1pm.
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Boulangerie Maréchal
Just opposite: unforgettable pain d’épices (spiced honey bread).
At the farm, nearest first
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Chez Laure & Paul
Homemade charcuterie, Limousin beef, poultry from their own farm.
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La Ferme du Haut Fayel
5 route de Bezancourt, Bosquentin
Organic calvados.
By appointment.
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La Ferme des Peupliers
Yoghurts and desserts made with milk from their own cows, and a farm trail children love.
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Les Vergers d'Orgeville
Near the Côte des Deux Amants. Farm cider and apple juice.
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Légumes Fabert
943 rue de la Libération, Romilly-sur-Andelle
70 kinds of seasonal vegetables.
September to May: Thursday 3.30–6.30pm, Friday 10am–6.30pm, Saturday 9.30am–12.30pm.
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Le Pressoir d'Or
57 route des Andelys, Frenelles-en-Vexin
Organic ciders, ice cider, apple juice.
Monday to Saturday, 9am–12pm and 2–6pm (closed Wednesday and Saturday morning).
03
The village
Lyons-la-Forêt is one of the Most Beautiful Villages of France. Half-timbered brick houses from the 17th and 18th centuries, streets full of flowers, old convents and mills along the river Lieure: it all gathers around the listed market hall and the place Isaac-Benserade.
Not to miss
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The market hall
15th to 18th century, at the heart of the market.
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The bailiwick courtroom
Hôtel de ville, 20 rue de l'Hôtel-de-Ville
An 18th-century courtroom with its original furniture, and a reconstructed cell on the ground floor. Visits through the tourist office.
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The wash house and the Lieure
Just below the Duplex and the Apartment. Some guests had dipped their feet here long before they ever stayed with us.
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Saint-Denis church
Next to the Duplex and the Apartment: a 16th-century church, listed as a historic monument since 1926.
A little history
The village grew up around a castle built by Henry I Beauclerc, of which almost nothing remains. Dukes of Normandy and kings of France came here to hunt. Later Maurice Ravel composed here, the painters Paul-Émile Pissarro and André Masson stayed here, and Jean Renoir and then Claude Chabrol filmed Madame Bovary here. Anne Fontaine shot Gemma Bovery here, with Fabrice Luchini as the village baker.
The tourist office
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Office de tourisme Lyons Andelle
On the square, opposite the L’Empreinte shop. Ask for the village map with every point of interest, and the trail maps.
February to June, September and October: Monday 2–5pm; Tuesday to Friday 10am–12pm and 2–5pm; Saturday 10am–2pm; Sundays and bank holidays 10am–1pm during school holidays and long weekends.
July and August: every day, 10am–6pm.
November to January: Tuesday to Friday 2–5pm; Saturday 10am–1pm.
A drink in the garden: go through the archway next to the tourist office and have a drink on the Licorne's garden terrace. It costs no more than anywhere else, and time stands still.
04
The forest and walks
The Lyons state forest starts at the edge of the village. It is the largest forest in Normandy and the largest beech forest in France: 10,700 hectares, beeches 25 to 40 metres tall that give it the feel of a cathedral, and hundreds of kilometres of paths. Several trails start from the houses: you can set off on foot, no car needed.
You may meet roe deer, wild boar, red squirrels, and sometimes a stag at dawn. At the end of summer, in the evening, the stags’ bellowing (the brame) can be heard from some villages.
Through the seasons
- In spring, bluebells carpet the oak woods.
- In summer, it is the coolest place around. On very hot days, that is where we send you.
- In autumn, the forest turns gold and red, and it is mushroom season: picking is allowed, 5 litres per person. Be sure of what you pick.
- In winter, light falls through the tall bare trunks. You have the paths to yourselves.
From the village
Waymarked trails; free maps at the tourist office or to download from its website.
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Sentier du Four-à-Chaux
6.5 km, from the post office.
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Sentier de la Fontaineresse
6.5 km, from the post office.
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Chemin des Écoliers
5 km, from the church car park.
From the carrefour des Veneurs, in the forest
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Boucle du Gros Chêne
3 km, ideal with children.
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Sentier de l'Abbaye de Mortemer
4.5 km, with a visit to the abbey at the end (picnics allowed in the grounds).
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Sentier du Fouillebroc
19.5 km, a proper day’s walk, with a stop at the Sainte-Catherine spring. You can add the arboretum and the abbey.
A little further
The Boucle des Mares at Fleury-la-Forêt (8.5 km), the Boucle des Deux Plateaux at Lisors (7.5 km), and the Sentier du Bois de Bonnemare at Radepont (10 km), which passes Fontaine-Guérard abbey and the old Levavasseur spinning mill. The tourist office offers seventeen loops in all; several can also be ridden by mountain bike.
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The Lyons arboretum
About a hundred tree species from around the world, arranged by continent over 8 hectares, and three orienteering courses (two for children, half an hour each, and one for adults, an hour). Tables and two shelters for picnics.
Every day, 6am–10pm.
Good to know
- Hunting. From autumn, some parts of the forest are hunted on some days. Each hunting day covers only a small area, signposted on the spot: the rest of the forest is yours. Before you set off, check the ONF calendar: hunting days are boxed in red, and clicking a date shows the area on the map. If in doubt, the tourist office will suggest a quiet route.
- Walking with others: Nordic walking outings on Sunday at 9am in Lyons, with D-Foulées (book on their website).
- For children: the free app “Clés de forêt” teaches you to recognise trees as you walk.
- On the shelf in each house you should find leaflets about the trails. If they are not there, just ask us.
05
Places to visit nearby
Close by
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Mortemer abbey
Deep in the forest. The furnished abbot’s palace, the cloister, the dovecote, the mill, the ruined church and 7 hectares of ponds with geese, swans and sheep. It is said to be the most haunted abbey in France: the White Lady still wanders there, they say. From May to September a medieval village awaits children (giant wooden games, a zip line, sword fights). Our guests love it.
Every day, 1.30–6pm.
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Château de Vascœuil
8 rue Jules-Michelet, Vascœuil
A 12th to 15th-century château, a 17th-century dovecote and an art centre with major exhibitions.
April to early November, Wednesday to Sunday, 2.30–5.30pm; in July and August, every day, 11am–6pm.
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Le Jardin Plume
790 rue de la Plaine, Auzouville-sur-Ry
A garden that landscape designers come from all over the world to see. You will linger. Pair it with a meal at L’Auberge de Papa, right next door.
1 May to 18 October: Wednesday and Saturday 10am–12pm and 2–6pm; Thursday, Friday and Sunday 2–6pm.
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Château de Martainville
429 route du Château, Martainville-Épreville
The museum of Normandy traditions and arts.
Closed on Tuesday. April to September: 10am–12.30pm and 2–6pm, Sunday 2–6.30pm. October to March: 10am–12.30pm and 2–5pm, Sunday 2–5.30pm.
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Notre-Dame de Fontaine-Guérard abbey
On the banks of the Andelle, with the old Levavasseur spinning mill, a “cathedral factory”, right beside it.
Open for its medieval festival in June, the Heritage Days in September and some days in September and October.
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The Bois-Guilbert sculpture garden
1108 route d'Héronchelles, Bois-Guilbert
Seven hectares where art and nature answer each other.
April to 1 November, every day 2–6pm (and mornings in July and August).
For a day out
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Rouen
45 min
The cathedral, the Gros-Horloge, the half-timbered old town. Not to be missed.
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Giverny
50 min
Claude Monet’s house and gardens. Go in spring or early in the season, before the crowds.
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Gerberoy
40 min
Another of the Most Beautiful Villages of France, best when the roses are in bloom. Get lost in the lanes and alleys, step into the church, walk round the ramparts.
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In Gerberoy, the Jardin des Ifs
For lunch, or tea and cakes, at the end of a cul-de-sac: period panelling and an inner garden. Tell them you’re staying in Lyons-la-Forêt.
Lunch, tea room and garden visits from May to October; closed in winter, reopening on 1 May 2027.
06
On horseback
Several riding centres offer rides in the forest, by the hour or by the day, and first pony rides for little ones.
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Domaine de Lorleau
2 km away. Guided rides of one to two hours, treks, lessons, courses.
Open all year.
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Écurie de la Forêt de Lyons
48 rue des Ventes, La Feuillie
Rides and riding weekends with a professional guide, straight onto the forest paths and long-distance trails.
Every day except Monday, 9am–7pm, booking required.
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Val Saint-Pierre riding centre
99 Le Val Saint-Pierre, Croisy-sur-Andelle
Rides, carriage driving, lessons.
Open all year.
07
Sport and leisure
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Tennis
Tennis Club de Fleury-sur-Andelle, 8-12 rue Gérard-Palmentier
The club rents its indoor court and outdoor courts by the hour, even to non-members. Book on the Ten'Up app or website (linked from the club's site). If you can't manage it, write to us and we'll book for you.
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Spa Nuxe
Hôtel La Licorne, 27 place Isaac-Benserade
In the heart of the village: four treatment rooms, a sauna, a hammam, a pool, and a treatment cabin up in a hundred-year-old sequoia, for a massage like no other. Booking by phone or online.
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Massage Lyons Normandie
Wellbeing massages for women.
Every day, by appointment.
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Archery, Nordic walking
D-Foulées
Archery sessions on request, mostly for groups (birthdays, stag and hen parties), and Nordic walking outings.
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Outdoor activities
Sportydev
Outings in the Andelle valley and on the Seine cliffs, from age 7 and for beginners.
Every day, 8am–8pm, booking required.
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Creative workshops
L'Atelier Mélie-mélo, 3 rue Bernard-Buffet, Lorleau
Sewing, modelling, painting, creative baking, for children and adults alike.
08
Practical information
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Coming without a car
Train from Paris Saint-Lazare to Rouen, then a taxi or a hire car from the station. From Rouen station with luggage, we recommend Taxi Duchesne, based in Les Andelys.
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Taxis in Lyons-la-Forêt
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Taxi Duchesne
Les Andelys
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Do you need a car?
To stay in the village and walk in the forest, no: everything is on foot. To explore the area, yes.
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Bikes
There is no longer a bike hire in the village, and we cannot store bikes at the houses.
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EV charging
Two chargers in front of L’Annexe, at the entrance to the village, between the post office and the gendarmerie.
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Vet
Le Cabossé et le Chat-Loupé, 4 route de la Feuillie, Le Tronquay
For the worming treatment before taking your dog back to the UK: this practice, about ten minutes away, speaks English and our guests are delighted with it.
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Another vet
Clinique vétérinaire SeineVet, 26 rue de la République, Boos
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Emergencies
Ambulance 15, fire brigade 18, police 17. Duty pharmacy: 32 37. Nearest hospital: CHU de Rouen.
Opening hours checked in November 2026: please check before you go.