Just like Paris, the city of Lyon will be experiencing swimming in the Rhône river this summer! 🌞🏊‍♀️

undefined 29 mai 2024 undefined 08h30

The Editor

Open Swim Stars Lyon

Get your swimsuits ready (or not)! The City of Lyon has just unveiled its fresh new plan for the scorching summer of 2024. On the agenda: innovative initiatives to combat the intense heat, and most importantly, a swimming experience in the Rhône despite its poor quality.

When the thermometer goes crazy, the City of Lyon pulls out all the stops. If an extreme heat wave raises its head, the city of Lyon has anticipated by unveiling its "cooling plan" for the summer of 2024. Among the measures, the Blandan park will remain open all night to allow people to sleep under the stars in a secure space, the Parc de la Tête d'Or will also extend its hours until 11:30 PM.
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For those who prefer the shade, 5,000 cinema tickets will be given away to those who can prove they have been receiving social benefits for 3 months, while the air-conditioned museums in the city will be accessible for free in case of an orange or red heatwave alert. And to top it off, the swimming pools in Lyon will extend their hours from May to September, with two pools open from 7am to 8pm in July and August.

Dive into the Rhône scheduled for June 30th

But the big news is the experimental swimming in the Rhône planned for June 30th. A first for the city, as swimming is usually prohibited there due to dangerous currents and river traffic. 150 volunteers will be able to take a dip on the banks of the left bank of the Rhône, near the confluence with the Saône. 

Audrey Henocque, Lyon's deputy mayor in charge of the fresh air plan, explains that this initiative will be supervised by strict weather and safety conditions (as reported by France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. " Today, there are chemical pollutions, but they are located further downstream from Lyon, by PFAS. And then, the Saône river still contains pesticides since it flows through many agricultural areas. These are elements that must be taken into account but we want the people of Lyon to be able to swim in more places".

Water quality rated as "poor"

According to a study by the "Zone Atelier Bassin du Rhône" under the supervision of CNRS, the water quality of the Rhône river in Lyon is classified as "poor"..Watch out for that, but it doesn't dampen the municipality's enthusiasm for this new summer adventure...


Source: France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

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