City Stories Index · France · 2026 edition
Lyon vs Toulouse
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, Toulouse leads 4–2. Character is a different question: Lyon is the city of silk and secrets; Toulouse is the pink city.
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| What we measure | Lyon | Toulouse | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 44 | 22 | Lyon |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 300 | 276 | Toulouse |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 6 | 3 | Lyon |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 19 | 41 | Toulouse |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 13 | 16 | Toulouse |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 35 | 57 | Toulouse |
Differences under 5% count as ties. Sample sizes and definitions on the methodology page.
What their stories are about
How many places with a story each city has per theme: Lyon in orange, Toulouse in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
LyonToulouse
12 places
royalty & nobility1 place
12 places
arts & culture10 places
9 places
crime & dark history1 place
9 places
faith & churches9 places
6 places
industry & modern era2 places
5 places
parks & leisure3 places
4 places
guilds & trade3 places
Lyon scorecard →
The city of silk and secrets
Toulouse scorecard →
The pink city