Appart’City Lyon Vaise Saint Cyr

Cheap and slightly cheerful is the vibe in this apartment-style chain hotel. The main accent color is orange, which livens up an otherwise drab and basic lobby area, but the overall look is institutional. The breakfast room has orange columns and the same plastic orange chairs found in the guest rooms, with gray placemats and lime green napkins adding a dose of color and saving it from a cafeteria-vibe. Still, there is no escaping the fact that this is a budget property that looks and feels the part.

The building sits on a busy main road across from the Gare de Lyon-Vaise train station. There are restaurants and shops nearby, including a supermarket, but the neighborhood overall is charmless. The Gare de Vaise metro station is a five-minute walk and it’s three stops to the old part of Lyon. The Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport is a 30-minute drive. Charles de Gaulle Airport, outside Paris, is a four-and-a-half-hour drive or one hour plane ride. 

The rooms consist of large studios and one- to three-bedroom apartments with kitchenettes that have microwaves and hot plates, along with refrigerators and coffeemakers. The mostly white decor is basic, with cheap orange chairs and curtains providing the only color, and simple furniture that's showing some wear and tear. The rooms are clean, for the most part, but are only made up once a week. Bathrooms are fairly roomy, with narrow stall showers or shower/tub combos. All apartments come with flat-screen TVs, but there’s no air-conditioning and rooms next to the train station can get street noise. 

The hotel serves a continental breakfast for an additional fee, with a discount for children. There’s a laundry room off the lobby where guests can pay to use the machines. Wi-Fi is available for a nominal fee, though there are reports of slow and spotty service. Dogs are allowed for an extra fee as well. Guests arriving at night use an automated service to retrieve their keys.