Tripologist: Where should I eat in the gastronomic capital of France?

I am stopping in Lyon for two nights in October, and I’m very excited about its reputation as the gastronomic capital of France, are there any must dos while I’m there, and more importantly, any must eats/restaurants to dine at?
T. Reid, Fitzroy, Vic

Bouchon Lyonnais, a traditional restaurant in Lyon.Credit: Getty Images

With 18 Michelin-star restaurants, you’re spoiled for choice in Lyon. If you want a trophy restaurant you might try and book now for the iconic Restaurant Paul Bocuse at Collonges-au-Mont-d’Or in the north of the city, which maintains the culinary traditions laid down by the late Paul Bocuse, known as the pope of gastronomy.

For high-end eating in Lyon it’s hard to go past La Mere Brazier, a two-star Michelin restaurant where Chef Mathieu Viannay brings a modern twist to some of the classics of the Lyonnais table. The quintessential Lyon dining experience can be found in the city’s traditional bouchons, established in the 17th and 18th centuries to serve cheap but nourishing food to the city’s silk workers.

A typical bouchon menu will include fish dumplings, pork sausage and potato gratin. Expect a relaxed atmosphere and pared-back prices. There’s even a list of official bouchons with Le Bouchon des Cordeliers, Bouchon Les Lyonnais and Le Bouchon de l’Opera as some of the standouts. Take a look at other suggestions on the Michelin website.

As for what to do, the Basilica of Notre Dame, the Musee des Beaux Arts, the Place des Terreaux and the Centre d’Histoire de la Resistance will keep you busy for the time you have available.

We are a group of five 60-somethings travelling to southern Spain for two weeks in September/October. We’ve booked all the big-ticket sights, but could you suggest some interesting day trips from Granada and Seville to lesser known places? We are reasonably fit, enjoy good food and exploring. Happy to hire a car or use public transport to get there.
A. Bandis, Melbourne, Vic

Cordoba is less than a one-hour train ride from Seville and it’s a lovely city with a long history. The Mezquita was originally a pagan temple, later converted into the great mosque of the Ummayad caliphate and finally a Catholic church. Explore the winding side streets of the old Jewish quarter, visit the Alcazar of the Catholic kings, squeeze through the Callejon de las Flores, named for the flowerpots that line the walls, and walk across the Guadalquivir River on Cordoba’s Roman bridge.

Another great day trip from Seville is the Atlantic coast city of Cadiz. Explore the El Populo neighbourhood, a historic section of Cadiz characterised by narrow, winding alleys and a wealth of age-old buildings. Stop by the Roman theatre, dating back to the 1st-century BCE, and the Baroque Cadiz Cathedral. Continue from there past the Admiral’s House, built in 1690, stop by the city’s fish market and lunch in a local seafood restaurant.

A slightly longer journey takes you to Ronda, clinging to the heights of its gorge in the Serrania de Ronda Mountains. The way to explore it is to lose yourself in its labyrinthine streets which wind into tiny, shady squares with glimpses of tile-work that recall the city’s Moorish ancestry.

We are hiring a car from Alamo Frankfurt later this year intending to visit the Alsace region including Strasbourg, which is in Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). This ULEZ sticker must be ordered from the French government but it takes several working days to arrive and without knowing rego details of hire car how do we manage this?
R. Goodwin, Castle Cove, NSW

Since you’re not the registered owner of the vehicle nor will you know its registration number in advance you are ineligible to apply for a French Crit’Air sticker. Also, the sticker can only be sent to the vehicle’s registered postal address. However, it seems France is regarding a foreign-issued emission-compliant sticker as having equivalence with a Crit’Air and all German-registered rental cars come with the green emissions sticker for Germany.

In October I’ll be travelling to Jordan and Egypt in a senior adult family party of four. Our Jordanian tour operator advised he will assist with a “collective visa” on arrival. Do you recommend we obtain our Jordan e-Visa before arrival despite our tour operator’s suggestion? Also, how best to keep in contact with family and friends while we’re travelling that won’t cost a fortune? We have later-model iPhones.
N. Johnston, Annandale, NSW

Unless you have any reason not to trust your tour operator, in which case you shouldn’t be using any of their services, I’d be inclined to let him handle your visas. He knows the ropes and has a vested interest in getting you through immigration as quickly as possible. Doing it yourself is likely to be more complicated.

The hotel where you’re staying will most likely have Wi-Fi and this is by far the cheapest way to keep in touch. Provided your phones are unlocked, if you need a data feed when you’re out and about one option is to replace the Sim card with one that will give you local coverage.

In Jordan, the Asia Sim card from simcorner costs $28 and gives you 6Gb of data, valid for 10 days. Their Egypt Sim card with the same amount of data costs $55, however you can buy a Vodafone prepaid Sim card at Cairo Airport at a lower price. With late-model iPhones in your pockets, another option is to use an international eSim from a provider such as Airalo.

This is more convenient than adding a physical Sim card and you can set your phone to receive incoming calls and messages without incurring huge data fees but in the case of Jordan and Egypt an e-Sim is more expensive than a physical Sim card. If you decide to go with the Airalo e-Sim a YouTube video will help with the setup.

Travel advice is general; readers should consider their personal circumstances.