Beautiful clean cool exhibits…read more Friendly staff. Lots of escalators. Modern architecture.

I am so glad this museum was free for me as a student (non-EU). I must say, it was weird. Not…read morebecause any specific exhibits were weird, but because the exhibits seemed so random. When I walked in, it seemed like a natural science museum. I saw a geology exhibit, dinosaur exhibit, something about space, and one about the origin of humans. There was an exhibit about the importance and science of water, and there was an aesthetic vibe to it which I enjoyed. I thought the Africa exhibit seemed kind of random. I did not expect an exhibiting exploring death. There was an exhibit with some old technology as well. There were some more social and political exhibits in there too. I'm not doing a good job of how random it was, but there was a great disconnect between exhibits. I'm glad other reviewers have said the same. I think it's great for children, not so much for adults unless you're bored or love this kind of stuff. I wouldn't prioritize it in Lyon, but I had a bit of time for some French quirkiness.

Disclaimer: I visited the Maison des Canuts in 2003, and there's a lot that could have changed in 8…read moreyears. You can't appreciate the history of Lyon without a visit to the Croix Rousse, the historical heart of the silk industry of the city. The Maison des Canuts may be small, but it's chock full of historical artifacts from the height of the silk working period - Jacquard looms, a ribbon weaving machine, plaques from textile worker unions, demonstrations of how the silk is refined, etc. They've packed a lot into a small space, so I would try to go with as small a group as possible. They have guided tours, though ours was in French, so I'm not sure how much of it could be done in English. If you've got someone who understands French in the group, it's a great little museum.

Great museum to learn about the silk industry that used to dominate Lyon. Very informative exhibit…read morethat offers english translations. They even demonstrate the giant looms that were used and still are used to produce the most expensive tapestries.

We visited the Museum. If one is interested in the technical development/invention of moving…read moreimages, as well as color still images, or in the brothers Lumiére, this is a worthwhile stop. The reception is a bit laid-back and un-customer-friendly. When we arrived we waited for the two people at the ticket desk to complete their conversation. We then showed our LyonCard and were provided entry, but not offered audioguides. No brochure was provided. We found that most of the signage on the displays is in only French, so we went back to the reception to ask if there was a brochure available. They looked surprised by the question, and offered an English brochure, which had limited info and was thus of limited help.

My father is a Cinephile (and thinks that everyone else should be one) so he dragged me to this…read moremuseum. This visit was my first and his ninth or tenth. Initially, I had no expectations because I could careless about cinema. HOWEVER, Upon walking around the museum, I became quite interested. I learned a lot of new things. In a beautiful old home, just looking at the architecture itself was a treat. The Lumiere family certainly knew how to live it up in Lyon ! There is one guided tour a day in the afternoon. Not to worry though, for a small charge, you can borrow an earphone (?) to have a self-guided tour with explanations. They have many languages - the first time ever in my life that I was first asked if I needed a GERMAN or ITALIAN earphone as it's usually SPANISH or JAPANESE. The staff were very friendly and entertained all my father's questions/observations/comments (we were in this museum about triple the time that an average visitor would be here because my father was having too much fun). This might explain the price of tickets that we were given ... there is a TARIF REDUIT (discount) for the following groups: UNEMPLOYED, STUDENTS, and SENIORS. It was probably assumed that we were in the first group. If in Lyon, I would definitely recommend a visit to here, cinephile or not. A solid four stars.