Croix-Rousse is well known for its historical backgrounds and its current social life : it is a quarter of Lyon, but as an ancient suburb it seems like a village above the town-center which you can access in 10 mn by foot : the district attracts an array of interesting people (and young families) who enjoy its friendly atmosphere and its " French way of life" (the most well-known open-air market of Lyon, the best local chocolate shop...). Lyon is next to the Alp-stations : in clear weather, you can see the Mont-Blanc from the esplanade of "Gros-Caillou" (2 mn by foot...).
It is amazing to discover the town by bike (the banks of the Rhone are very well fit out, the Saône is currently equipped with bike roads as far as the 1st vineyards of Beaujolais !)

Other attractions include the Beaujolais vineyard (less than 1h), the medieval mountain-village of Annecy (1h30), the mountain-overviews (the massif of Chartreuse and its abbey, the Regional Park of Vercors).
Thanks to the TGV, you can access Marseille (European Capital of Culture in 2013 !) and the Mediterranean sea in 1h15.