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The Telegraph (19 Aug 08) includes a boat trip up the Rhone Valley as one of its top 10 river cruises:

Navigating France’s mightiest river is a favourite for wine aficionados and foodies. A cruise through Burgundy and Provence gives you the chance to visit vineyards (think Côtes du Rhône and Châteauneuf-du-Pape), explore Lyon – the gourmet capital of France – and enjoy historic towns such as the fortified city of Avignon and the Roman ruins in Arles. The countryside is equally superb: its fields of lavender and sunflowers were an inspiration for artists such as Vincent Van Gogh, and as the river drains into the Mediterranean you’ll see the famous white horses of the Camargue.

The route includes many worthwhile stops for visits to suit all tastes, but it is also remarkably rich in potential wine visits as you’ll pass through appellations such as Costieres de Nimes, Cotes du Rhone (north and south), Lirac, Tavel, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, St Joseph and Hermitage - and if you branch onto the River Saone north of Lyon you can explore Beuajolais and southern Burgundy!

It should come as little surprise that rivers and canals tend to offer good access to good vineyards - vines often grow best on the steep valley sides with their good drainage and aspect to the sun.

A more modest trip than the Rhone, could be a canal trip from Auxerre (89 Yonne, Burgundy) close to Chablis and down the Canal de Bourgogne to Dijon and the Burgundy vineyards; or a trip down the Canal Lateral de la Loire for Sancerre AC, Pouilly-Fumé and Coteaux Giennois. By using the Canal du Nivernais and the Canal de Briare you could even manage a circular route via Auxerre.

Of course, Rick Stein’s French Odyssey was based on a canal trip along the Canal du Midi and the Canal Lateral de la Garonne and included the vineyards of Bordeaux, Cotes du Marmandais, Buzet, Fronton, Minervois, Corbieres and the Coteaux du Languedoc.

For another set of options try Hilary Wright’s book Water into Wine: A Wine Lover’s Journey Through The Waterways of France which also includes itineraries in the lower Loire. Cognac, Alsace, Lorraiine and the Lot.

For more info on the canals of France see the website for VNF (Voies Navigable de la France) now much improved and in English!

Every year the city of Lyon (69 Rhone, Rhone-Alpes) stages a remarkable festival of lights, its Fete des Lumières - this year the festival is taking place from Thursday 7th to Sunday 10th December 2006.
“A path of light will go all the way from the plateau of the Croix-Rousse down to the Place Carnot.” originally established to celebrate the anniversary of the unveiling of a statue of the Virgin Mary on the Fourvière hillside - a celebration of thanks to the Virgin Mary, who purportedly saved the city from a deadly plague in the Middle Ages. Every house on the route has a candle in the window which together with the torchlit parade provides a stunning winter spectacle. Other sites in the city will also be floodlit, such as the Church of Saint Nizier and the hill of Fourvière, City Hall (Hotel de Ville) and several bridges over the river Rhone.
Lyon, of course prides itself as being the gastronomic capital of France, so it is awash with plenty of restaurants and “Bouchons, small intimate bistros serving local Lyonnais fare - lots of local pork for the famous Lyon sausages; andouillette à la lyonnaise (a sausage stuffed with tripe, veal and served with fried onions), salade lyonnaise (lamb and chicken liver). For wine there is a wide choice from Beaujolais to the north and the northern Rhone to the south - the local Coteaux du Lyonnais AC is a light Gamay red, little seen elsewhere. (although the Wine Society stocks one) Parts of the old town (Vieux Lyon) are recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site with their narrow passageways (traboules) that pass through buildings and link the streets either side.
For more info see www.en.lyon-france.com