Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes"The region covers an area of more than 69,711 km2 (26,916 sq mi), making it the third largest in metropolitan France, and has a population of 7,877,698, second only to Île-de-France. It consists of 12 departments and one territorial collectivity. Lyon is the chef-lieu of the region. This new region combines diverse geographical, sociological, economic, and cultural regions, which was already true of Rhône-Alpes, as well as Auvergne, to a lesser extent. While the old Rhône-Alpes and Auvergne regions each enjoyed a unity defined by axes of communication and the pull of their respective metropoles,[Note 1] the new combination is heterogeneous, and sustained lively opposition from some local officials after its creation." - (en.wikipedia.org 04.02.2020) France Ain Ardèche Cantal Drôme Haute-Loire Haute-Savoie Isère Loire (department) Puy-de-Dôme Rhône (department) Savoie