In Lyon, a store owner, Jean-Christian, said those behind the violence were “animals”.
“We saw them looting, men high on adrenaline.”
A tourist office in the city centre was set ablaze during the protests amid multiple clashes and looting.
On Sunday, a clothing store was also looted in Lyon.
Tourists stunned
In Paris, startled tourists were seen Saturday running with suitcases along streets filled with tear gas and protesters.
A Danish tourist, Soren Petersen, said it was “sad” to see damage to Paris buildings. “It is not a protest, it’s far beyond a normal protest,” he told AFP.
Around 500 police, firefighters and paramedics were hurt in the protests, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said.
The violence took place on the sidelines of nationwide protests that the interior ministry said drew 550,000 people. The CGT union said 800,000 people participated.
A 17-year-old boy had his right hand blown off by a crowd-control grenade in the southern city of Saint-Etienne. In Mulhouse a 17-year-old girl lost an eye, according to prosecutors.
France’s Yellow Vest movement, which staged street protests eight years ago against Macron’s government over planned fuel-tax hikes, had called Saturday’s “yellow and youth” demonstrations.