Besançon

A watchmaking city encircled by the Doubs, with Vauban's UNESCO-listed citadel overlooking the old town, and the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans and the Loue Valley nearby.

Besançon is a city in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of eastern France and the capital of the Doubs department, set at the northwestern foot of the Jura Mountains. Here the Doubs River curls into an almost closed Ω-shaped loop; the old town sits inside it, while the neck of the loop is sealed off by a citadel designed by Vauban. This geography made it a strategic stronghold from ancient times, and in 2008 the citadel was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Fortifications of Vauban. Besançon is also France's watchmaking capital – the astronomical clock in Saint-Jean Cathedral and the Musée du Temps in the Palais Granvelle tell that story – and it is the birthplace of Victor Hugo and of the Lumière brothers, the inventors of cinema. The sights are concentrated in the old town within the river loop: the citadel, the cathedral and the Porte Noire at the southern end; the Grande Rue linking the Palais Granvelle and Victor Hugo's birthplace; and at the northern end the Musée des Beaux-Arts et d'Archéologie, France's oldest public museum. Across the river lie the old Battant quarter and the Quai Vauban, and a Doubs river cruise takes you around the loop through a tunnel beneath the citadel hill. There are two main day-trip routes: southwest to the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans and the Great Saltworks of Salins-les-Bains (both World Heritage Sites) and the wine town of Arbois; and southeast into the Loue Valley, taking in Ornans, Lods and the Source of the Loue, with the Château de Joux near Pontarlier further south. May–September is best for river cruises, cycling and valley drives; winters are cold but bring a Christmas market. Besançon has a TGV station (Besançon Franche-Comté TGV) and the central Besançon-Viotte station; the TGV from Paris takes about 2 hours 40 minutes. Walking and the tram are enough in town; for excursions, drive or take the TER regional train. Allow 2–3 days. Don't miss Comté cheese, Morteau sausage and Jura vin jaune. The nearby Saut du Doubs waterfall is covered under the Neuchâtel destination.

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