Doubs

Understand

thumb|300px|Haut-Jura regional park

The entire area formed the heart of the Kingdom, and later Duchy, of Burgundy for 1000 years in the middle ages, but was absorbed into the Kingdom of France from the 15th century onwards. In 2016, the two regions of Burgundy and Franche-Comté voluntarily merged to form the present Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, as part of national territorial reform. They were the only two regions to have already bilaterally expressed a wish to merge before the national law was passed, probably due to their strong historical ties.

Burgundy and Franche-Comté have a rich architectural inheritance of remarkable buildings, including castles and major Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals. The vineyards of the region are some of the most prestigious in the world, with the Burgundy wine region including Beaujolais and Chablis. Aside from cities and towns, many of them walled, the countryside is dotted with numerous pleasant and picturesque villages.

The region also offers natural beauty. Burgundy has lakes and forests, and plenty of opportunities for fishing, walking or riding. A gentle landscape of hillsides covered with vineyards lines the river Loire. The Nièvre holds a vast area of wild countryside ideal both for sport and cultural activities. The Jura is a low range of wooded mountains with many gorges, caves and rocky peaks, which gave its name to the Jurassic period.

Get in

thumb|270px|View of part of Auxerre, featuring the Abbey of Saint-Germain

Get around

thumb|Boat on the Doubs River in Besançon

See

thumbnail|The salt works of Salins-les-Bains thumb|Bief de la Ruine, Jura Two historic salt production sites in the region are inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List; the Royal Saltworks at Arc-et-Senans and the saltworks of Salins-les-Bains. Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp, a chapel designed by the architect Le Corbusier. It's one of 17 buildings worldwide by Corbusier to be listed as a World Heritage site. Villages - Many villages of the region have old medieval centres. Walk around, find a bar, drink a glass of wine and enjoy. Castles - there are hundreds of castles in Burgundy. Many can be visited. Wikipedia has a list of all the castles of the region. Guédelon Castle in Treigny near Auxerre is an archaeological experiment to recreate a 13th-century castle started in 1997, it is being built using only tools, materials, and techniques known in medieval France in that era. All handling, transport, and masonry work is completed with manual labour. Construction is expected to be completed in 2029. The construction site is open to the public. MuséoParc Alésia near Semur-en-Auxois is an archaeological museum with a multimedia exhibition, reconstructed fortifications, the remains of a Gallo-Roman city, statue of Vercingetorix. The Région des Lacs consists of nine lakes of crystal blue water. Here motor-powered boats are prohibited and fishing regulated. It runs from Clairvaux-les-lacs, to Doucier Via Les Frasnois and the Cascades du Herisson. The lakes are a haven for locals…

Do

thumb|L'échappée jurassienne from CDT Jura

Eat

thumb|Coq au vin thumb|Escargots de Bourgogne thumb|A slab of Comté

Bourgogne-Franche-Comté is home to many dishes that have become synonymous with French cooking all over the world; the best among them use the local wine as a key ingredient.

Drink

Wine is unmistakably the most well-known product in Burgundy. From north to south, the most famous and recognisable wines of the region grow on carefully exposed soils: Chablis, Côteaux de l'Auxerrois, Côte-de-Nuits, Côte-de-Beaune, Hautes-Côtes, Côtes Chalonnaise et Mâconnais, and Pouilly-sur-Loire.

Away from wine, Crème de cassis is sweet dark red liqueur with the taste of blackcurrant

Sleep

The cities and towns have a range of hotels to suit any need. Accommodation in the rural areas consists of guesthouses, self-catering gîtes and camping. You can pitch a tent almost anywhere without concerning the locals. Camper vans can be parked overnight in most public parking areas.

Go next

thumb|Typical vineyard landscape in Côte d'Or|350px

Visitors inspired by the Jura may long to see bigger mountains - look no further than the Alps, just to the east in both France and Switzerland. Geneva is an international capital of diplomacy and Switzerland's main Francophone city, fronting the famous lake. Grand Est, the large region to the north, has everything from landscapes scarred by the world wars, to a unique fusion of French and Germanic cultures. France's second metropolis, Lyon, only a hop away on the TGV, is considered the gastronomic capital of either France, Europe or the world (depending on whom you ask!). Safe to say, the grub is good.