Chamonix
The great rocky fang of the Aiguille du Midi (3842m), rising from the Mont Blanc massif, is one of Chamonix’ most distinctive features. The 360-degree…
Must-see attractions in French Alps & the Jura Mountains
Chamonix
France’s largest glacier, the 200m-deep 'Sea of Ice', flows 7km down the northern side of Mont Blanc, scarred with crevasses formed by the immense…
Chambéry
Chambéry's medieval Old Town reveals its beauty gradually. Rush through its lanes and you risk missing hidden courtyards, murals and well-preserved 14th-…
Besançon
Dominating the city from Mt St-Etienne, more than 100 vertical metres above the old town, the 17th-century Citadelle de Besançon – designed by Vauban for…
Dauphiné
One of the greatest summertime pleasures of the French Alps is hiking in France’s second-largest national park. The glacier-carved, 918-sq-km park has…
Savoie
More than 100 mountain peaks tower above 3000m in this spectacular preserve. Between June and late September, 400km of walking trails grant access to the…
Chapelle de Notre-Dame du Haut
The Jura Mountains
Bringing to mind a ship's sail or a lighthouse summoning the faithful, modernist Chapelle Notre-Dame (1955) roosts hilltop above the small town of…
Grenoble
For lovers of European art, this museum is an uplifting place to get lost for a day. There's an even spread of artistic eras on display: an antiquities…
Savoie
Twenty-three generations of the De Menthon family have lived within 1000-year-old Château de Menthon-St-Bernard. The birthplace of St Bernard in 1008 –…
Grenoble
This highly impressive museum unveils the secrets of a 12th-century church and cloister using light effects, a haunting choral soundtrack and an…
The Jura Mountains
Belfort's icon is a monumental lion statue that sits astride the citadel, scowling down on the town. Created by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, best known for…
Besançon
Literal and figurative interpretations of time are woven together at the Musée du Temps, which places allegorical paintings about the passage of time next…
Dauphiné
Situated at the confluence of five river valleys, Briançon was highly vulnerable to attack by France's Alpine arch-rival of the 17th century, the Duchy of…
The Jura Mountains
Clinging to a limestone outcrop, Château de Joux, 10km north of Métabief, used to guard the route between Switzerland and France. Its foundations date to…
Parc Naturel Régional du Vercors
Dauphiné
Mountains, limestone cliffs and dense forests create a high-drama landscape within this 2062-sq-km preserve, a few kilometres southwest of Grenoble. The…
The Jura Mountains
These wondrously symmetrical early–Industrial Age saltworks were designed to be an 'ideal city' by Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. Though Ledoux's plans never came…
Parc Naturel Régional de Chartreuse
Savoie
Limestone promontories, dense forests and a powerful liqueur are the signature features of this 767-sq-km regional park. The 1300km of marked walking…
Grenoble
After a fun ride in the téléphérique, or a steep, hour-long climb, the reward is a magnificent mountain panorama from Grenoble's stocky fortress, built…
Cathédrale St-François de Sales
Chambéry
All is not as it seems inside Chambéry's 15th-century Franciscan cathedral, decorated with 6000 sq metres of trompe l’œil painting. The largest such…
Grenoble
This ever-evolving museum unleashes a century of regional history on visitors. Suits of armour are back-lit in brightly coloured rooms, 3-D family trees…
Chamonix
The highest peak on the western side of the Chamonix Valley, Le Brévent (2525m) has tremendous views of the Mont Blanc massif, myriad hiking trails…
Dauphiné
Surrounded by mighty starburst-shaped ramparts, Briançon’s hilltop old town looks much as it did centuries ago, its winding cobbled lanes lined with…
The Jura Mountains
The 30-million-year-old Grottes de Baume are secreted away in the cliffs 2km south of Baume-les-Messieurs. On guided tours, visitors can weave their way…
Musée des Beaux-Arts et d’Archéologie
Besançon
France's oldest public museum, founded in 1694, is famous for its stellar collection of local Gallo-Roman archaeology; its Cabinet des Dessins, with some…
Dauphiné
Filled with karst springs and enormous, spectacularly lit chambers, the Grotte de la Luire was used as an emergency hospital during WWII. When it's open,…
The Jura Mountains
Montbenoît's Renaissance-style tower – emblazoned with a horseback knight – instantly impresses. Inside, explore the old abbey's double-columned…
Besançon
The base of 18th-century Cathédrale St-Jean's bell tower houses an incredible astronomical clock, powered by 11 weights, that has run the church's bells…
Besançon
Erected in AD 175 in honour of Marcus Aurelius, this 16.5m-high Roman triumphal arch stands very near where the columns of a Roman theatre and the…
Savoie
Slumbering in the shadow of a 14th-century castle and enclosed by walls, the Jardin des Cinq Sens is designed to be experienced through sight, touch,…
Chambéry
Medieval walls, Gothic tracery, trompe l'oeil detailing…Chambéry's château has acquired a wealth of styles since its founding in the 11th century. Once…
Annecy
It’s a pleasure simply to wander aimlessly around Annecy’s medieval Old Town, where emerald-green canals flow beneath stone bridges and pastel-painted…
Savoie
Comprising a museum, cellars, bar/tasting room and gift shop, the Chartreuse Cellars lead visitors through centuries of liqueur history. The distillation…
Annecy
With commanding views across the ochre rooftops of the Vieille Ville (Old Town) to the Massif des Bauges, the Château d’Annecy is at once imposing and…
Grenoble
Though the subject is niche, this museum exploring France's elite Alpine regiments, which date to 1888, is riveting. An audioguide (in French, English,…
Savoie
Assembled by inter-war art collector Dr Jean Faure in his attractive former villa, the excellent Musée Faure is a must-see for fans of impressionism. And…
Annecy
On the tree-fringed lakefront, the flowery Jardins de l’Europe are linked to the grassy Champ de Mars, a popular picnic spot, by the poetic iron arch of…
Parc Naturel Régional du Massif des Bauges
Savoie
Less touristed than other regional natural parks in the French Alps, the Massif des Bauges’ jigsaw of peaks and meadows is invigorating terrain for…
Parc Naturel Régional du Haut-Jura
The Jura Mountains
Rippling along the border between Switzerland and France is this 1780-sq-km regional natural park, a peaceful, under-explored slice of the Jura Mountains…
Besançon
This spiffy museum gives an engaging account of the life and works of Besançon's best-known literary son, Victor Hugo, famous for masterpieces such as Les…
The Jura Mountains
The salty history of the Jura is well-explained in the town of Salins-les-Bains, which derives its very name from the salt trade. Step inside the Grande…
