Bourgogne Things to Do

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Most Viewed Things to Do in Bourgogne

1.

Hospices de Beaune   Beaune

Hospices de Beaune, Beaune

 35 Reviews  The Hospices de Beaune is former hospital which was established in 1443. You can visit this place and you’ll get an audio guide for this which is available in 10 languages and gives you a huge amount... 

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2.

Churches   Beaune

Churches, Beaune

 12 Reviews  The church Notre Dame was built in the 12th century, but several parts were rebuilt in the 14th century. In the chancel, there’s a an exhibition of tapestry, separated from the rest of the chancel by... 

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3.

Wine museums & cellars   Beaune

Wine museums & cellars, Beaune

 6 Reviews  I would say that this is a bit touristy, but well worth the 10 Euro. The visit starts with a short tour and then you will have the oppurtunity to taste 15 wines. The wines are from all over Burgundy,... 

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4.

Market   Beaune

Market, Beaune

 5 Reviews  Les poulets rôtis à la broche se trouvent sur de nombreux marchés mais ici la qualité Poulet de Bresse ajoute un plus. En face des poulets nous avons trouvé de beaux paniers tressés dont un panier à... 

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5.

Monuments others   Beaune

Monuments others, Beaune

 5 Reviews  Around the centre, you’ll find the ramparts with several towers & bastions, mostly built in the 15th century. You can walk along the ramparts, either on the inner side or the outside. We walked part... 

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6.

Wine tours   Beaune

Wine tours, Beaune

 5 Reviews  On the tour we stopped at the vineyards where several aspects of growing vines were explained. Also influences of the weather, types of grapes etc. The classification system, grand: premier etc were... 

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7.

Museums others   Beaune

Museums others, Beaune

 4 Reviews  Near Saint-Léger-sous-Beuvray, an easy day trip from Beaune or Dijon, is Bibracte, a marvelous, open museum of Gaulish life set on a hillside that holds an archeological dig you may tour. Bibracte is... 

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Reviews from VirtualTourist Members

Visit the Markets

by pedroswift

A visit to at least one "Farmers' Market" is a must during your Bourgogne visit even if it only to take some photos of the wonderful product on sale. There are covered markets in lots of towns (Dijon for example). A dedicated building set up for the market - "halle(s)" in French. Also "street" markets are common even in small villages.Armed with a list of towns with the days of their markets listed, you can allocate a morning to a market visit as you travel the region. Morning is best time to visit. Book mark the web pages if you carry the necessary.Here are two lists:List of weekly markets including “covered markets” and “street markets” by alphabetical list of Burgundian town names. Lists by Departments then arranged in order of days of the week. Info on products for sale and location of markets. Not all towns listed : a selection of the most popular.There are very few towns or...

Chalon-sur-Sa��ne: Food market. Place Saint Vincent
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Pilgrims’ Way – Walk, Cycle, Drive

by pedroswift

Visiting Bourgogne? Keep in mind that one of the Medieval Routes taken by Pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela in Spain to pay homage to the relics of Saint James/Sainte Jaques/Sant Iago passes through the Region. The symbol of Saint James, the scallop shell, which marked the Pilgrim's route and were carried externally to mark them as devotees to the cause can be found in the town.The UNESCO listed hill-top Abbey Church of Vézelay , the Basiique Ste-Madeleine is perhaps the focal point of any visit to Burgundy to check out the Religious History of both France and the Region. However, you will not be disappointed by a visit based purely on architectural grounds. Who knows, just by exposing yourself to the splendid Basilica and its pure light you may well enjoy a semi-religious experience anyway......... “pure light”?- unlike most historic religious buildings that I have...

Light of the apse draws one in
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Châteaux - visit a couple

by pedroswift

Although probable not as famous for its castles as the Loire Valley in the Centre Region of France, Bourgogne has a plethora of Châteaux worthy of a visit.More importantly, it hosts a site which I believe is compulsory for any true tourist interested in architecture, history and France:- Guédelon, south-west of Auxerre near Saint-Sauveur-en-PuisayeAt Guédelon, workers are constructing a Château ( more correctly château-fort ) from scratch using original techniques and materials. A visit to this site in conjunction with a reading of Ina Caro’s book, “The Road from the Past: Traveling Through History in France” will set you up to better understand and appreciate the evolution of chateau design over the ages and make your chateaux visits more worthwhile.“Evolution”???? If you get the idea that the original objective back in the middle ages was to build a fortified residence to repel the...

Fortified hilltop Ch��teauneuf
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Bougogne by Bike, Velo, Cycle

by pedroswift

The Burgundy Promotion Board has realised what a mighty asset the tow paths associated with the canals of Bourgogne are. They have promoted them and disused railway lines and paths through vineyard areas as “ green roads” (voies vertes )suited to exploring the region by bike.Although I suspect their web-site needs a little updating, it is the starting point for planning a do- it-yourself ride through Burgundy. Of course, if you have the money, there are companies that have pay-to-ride tours (some guided) also using the voies vertes. Here is an example of an itinerary advertised by an Australian company. (have not tried it).There is a good regional map on the Promotion Board home page with existing routes - 580 kms of them. The plan to eventually have 800kms of paths. The system is interconnected with the Eurovelo Cycle Routes which can be used to cycle from the Black Sea to the Atlantic...

Food - Try the Regional Specialties

by pedroswift

Visiting Bourgogne? Do some homework on the Food of the region and its famous Recipes.Two that come to mind Beef Bourguignon – Beef stewed in red wine & veal stock and Coq au Vin (chicken in red wine). Other regional dishes include Snails in Garlic Butter and Jambon Persillé (Cold cubed Ham in Parsley layered Aspic). One Fish speciality I have sought is Pochouse, a stew of a combination of the different types of river fish caught in the region. Hope you have better luck than I had on two occasions I tried it. It was bland, bony, small fish – hardly a taste treat at all.I’ve enjoyed most versions of another speciality I’ve tried - Oeufs en meurette (poached eggs in red wine sauce)For a real kick in the mouth (and the nostrils) try some of the local cheeses especially Epoisses. While you are tasting cheese look for a product produced just outside the western edge of Bourgogne - Crottin de...

Worth a visit - tastings , history, and other prod
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Hire a Canal Boat

by pedroswift

Bourgogne waterways map tnx to VNFHire a boat and steer it yourself.In French -“location de bateau sans permis” – hire boat without requirement for a boat operators licence. No previous experience required. A quick lesson on which is the pointy end of the boat and away you go!!Bourgogne is easily accessed by car or public transport from major hubs – Paris and Lyon. Only an hour forty minutes by TGV from Paris to Dijon the capital of the Region -Two hours by car.Bourgogne (Burgundy) consisting of French Departments Cote d’Or (21); Saone & Loire (71); Yonne (89) & Nièvre (58) is rich in boat cruising grounds with more than a dozen options both Canals and Rivers. Check the map above - green coloured waterways are canals & blue denotes a river. It is possible to hire boats on the Canal Latéral à la Loire; Canal du Centre; Canal de Bourgogne; Canal de Briare; Canal du Nivernais; Canal de...

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Visit “Most Beautiful” Villages

by pedroswift

As part of your planning for a visit to France you should put villages that have been classified as the most beautiful in France on your “hit list”. Any road trip will be made much more interesting if you are aware of this list of 155 beautiful places. Bourgogne has several listed villages and there are a couple just outside of the region well worth a visit.Check out the web page on Villages and mark their locations on your route planning map or in your GPS.The page has villages listed under their department names. On the page for each village,there is a link to further info (visit xxxx) which also has interesting nearby places to visit as well.Those located in Burgundy include:-In Côte-d'Or: Chateauneuf-en-Auxois – 30 kms SW of Dijon. The Chateau sits in the landscape wonderfully well. Easily reached from the Burgundy Canal by foot or cycle as well as by car. Explore the village and...

Chateauneuf-en-Auxois
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Through the locks

by Myndo

Ecluses - the french call them. It's a way for boats (and its contents) to get over heights.The Canal Nivernaise has quite a few of them.Each lock has a person that operates it - though sometimes it is the same person for several locks.Some of the locks are automatic - which means, the operator just has to push a button. On our travel these were the locks closer to Migennes - until about Auxerre.After Auxerre down to Chatel Censoir all the locks had to be opened and closed manually. The lock operator does that - but he (or she) is happy, if he gets some help.Junior loved being able to turn the wheels that were necessary for that.So, how to you go through a lock?Approaching it - look out, if it is open. If not - wait about 100m before the entrance until the operator opens it. In the (seldom) case nothing happens - try use the horn of the boat.Drive in carefully and slow down early enough....

Hospices be Beaune Hotel-Dieu.

by Samsoncatdj

The Hôtel-Dieu of the Hospices de Beaune was used as a hospital up until the 1960s. The Hôtel Dieu is now a museum that shows how the hospital cared for people from 1443 through to the 19th Century. The multicoloured roofs of the Hôtel-Dieu have become one of the symbols of Burgundy. This place is not only contains an old hospital, but three courtyards, outbuildings, a 15th century bastion, a museum containing approximately 5000 items and hundreds of metres of cellars. There are four buildings open to the public that represent the Hôtel-Dieu of former times.The interiors are almost as beautiful as the exteriors and it is an interesting place to wander around. The museum contains some very famous works of art, including The Last Judgement by Rogier van der Weyden and many tapestries. Entry is inexpensive.

The courtyard.
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Chateau at Couches

by Flamegirl

With sections dating from the 11th Century, a visit to this old castle makes a nice day trip. A guided tour is recommended so as to appreciate its medieval past. You can also enjoy a wine-tasting in the cellars!In April, May and October, it's possible to arrange individual visits from 2.30pm to 6pm on Sundays and public holidays. In June and September, it's open every day from 2.30pm to 6pm. In July and August it's open every day from 10am - midday, and from 2pm to 6pm.Groups can arrange a tour at any time during the year.

Chateau de Couches, Burgundy

Top 3 Hotels in Bourgogne

Mercure Dijon Clemenceau  Dijon

 1 Review and 79 Opinions  The quality of Mercure Hotels from group Accor do vary. The one at the Centre Clemenceau was on the... 

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Hotel Grillon  Beaune

 1 Review and 45 Opinions  We've stayed at Hotel Grillon four times now and absolutely love it. Mme. Grillon speaks Excellent... 

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Le Maxime  Auxerre

 38 Opinions

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Bourgogne Things to Do

Reviews and photos of Bourgogne things to do posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Bourgogne sightseeing.
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