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Grande Saline

The Jura Mountains

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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 Saline's salt museum to learn about the medieval salt trade that made the town rich, and gawp at antique pans, pumps and other salt-processing equipment. It's more illuminating to join an hour-long guided tour; there are between two and 12 daily tours in French, while English-language tours are at 12.15pm between July and mid-September.

Salins-les-Bains lies 15km southeast of Arc-et-Senans, which is home to an even more impressive salty sight, the Saline Royale.

Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±'s must-see attractions

  • A picture taken on July 10, 2008, in Besancon, eastern France shows the fortification of the town's citadel, which was added to the list of World Heritage sites by UNESCO on July 7 2008. The fortification represents the "finest examples" of the work of Sebastien Le Prestre de Vauban, a military engineer of King Louis XIV. The total number of World Heritage sites now reaches 878 sites in 145 countries. AFP PHOTO JEFF PACHOUD (Photo credit should read JEFF PACHOUD/AFP/Getty Images)

    Citadelle de Besançon

    21.59 MILES

    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…

  • Musée du Temps

    Musée du Temps

    21.76 MILES

    Literal and figurative interpretations of time are woven together at the Musée du Temps, which places allegorical paintings about the passage of time next…

  • Chateau de Joux at sunset.

    Château de Joux

    24 MILES

    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…

  • Arc-et-Senans, France - September 1, 2020: Front view of the southern facade of the former Guards building of the Royal Saltworks, with a neoclassical portico, only entrance to the site. 1297741639 peristyle

    Saline Royale

    7.96 MILES

    These wondrously symmetrical early–Industrial Age saltworks were designed to be an 'ideal city' by Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. Though Ledoux's plans never came…

  • The Caves of Baume Interior.

    Grottes de Baume

    20.57 MILES

    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…

  • The Augustinian abbey in Montbenoit, France.

    Abbaye de Montbenoît

    27.99 MILES

    Montbenoît's Renaissance-style tower – emblazoned with a horseback knight – instantly impresses. Inside, explore the old abbey's double-columned…

  • BESANCONS, FRANCE/EUROPE - SEPTEMBER 13: Astronomical Clock in Cathedral of St Jean in Besancon France on September 13, 2015; Shutterstock ID 323711300; full: digital; gl: 65050; netsuite: pot; your: Barbara Di Castro 323711300

    Horloge Astronomique

    21.69 MILES

    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…

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Nearby The Jura Mountains attractions

1. Musée de la Vigne et du Vin du Jura

5.35 MILES

The history behind the Jura's prized vin jaune (barrel-matured wine with a distinctive yellow hue) is told at this understated museum, between the turrets…

2. Maison de Louis Pasteur

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Louis Pasteur's laboratory and workshops have been preserved at his familial house, which still sports its 19th-century fixtures and fittings. Digital …

3. Saline Royale

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These wondrously symmetrical early–Industrial Age saltworks were designed to be an 'ideal city' by Claude-Nicolas Ledoux. Though Ledoux's plans never came…

4. Abbaye Impériale

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Baume-les-Messieurs' abandoned Benedictine Abbaye Impériale has an exquisite polychrome Flemish altarpiece dating from the 16th century (the time when the…

5. Cascades des Tufs

20.49 MILES

Near the Grottes de Baume, the Tufs waterfalls slosh dramatically over limestone boulders into the Dard River. There are picturesque walking trails nearby.

6. Grottes de Baume

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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…

7. Musée Pasteur

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Louis Pasteur (1822–95), who developed the first rabies vaccine and, of course, pasteurisation, spent his first three years in Dole. His childhood home in…

8. Citadelle de Besançon

21.59 MILES

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…