BURGUNDY-FRANCHE-COMTÉ REGION
Departments: Côte d'Or, Doubs, Jura, Nièvre, Haute-Saône, Saône-et-Loire, Yonne, Territoire de Belfort
Population: 2.8 million
Prefecture: Dijon
Surface area: 47,784 km2
Specialities: Burgundy and Maconnais wines, Jura wines, cheeses (Comté, Mont d'Or, morbier, bleu de Gex, cancoillotte), beef bourguignon, Bresse poultry, kir.
Sports clubs: FGC Sochaux, AJ Auxerre, FC Gueugnon (football), Elan sportif chalonnais, JDA Dijon (basketball), Jeanne d'Arc Dijon (handball)
Competitions: car races on the Dijon-Prenois circuit, the Franck Pineau gran fondo in Auxerre, etc.
Economy: automotive (Peugeot-Montbéliard), Alstom, General Electric (rail), steel, mining, parachemicals, pharmaceuticals, electronics, plastics, paper, mechanical engineering and automotive industries, agriculture (cereals, sugar beet, beef, cheese). Forestry. Watchmaking. Tourism.
Festivals: Eurockéennes in Belfort, Hospices de Beaune sales, Grandes heures de Cluny, Vézelay musical encounters, Adventure Screens in Dijon, International and Gastronomic Fair in Dijon, Fenêtres sur courts in Dijon. Courbet bicentenary. Besançon Early Music Festival.
Tourist sites: Fontenay abbey, Vézelay basilica, Notre-Dame-du-Haut chapel in Ronchamp, Burgundy vineyards, Besançon citadel, Dukers of Burgundy palac in Dijon, Arc-et-Senans royal saltworks, Autun cathedral, Guédelon château, Beaune hospices, Belfort citadel and Lion, Cluny abbey, Alsace balloon, Solutré rock.
Websites and social networks: www.bourgognefranchecomte.fr
JURA (39)
Population:260,000
Prefecture: Lons-le-Saunier
Sub-prefectures: Dole, Saint-Claude
Surface area: 5,000 km²
Specialities: Comté (cheese), Vache Qui Rit (portioned cheese), Vin Jaune (the only grape variety in the world, Savagnin), toys, Saint-Claude pipes, watchmaking, eyewear, woodwork, industrial subcontracting, wildlife watching (lynx, eagle, black grouse, chamois).
Competitions: La Forestière (mountain bike trekking and racing from 40 to 100 km), Transjurassienne (must for Nordic skiing in France), Tour du Jura cycle race.
Festivals / concerts: Idéklic Toy and Children Festival(Moirans-en-Montagne), Brainans Windmill, Circus and Brass-bands (Dole), bouche à oreille festival, NoLogo festival (Fraisans).
Economy: plastics, chemicals, agri-food, screw-cutting, subcontracting to the luxury goods industry, eyewear, watchmaking, timber construction, livestock farming, four-season tourism, spa treatments, subcontracting to the automotive and aeronautical industries, wine-growing, cheeses.
Websites / FB: www.jura.fr / www.facebook.com/departementdujura
Km 4.2
CHAUX-DES-CROTENAY (POP: 400)
In 1962, archaeologist André Berthier proposed that the site of the Battle of Alesia should be located at Chaux-des-Crotenay. This thesis is supported by TV journalist Franck Ferrand, well known to Tour de France spectators.
Km 41.7
SAINT-CLAUDE (POP: 13,000)
Saint-Claude is renowned for its pilgrimage site and its abbey dedicated to Abbot Clade, who was found intact 460 years after his death. The town's economy historically revolved around craftsmanship, notably wood, bone, and ivory turnings. Jean-François Rosset’s bust of Voltaire is one of the famous pieces. The craft gained prominence in 1855 with the introduction of the briar pipe, establishing Saint-Claude as a center for pipe-making. The town is still celebrated for its pipes, which are highly regarded by connoisseurs. Saint-Claude is also the birthplace of polar explorer Paul-Émile Victor and Alexis Vuillermoz, who won the 8th stage of the 2015 Tour de France in Mûr-de-Bretagne.
Cathedral of Saint-Pierre Saint-Paul and Saint-AndréConstruction: 14th to 18th centuries
Style: Gothic with Baroque façade
History and Characteristics: This exceptional historical monument boasts significant architectural interest. The cathedral, begun in the 14th century and completed in the 18th (becoming a cathedral in 1742), features a fortified church with a stern Gothic interior. The stained-glass windows were renovated in 1999. The choir contains beautiful 15th-century stalls, some restored after a fire in 1983. A 16th-century Renaissance altarpiece, donated by the Bishop of Geneva, adds to its historical value.
Listed as: Historical monument in 1906
Pipe and Diamond MuseumThe museum, established by the Confrérie des Maîtres Pipiers de Saint-Claude (Brotherhood of St Claude Master Pipe-makers) and the Haut-Jura Diamond and Lapidary Association, showcases a permanent exhibition of pipes from various periods, as well as diamonds, precious stones, and synthetic
Km 57.8
COL DE LA CROIX DE LA SERRA
This pass has been featured twice in the men's Tour de France. It was first used on stage 6 of the 1996 Tour de France, where Dutchman Léon van Bon was in the lead. The pass was again included on stage 7 of the 2010 Tour de France, when French rider Jérôme Pineau, then wearing the polka-dot jersey, was in front.
AIN (01)
Population: 654,000 (Andinois)
Prefecture: Bourg-en-Bresse
Sub-prefectures: Nantua, Belley, and Gex
Surface Area: 5,762 km²
Region: Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Heritage: Royal Monastery of Brou, Ars Basilica (Ars sur Formans), Bird Park, Maison d'Izieu, medieval town of Pérouges, Château des Allymes, Ambronay Abbey, Museum of Bresse (now known as the Les Planons Savour Estate), and 38 sites designated as sensitive natural areas.
Specialties: Bresse poultry (the only AOC-AOP poultry in the world), Bresse cream and butter, Bugey wines, cheeses (Comté, Bleu de Gex, Morbier, etc.), Dombes fish, pike quenelles with Nantua sauce, Bresse tart, Pérouges tart, etc.
Main Sports Clubs: US Oyonnax (rugby union), JL Bourg (basketball), USBPA (rugby union), FBBP01 (football).
Major Competitions: Tour de l'Ain, Bourg-en-Bresse International Show-jumping (CSI 4****), Bourg Open de l'Ain tennis Grand Prix, Ain'ternational Rhône-Alpes Valromey Tour (International junior 1 and 2 team event), La Forestière UCI, La Bisous (gran fondo), L'Aindinoise (gran fondo).
Culture: Ambronay Baroque Music Festival, Printemps de Pérouges (music), Musicals in the Bird Park, Comics festival in Ain, Brass festival in Dombes, Oh! Bugey festival, A la folie pas du tout, The great AOC - AOP - IGP market, Entretiens de Belley (gastronomic event).
Economy: 1st industrial department in France. In January 2019, the Ain department launched its Origin'Ain label to promote its many areas of expertise (250 companies). Numerous international competitiveness clusters (Plastic Valley, Alimentec, Plaine de l'Ain industrial park, etc.).
Websites and Social Networks: www.ain.fr / www.tourdefrance-ain.fr / www.ain-tourisme.com / Facebook: @Departement01 / Instagram: @ain.le.departement / Twitter: @Departement_AIN / YouTube: Département de l'Ain / Snapchat: Snapdelain
Km 72.1
SAINT-GERMAIN-DE-JOUX(POP: 500)
Saint-Germain-de-Joux is the birthplace of poet Jean Tardieu, a close friend of Raymond Queneau and winner of the 1972 Académie Française poetry prize. Tardieu was often inspired by the landscapes of his childhood in the region.
Retord PlateauA plateau in the Jura massif, located in the Haut-Bugey region, measuring 7 km by 3 km. It features a vast area of meadow and forest and is designated as a type 1 natural zone of ecological, faunistic, and floristic interest (ZNIEFF). The plateau was the site of the Ain Maquis, led by Colonel Henri Romans-Petit.
In winter, it is popular for all winter sports, especially cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. During the rest of the year, it is ideal for outdoor sports such as hiking, horse riding, and mountain biking. Luc Jacquet's film Le Renard et l'Enfant (2007) was shot largely on the plateau, as were many of the shots in Jacques Perrin's film Les Saisons (2016).
Km 78.8
VALSERHÔNE(POP: 16,000)
Châtillon-en-Michaille (Pop: 4,000)Joined the municipality of Valserhône (16,000 inhabitants) in 2019.
Pertes de ValserineA small river in the Ain department, rising north of the Col de la Faucille on the border between the Ain and Jura departments. After 48 km, it flows into the Rhône at Bellegarde-sur-Valserine. Since the disappearance of the glacier that covered the Jura during the Würm ice age 15,000 years ago, the Valserine has carved out its bed in the limestone strata deposited during the Jurassic period.
In the Commune of LancransMétral Dam
Today, it powers a micro-electric power station. It is located on the site of former mills and has been rebuilt several times. The site of the old mills was submerged in February 1758 when the hill undermined by the river, which supported the ruins of the Ballon castle, collapsed.
Km 83
BELLEGARDE-SUR-VALSERINE(POP: 11,000)
On 1 January 2019, it became a delegated commune of Valserhône. Founded in 1859 following the creation of a railway station on the Lyon-Geneva line, the town quickly grew in importance with the installation of various factories on the Rhône. It became one of the very first towns in France to have public electric lighting, thanks to Swiss industrialist Louis Dumont, who built a dam on the Valserine in 1853.
In 2012, Bellegarde-sur-Valserine was the finish of a stage of the Tour de France won solo by Thomas Voeckler, who took the polka-dot jersey. Bellegarde has also hosted two stages of the Tour de l'Avenir.
Musinens CastleFoundation: 13th century
Style: Medieval fortress converted to Renaissance style
Characteristics: The castle comprises four buildings and curtain wall bases delimiting a rectangular courtyard.
Trivia: The site was once the home of the Hospitallers of St John of Jerusalem.
Current Use: Owned by the commune of Bellegarde, the château was renovated at the turn of the 2010s and now hosts exhibitions, conferences, etc.
AUVERGNE-RHÔNE-ALPES REGION
Departments: Ain, Allier, Ardèche, Cantal, Drôme, Isère, Loire, Haute-Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Rhône, Métropole de Lyon, Savoie, Haute-Savoie
Population: 8 million
Prefecture: Lyon
Surface Area: 69,711 km²
Specialties: Beaujolais, Côtes du Rhône, and Savoy wines; Lyon specialties (quenelles, cervelles de canut, saucisson); Auvergne potée; Savoy specialties (raclette, fondue, tartiflettes, diots, crozets); Cheeses (beaufort, reblochon, cantal, bleu d'Auvergne, Salers, Saint-Nectaire); Green lentil of Le Puy; Waters (Evian, Thonon, Volvic); Verbena; Chartreuse
Sports Clubs: Olympique Lyonnais, AS Saint-Étienne, Clermont Foot 63, Grenoble Foot 38 (football); ASM Clermont, Lyon OU, FC Grenoble, Stade Aurillacois, US Oyonnax (rugby union); ASVEL Villeurbanne (basketball); Chambéry (handball); Brûleurs de Loups Grenoble, Pionniers de Chamonix (ice hockey)
Competitions: Women's football World Cup; Ski competitions (Première neige criterium in Val d'Isère); Tour de France mountain passes; Critérium du Dauphiné
Economy: (8th European region) Cutting-edge industries; Automotive (Berliet); Metallurgy; Rubber; Plastics; Chemicals; Electronics; Agri-food; Textiles; Digital; Banks; Universities; Public services; Winegrowing; Tyres (Michelin); Design; New technologies (Inovallée); Winter and summer tourism
Festivals: Fête des Lumières in Lyon; Nuits de Fourvière in Lyon; Quais du Polar in Lyon; Biennale of Design in Saint-Étienne; Classical music festival in La Chaise-Dieu
Sights: Old Lyon and Croix-Rousse; Le Puy-en-Velay cathedral; Lake Annecy; Chambéry castle; Winter sports in Isère, Savoie, and Haute-Savoie; Cantal; Spa resorts; Auvergne volcanoes; Grotte de Chauvet; Château de Grignan; Grenoble Bastille; Vulcania; Parc des Oiseaux
Websites and Social Networks: www.auvergnerhonealpes.fr
HAUTE-SAVOIE(74)
Population: 830,000
Prefecture: Annecy
Sub-prefectures: Bonneville, Saint-Julien-en-Genevois, Thonon-les-Bains
Surface Area: 4,388 km²
Specialties: Tartiflette, raclette, fondue savoyarde, diots (sausages), atriaux (pork with liver), crozets, polenta, farcement (grated potato and dried fruit), potato fritters, cardoons (vegetables), tome des Bauges (cheese), bugnes, bescoins (biscuits with aniseed), milk jam, la grolle (gnole with coffee), gâteau de Savoie, rissoles (pastries with puff pastry), roseaux du Lac (dark chocolates filled with liqueur), génépi
Sports Clubs: Evian-Thonon Gaillard (football); Chevaliers du Lac Annecy (ice hockey); Hockey Club du Mont-Blanc Saint-Gervais-Megève; FCS Rumilly (rugby); Alpine skiing
Competitions: Lake Annecy International Triathlon (June); Lake Annecy International Marathon; Swimming across the lake
Festivals: Venetian Carnival; Annecy International Animation Film Festival (June); Les Pontons Flingueurs crime thriller festival (June); Lake Annecy Festival; Italian Film Festival (October); St André Fair (December); OH2 Festival in Saint-Gervais (6 July); Megève Jazz Contest; Pays du Mont-Blanc Baroque Festival
Main Tourist Attractions: Lake Annecy; Annecy Castle; Mont-Blanc and the Sea of Ice; Aravis; Winter sports resorts of Chamonix, Saint-Gervais, Megève, Les Gets, Morzine, and Avoriaz
Economy: Watchmaking (Cluses); Screw-cutting; Mechanical engineering (Dassault, Alcatel); Agriculture and agri-food (Reblochon, Tome, Evian water); Mountain tourism; Sports industry (Dynastar, Salomon, Mavic)
Website: haut-savoie.fr, haute-savoie-tourisme.org
Km 94.7
VANZY (POP: 400)
The ruins of Château de Mons, or Mons Towers, stand on a mound above the village of Vanzy. They were listed as historical monuments in 1989.
Km 100
FRANGY(POP: 2,100)
There is a "cow" museum on the mountain pastures. Since 2015, a reggae festival, the Nomade Reggae Festival, has been held every August (Alpha Blondy, Taïro, Touré Kunda, Yaniss Odua...). .
Km 106.3
SALLENÔVES(POP: 745)
Sallenôves CastleFounded: End of the 11th century
Style: Medieval fortress
Characteristics: Built at an altitude of 400 meters on a rocky hill overlooking the Grandes Usses.
Trivia: In the Middle Ages, it was an obligatory ford on the road between Geneva and Chambéry, generating revenue from tolls. It served as a fortress controlling this important communication route for over four centuries. It is one of the few castles in Haute-Savoie considered haunted. A room known as the Devil's Room is said to be haunted by a specter described as "an armed, caparisoned, foaming horse that disappeared at the last stroke of midnight."
Current Use: Private property.
Listed As: Historical Monument in 1931
Km 118.8
ALLONZIER-LA-CAILLE(POP: 2,180)
Caille BridgeBuilt: 1839
History: The Charles-Albert Bridge, named after the Duke of Savoy who commissioned it and commonly known as Pont de la Caille, is a suspension bridge with conventional steel cable suspension straddling the municipalities of Allonzier-la-Caille and Cruseilles. Reserved for pedestrians and cyclists, it has been twinned with the Caquot Bridge, which carries motor traffic. Both bridges overlook the river by 150 meters at the bottom of the gorge where the Caille baths, known to the Romans, once stood. The baths are no longer in use, but the spring still gushes forth.
Designed To: Cross the River Usses
Inaugurated: 11 July 1839
Listed As: Historical Monument in 1966
Km 124
SAINT-MARTIN-BELLEVUE (POP: 2,700)
Merged in 2017 with the communes of Aviernoz, Evires, Les Ollières, Saint-Martin-Bellevue, and Thorens-Glières to create Fillière, the second-largest commune in Haute-Savoie after Annecy. Fillière—named after the river that runs through it—is unusual in that it is only a provisional name. The communes concerned wanted to call themselves Val-de-Glières, a name rejected by the state. The new commune is served by the Léman Express, the new cross-border train line due to be introduced in 2019.
Thorens-Glières is the birthplace of Saint François de Sales, who was very popular in Savoy and became the patron saint of journalists.
Km 127.2
ANNECY(POP: 130,000)
Seventy years after the Tour first arrived in Annecy, Alberto Contador won the last of his three stages on the event in 2009 by victoriously completing the time trial around the lake. In 2013, the route turned to the hilly terrain that gives the lake its special character. The finish at Semnoz remains the first victory for Nairo Quintana, who ended his Tour debut in the polka-dot jersey and in 2nd place overall. While we're on the subject of the first finish in Annecy in 1939, let's not forget that it was won by one of the most French of Dutch riders, Antoon Van Schendel, whose brother Albert was also a Tour de France rider. The two men were based in Muret, a Tour's stage town in 2015, where the family had a farm. In 2018, Annecy was the launch pad for a stage to Le Grand Bornand, where Julian Alaphilippe won.
While the Tour has long shunned the town—half a century between Rolf Graf's victory in 1959 and Alberto Contador's in 2009—the Critérium du Dauphiné has made it one of its must-sees, with no fewer than 22 visits. Annecy is also the birthplace of Jeannie Longo.
The lakeLake Annecy is one of the cleanest lakes in the world. The largest lake in Haute-Savoie, it is also the second largest lake in France after Lac du Bourget in Savoie. A glacial lake dating back 18,000 years, it was formed when the Alpine glaciers melted.
It is fed by several streams flowing down from the surrounding mountains: the Laudon, Bornette, Ire, Eau Morte, and Biolon. The Boubioz, a major spring located beneath the lake, completes the picture. At the other end, the Thiou, which winds its way through the old town of Annecy, acts as a spillway and flows into the Fier, which flows through the Gorges du Fier and finally joins the Rhône. Every year at the beginning of August, the Lake Annecy Festival features Europe's largest fireworks display.
Annecy CastleConstruction: 12th to 16th centuries
History and Characteristics: Overlooking the town, the castle is the former residence of the Counts of Geneva and the Dukes of Genevois-Nemours, the youngest branch of the House of Savoy, and was built between the 12th and 16th centuries. The castle was burnt down several times and abandoned in the 17th century. It was used as a barracks until 1947, when it was acquired by the town of Annecy in 1953, which restored it with the help of the Historical Monuments.
Current Use: It is home to the Annecy Museum of Contemporary and Regional Art and, since 1993, the Tower and Perrière lodgings have also housed the Regional Office for Alpine Lakes.
Km 145.7
THÔNES (POP: 6,500)
Nestling between the unspoilt Val Sulens, the Aravis Massif, and the blue waters of Lake Annecy, Thônes is a truly charming village. The gateway to the Aravis mountains, Thônes lies at the foot of the Tournette (2,351 m) and Mont Lachat (2,024 m) massifs, at an altitude of 650 metres. It is located 10 km from the mountain resorts of La Clusaz, Le Grand-Bornand, and Manigod, and 20 km from Lake Annecy. The town centre is typical of the Savoy Baroque style, featuring its bulbous bell tower. Stroll through the streets and you'll discover colourful facades and arcades dating back to the second half of the 15th century.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote movingly of his time in Thônes in 1730 in The Confessions. The town was also the birthplace of world champion skier Régine Cavagnoud, who tragically died in 2001.
The Tour de France has passed through Thônes since its first major visit to the Alps in 1911. Last June, Thônes was also the starting town for the final stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné, which was won on the Plateau des Glières by Carlos Rodriguez, with Primoz Roglic taking the final classification.
Km 155.6
SAINT-JEAN-DE-SIXT(POP: 1,500)
Saint-Jean-de-Sixt is notable as the birthplace of Saint Pierre Favre, who was born in 1506 and died in Rome in 1546. He was one of the founders of the Jesuits. A chapel in the village is dedicated to his memory.
