Dijon Favorite Tips by Lilasel Top 5 Page for this destination

Lake Kir

Favorite thing: Not every city can be so lucky as to be situated Oceanside. Some can’t even say they have a lake.
This used to be Dijon’s case and they made their own lake.

Lake Kir was the idea of Félix Kir, a former mayor of Dijon during the mid-1900’s.
The lake is now named after him. In June 2004 the lake celebrated its 40th year.

The big project at Lake Kir was the construction of a small beach. There’s real sand, changing rooms, showers, and beach chairs available. There’s also a beach volley ball area.

mmmmmm

Favorite thing: Dijon is one of the glories of the French gastronomic tradition, known throughout the world for its mustard (moutard de Dijon), blackcurrant liqueur (creme de cassis), gingerbread (pain d'epice), etc...

Le Jardin Darcy

Favorite thing: A very pleasant garden featuring the polar bear, a work from the famous animal sculptor, Francois Pompon

Parc de la Colombiere

Favorite thing: Parks and gardens have their own importance in the city 17 parks and gardens make the city more attractive for its inhabitants.

Most of these parks or gardens are equipped with children's playgrounds or small animal parks like in the Parc de la Colombiere. (33ha, created in 1672)
"The most beautiful avenue of my kingdom", said Louis XIV about the central 1,5 km walk of the park.

Medieval houses of rue Verrerie

Favorite thing: One of the oldest streets in Dijon. Best antiques and old EVERYTHING at the most crowded shops are here.

Touch the owl and make a wish...

Favorite thing: The ideal way to see the old town is on foot along the The Owl's Trail. Pick up a booklet from the Tourist Office on Place Darcy and follow the 22 numbered stages around the old town. Over the centuries the owl has become a good luck charm in Dijon. It was carved on one of the flying buttresses of the side chapel of Notre Dame. When you pass by on your tour, rub it with your left hand and make a wish – and pray that a gargoyle doesn't fall down and hit you.

Musee des Beaux Arts

Favorite thing: The Palais now houses Dijon's town hall and the Musee des Beaux Arts. The art collection, the most significant outside Paris, features many Dutch and Flemish masters and sculptures by Francois Rude and Charles Sluter, including the magnificent tombs of the dukes in the Salle des Gardes.

Rue de la Liberte

Favorite thing: Dijon is an open museum of fine domestic architecture, offering fascinating glimpses of the past. Most of the buildings of interest are crammed into the old city, an area protected by stringent zoning regulations. Through its centre runs the Rue de la Liberte, cutting like a sword through the smaller streets on either side.

Maison Milliere

Favorite thing: Behind the Palais runs the Rue des Forges, site of one of Dijon's oldest dwellings, the Maison Milliere (built in 1483). Its half-timbered facade features in a scene in the movie Cyrano de Bergerac with famous Gerard Depardieu.

Notre-Dame de Dijon

Favorite thing: Viollet-le-Duc was the first architect since the Middle Ages to reach a profound understanding of the principles of Gothic construction and he devoted his careful scrutiny to the structure of Notre-Dame. The tall, monolithic and incredibly thin colonettes which support the apse vaults he describes as "splender pins, as strongs as if they were of cast iron, thanks to the quality of the stone employed".