"Hidden treasures of Besançon in Franche-Comté" Top 5 Page for this destination Besançon by Loeffle

Besançon Travel Guide: 105 reviews and 179 photos

View over Besançon and the Doubs from the citadel

Capital of France-Comté

The origins of Besançon go back to Roman Age. It's strategic location on the loops of the Doubs River was already discovered by Romans. But the region was only in Roman hands for a couple of centuries before native tribes took over. But nevertheless there's even some Roman architecture left in Besançon.

Throughout history the town (as the whole region) was an important border bastion in the East of France. But actually the town became Spanish for some decades. Until the 19th century there was only one bridge over the Doubs river.

Until that time only the inner part of the Doubs peninsula was settled. The parts closer to water were swamplands. Vauban who built the French Eastern defence in the 17th and 18th century choose the rocky hill as location for one of his masterpiece fortifications: the Besançon Citadel.

Vauban is gone, German-French border wars are gone, but the Citadel is still there, and definetely Besançon's main attraction. It has been restored to a remarkably high standard and hosts almost ten museums and exhibtions.

Besides Besançon is a lively university town with some 120,000 inhabitants with some nice hidden treasures. Might be a good place to visit in combination with Belfort and Dijon, both towns are less than an hour away.

Pros and Cons

Pros:charming old town, lovely located, wonderful citadel
Cons:pickpocket, very warm in summer, traffic in downtown
In a nutshell:must see stop in Franche-Comté

Last visit to Besançon: Jun 2003
Intro Written Jun 27, 2003
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Reviews (15)

Crowds in Grande Rue = DANGER!!! - Besançon

Thieves!!! Warnings Or Dangers (1)

I'm sorry to say but Besançon (as well as most other bigger towns in Central Europe) is not 100 % safe when it comes to... more travel advice

Me at Besançon Citadel June 2003 - Besançon

Continental European Clothing... What to Pack (1)

Leave your luggage and bags in a safe place! Otherwise you risk that you return home with less than you brought. It's... more travel advice

Fountains ... Off The Beaten Path (4)

Many fountains can be found in Besançon. Small ones, big ones, historical and modern ones. Most of them are from the... more travel advice

Birthplace of Victor Hugo Things to Do (7)

In this building French writer and poet Victor Huge (1802 - 1885) was born. But actually he just lived for two weeks in... more travel advice

Nightlife (1)
Fête de la Musique

Transportation (1)
Tourist "Train" to the Citadel

Comments (5)

fabrice Jun 2, 2010 at 1:16 AM Report Abuse

a very beautiful city
balhannah Feb 5, 2010 at 3:11 PM Report Abuse

Nice page!
BruceDunning Jul 18, 2009 at 3:51 PM Report Abuse

The pictures and comments are very good and helps me understand this area. I read about it and was interested of the Gauls against Caesar
AndreSTGT Jul 7, 2003 at 8:17 AM Report Abuse

Excellent page!!! Besancon is a very beautiful, but undervisited city. Fête de la Musique sounds great. I was in Strasbourg for the Fête this year.
Anjutka Jun 27, 2003 at 7:42 AM Report Abuse

Deep in history??? I like such ancient sights very much..it' s romantical..the view is just great...:))) Good luck with all...