Dole-Jura France
4
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Frequently Asked Questions
At the port du Prélot, at the foot of the old town. It is the best possible spot: the historic quarter begins on the other side of the Doubs, whose arms and mill races wrap around it so completely that Dole is nicknamed the little Venice of the Jura.
Yes, entirely — the town has stayed the size of a walk. The Chat perché trail, signposted through the streets, threads from the ramparts into the lanes. Expect some climbing toward the collegiate church.
Louis Pasteur's birthplace, the Tanners' canal, then the collegiate church of Notre-Dame and the covered market. It is a comfortable pace: Dole does not ask you to run.
Louis Pasteur was born here in 1822, in a tanner's house beside the canal. Dole was also long the capital of Franche-Comté, with its own parliament and university, until Louis XIV conquered the province and moved the institutions to Besançon in 1676.
The family tannery at canal level, the living quarters, personal keepsakes and instruments telling the story of rabies vaccination and pasteurisation. The museum stays intimate, at a child's eye level. On the way out, a passage drops straight down to the bank.
A mill race lined with former workshops whose tall facades reflect in the green water, with footbridges and willows. The tanners are gone; artists, restaurateurs and walkers have taken over along this shaded ribbon of water.
A 16th-century building whose powerful bell tower is visible from the surrounding countryside. Its broad nave, chapels and blond stone speak of Franche-Comté's former standing. Around it, the place aux Fleurs and the rue de Besançon line up mansions, Renaissance courtyards and watch turrets.
A signposted route through the streets honouring Marcel Aymé, who spent part of his childhood here and gave that title to his famous tales. It runs from the ramparts to the 17th-century Hôtel-Dieu, now a media library, and on to viewpoints over the brown roofs and the Doubs.
Fruity comté, morbier and Morteau sausage, under the market halls near the collegiate church, with wines from the neighbouring Jura. This is a country market, not a tourist showcase.
The euro, cards accepted at the Pasteur museum and in shops. French is spoken; the Pasteur house receives visitors from around the world and offers English material, but the town is not otherwise very English-speaking.
