Chalon sur Saône

We start off at the « Tour du Doyenné », on the Ile Saint-Laurent. This tower dates back to the 15th Century, but it has been taken down and rebuilt on its actual place a few centuries later.

From the « Tour du Doyenné », we follow the river Saône, you will notice the Hospital of Chalon on your right. At certain dates, you can visit the beautiful old pharmacy of the hospital.

We cross the bridge « Pont Saint-Laurent » decorated with obelisks, going towards the cathedral. We follow the “rue du Pont”, the road just opposite the bridge. At the crossroads of the rue du Pont and the rue du Chatelet, you can admire a replica of the statue of Christ by Michelangelo. You will notice the escargots on the statue, a funny « Burgundy touch ».
On these crossroads, you need to turn right towards the square Saint-Vincent, on which you will discover the beautifully restored cathedral.

Arriving on the square, you will discover a statue of Saint-Vincent (patron of the wine growers) on the house at the angle of the square and the rue Saint Vincent. Around the square you will see remarkable half-timbered houses and of course the cathedral itself. Besides the cathedral, it is also possible to visit cloister (access through the interior of the cathedral-at right side).
We take the road on the left of the cathedral, where you will see some beautiful houses. We’ll walk through the rue Edgar Quinet and under a voulted porch, then arriving at a parking place. From this parking, we take the road to the right leading us to the Avenue Mathias. On the right side of this Avenue, you will find the botanical gardens, called by the people of Chalon « parc aux biches (deer) ».  

From Avenue Mathias, we take the Rue de l’ancien Carmel to end up at the rue aux Fèvres (on left side of the cathedral). Take the rue aux Fèvres to the left and pass in front of the former Theatre (dating back to the 18th Century) at n° 34

At the end of the rue aux Fèvres, you end up at the Place de Beaune. From here, we go into the heart of the old part of town, this time following the “Grande Rue”, one of Chalon sur Saône’s major shopping streets. When you see the replica of Michelangelo’s Christ, we turn right onto the rue du Chatelet. You will see a few remarkable houses, particularly n° 37, la maison des 4 saisons.

At the end of rue du Chatelet, we continue onto the rue au Change after a slight bend to the right. Now we arrive at the square of the Hôtel de Ville, where modern street lights go hand in hand with classic buildings.

From the Place de l’Hôtel de Ville, we return to the quais of the Saône river over the rue du Port Villiers. Along the quais of the river, you will discover a statue of Nicéphore Niepce, the inventor of Photography, but also the Museum Nicéphore Niepce and the Tourist Office. Across the river, you will see the Tour du Doyenné, where we started our little stroll through the city of Chalon sur Saône.