🇫🇷 Besançon, France Travel Guide

At the end of November, I visited Besançon, a small city in eastern France, and noticed there aren’t many guides about it on Xiaohongshu. So, I decided to share my experience over the weekend! 📖 Introduction: Besançon is a city in eastern France, located at the northern edge of the Jura Mountains, about 60 km from the Swiss border. It’s one of France’s most forested major cities. The Doubs River, a tributary of the Saône, flows from east to west through Besançon, giving the city a unique peninsula-like layout—"backed by mountains and surrounded by water on three sides." With a rich history, Besançon is one of France’s cultural and historical gems. It was home to France’s first public library in the 18th century and is the birthplace of famous figures like writer Victor Hugo and the Lumière brothers, pioneers of cinema. 🚄 Transportation: I took the TGV from Paris’s Gare de Lyon to Besançon’s city-center station, Besançon Viotte, which took about 2.5 hours. I used a free TGVmax ticket. You can also take a direct TGV from Besançon to Switzerland (e.g., Zurich in just over 3 hours). The city has trams and buses—tickets (€1.40) can be bought at station machines or directly from the driver. 🏞 Attractions: Most of Besançon’s sights are clustered along one street, so you can easily explore them in a day. 🌟 Square Castan Park – A small but easily missed site with ruins of a 4th–6th-century theater excavated in 1870. Europe really excels at preserving historical relics! 🌟 Porte Noire (Black Gate) – A striking ancient arch that shows the marks of time. 🌟 Right past the Black Gate is Besançon Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Jean). The massive cathedral was empty when I visited, so I didn’t stay long… and forgot to take photos! 😆 🌟 Walking uphill from the cathedral brings you to Besançon Citadel (Citadelle de Besançon), the city’s most famous attraction. I’ve seen many European castles, but this one is unique—it houses a zoo, aquarium, insectarium, natural history museum, small farm, and more! The fortress walls also offer panoramic views of the city and the river. Highly recommended! 🎫 Ticket prices: Full €10.80 / Off-season €8.80 / Student €6.80 🌟 Victor Hugo’s Birthplace (Maison natale de Victor Hugo) – Now a small museum. 🌟 Ferris Wheel at Besançon’s Christmas Market – A festive highlight! 🍜 Food: By luck, I found an amazing Cantonese restaurant in the city center—Restaurant Hong Kong. As a Cantonese myself, I was thrilled! They even served slow-cooked soup (老火靓汤)! The owners, a Hong Kong couple, were super friendly (though their Mandarin was… not great 😆). I ordered satay beef and steamed chicken in lotus leaf—both delicious and a perfect remedy for my homesick stomach! 😋 Key Attractions with Emojis 🌟 Square Castan Park 🌟 Porte Noire (Black Gate) 🌟 Besançon Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Jean) 🌟 Besançon Citadel (Citadelle de Besançon) 🌟 Victor Hugo’s Birthplace (Maison natale de Victor Hugo) 🌟 Christmas Market Ferris Wheel Hope this helps future travelers! 😊 #Besançon#France