Pontarlier: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

The Porte Saint-Pierre is one of the testimonies to Pontarlier’s history: it is one of the few surviving remnants of the original fortifications. Since 1970, it has been listed in the supplementary inventory of France’s historic monuments.

Anyone considering Pontarlier as a holiday destination may wish to rent a holiday apartment there.

Culture

The Musée Municipal was founded in 1977 after the acquisition of a former bourgeois residence and opened to the public in 1982. It displays archaeological collections ranging from prehistory through protohistory to the early Middle Ages, French and foreign faience, as well as regionally influenced paintings from the 19th and 20th centuries. It also explores Pontarlier’s significant role in the history of absinthe.

The Chapelle des Annonciades is listed as a historic monument and is now used as an exhibition hall. Since 1924, it has hosted the Salon des Annonciades every year, which is considered the oldest art salon in Franche-Comté.

Nature

The Parc Jeanine Dessay is a former 17th-century monastery garden in the centre of Pontarlier. More than 1,100 plant species grow there in a geometric garden, an English garden and an alpine garden; there is also a small marsh and a pond.

Activities

Pontarlier à Pas Contés is a 1.7-kilometre-long, approximately 1.5-hour, playful tour through the town centre for children aged 6 to 10 accompanied by their parents, with games and puzzles along the way. The Chemin du train is a 17-kilometre family walk from Pontarlier to Gilley along a converted former railway line.

Along the banks of the Doubs, there is an equipped promenade, opportunities for canoeing and kayaking, as well as tracks for roller skiing and roller skating and a bi-cross course. The Larmont area is connected to the Swiss network of trails and the GTJ and offers walks with views of the Alps.

Regional Context

The annual Absinthiades focus on the „green fairy“ and bring Pontarlier’s historic absinthe heritage to life through events, collections, exhibitions and tastings. The Route de l’Absinthe is a French-Swiss tourist route from Pontarlier to Noiraigue in Switzerland. Along it, around twenty remarkable sites, such as distilleries, a drying shed and museums, can be discovered.

Getting There

Pontarlier railway station has a TER ticket machine, as well as bus connections operated by Pontabus and bus and coach connections operated by Montjura.

To the higher-level travel overview: Doubs.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

La Chaux, Morteau, Pont-De-Roide, Les Alliés, Dommartin, Lods, Mondon, Baume-Les-Dames.