Chalon-sur-Saône / Tournus
Leave the lively town of Chalon-sur-Saône following the Voie Bressane greenway up to Ouroux-sur-Saône before rejoining your original guiding thread – the Saône. The river now reveals a more unspoilt side as you ride through a protected zone. Along the way, make the most of the lovely, well-laid-out riverside stop at Gigny-sur-Saône. This stage finishes at Tournus, a town that grew up around its celebrated abbey, but which is now as well known for its gastronomic restaurants.
Gradients and elevation
Road types
Surface
The route
Leaving Chalon-sur-Saône, cross the Saône to reach the historic suburb (faubourg) of Saint-Marcel, where the Voie Bressane begins – this greenway, exclusively for non-motorized traffic, follows a former railway line. From Ouroux-sur-Saône, signposts lead you along quiet roads back to the Saône, which you cross at the level of Marnay. The route continues along the towpath, recently redone and adapted to sustainable traffic as far as Tournus.
SNCF (French national railways network)
TER line Dijon <> Chalon-sur-Saône <> Tournus <> Lyon
Don't miss
Good plan: the free application VOIE VERTE 71 to discover the natural and cultural heritage along the Voie Bleue, between Chalon-sur-Saône and Mâcon (21 stages).
Chalon-sur-Saône: a pleasant pedestrian centre, the "chemin de l'Orbandale" walking circuit, the old town with its beautiful medieval houses and its Saint-Vincent cathedral, the Ile Saint-Laurent with its street famous for its restaurants that reveal the excellence of Burgundian cuisine.
To visit: the Nicéphore-Niépce museum, one of the most beautiful museums in France dedicated to photography. The Viant-Denon museum for lovers of Roman archaeology.
Nautical stopover Gigny-sur-Saône: restaurant, pontoon, boat hire.
Unusual: the crossing of the grazed banks on which are installed 4 Canadian passages (near Gigny-sur-Saône).
Tournus: the old town and the Saint-Philibert abbey, a masterpiece of the first Romanesque art. The Hôtel-Dieu-musée Greuze, the Bicycle Museum or, more unusually, the Groupe SEB factory shop.
The starred restaurants that have made the city's international reputation.
