Must-see attractions in Yonne

  • Entrance of Saint Mary Magadalene abbey in Vezelay, France.

    Basilique Ste-Madeleine

    Yonne

    Founded in the AD 880s on a former Roman and Carolingian site, Vézelay's stunning hilltop basilica was rebuilt between the 11th and 13th centuries. On the…

  • Musée Colette

    Yonne

    Colette, author of La Maison de Claudine and Gigi, lived till the age of 18 in the tiny town of St-Sauveur-en-Puisaye, 40km southwest of Auxerre. The…

  • Pontigny Abbey.

    Abbaye de Pontigny

    Yonne

    Founded in 1114, Abbaye de Pontigny rises from the lush mustard fields 15km north of Chablis. The spectacular abbatiale (abbey church) is one of the last…

  • Saint Germain Abbey in Auxerre.

    Abbaye St-Germain

    Yonne

    This ancient abbey with its dramatic flying buttresses began as a basilica above the tomb of St Germain, the 5th-century bishop who made Auxerre an…

  • Fosse Dionne - the karst spring located in the center of Tonnerre, France.

    Fosse Dionne

    Yonne

    Some 200L of water per second gushes from Fosse Dionne, a natural spring near the centre of Tonnerre that was sacred to the Celts and whose vivid blue…

  • The clock tower in Auxerre, France.

    Tour de l'Horloge

    Yonne

    In the heart of Auxerre's partly medieval commercial precinct, the golden, spire-topped Tour de l'Horloge was built in 1483 as part of the city's…

  • Chantier Médiéval de Guédelon

    Yonne

    At this unique medieval building site, a team of skilled artisans, aided by archaeologists, has been diligently working since 1997 to build a fortified…

  • Château d'Ancy-le-Franc

    Yonne

    The Italian Renaissance makes a cameo appearance at this imposing château, built in the 1540s by celebrated Italian architect Serlio. The richly painted…

  • Le Château de Bazoches

    Yonne

    Le Château de Bazoches sits magnificently on a hillside with views to Vézelay, 12km to the north. Built in the 13th century and visited by royalty…

  • Hôtel-Dieu

    Yonne

    This charity hospital, founded in 1293 by Marguerite de Bourgogne (wife of Charles d’Anjou), is most famous for its vast, barrel-vaulted patients' hall…

  • Cathédrale St-Étienne

    Yonne

    This vast Gothic cathedral and its stately 68m-high bell tower dominate Auxerre's skyline. The choir, ambulatory and some of the vivid stained-glass…

  • Château de Tanlay

    Yonne

    Dominating the northern edge of the tranquil riverside village of Tanlay, the elegant French Renaissance-style Château de Tanlay is surrounded by a wide…

  • Musée Zervos

    Yonne

    This fantastic museum in the exquisite townhouse of Nobel Prize–winning pacifist writer Romain Rolland (1866–1944) holds the collection of Christian…

  • Musée Chevalier d'Éon

    Yonne

    Tonnerre's newest attraction is this house-museum, once home to the colourful Chevalier d'Éon, a gender-bending 18th-century diplomat and spy. The…

  • Collégiale St-Lazare

    Yonne

    Eight centuries ago, masses of pilgrims flocked here thanks to a piece of the skull of St Lazarus, believed to provide protection from leprosy. The early…

  • Château de Ratilly

    Yonne

    The elegant 13th-century Château de Ratilly sits in verdant countryside near Treigny. Interior rooms display a collection of pottery by the Pierlot family…

  • Château de Maulnes

    Yonne

    The only château in France built on a pentagonal plan, and buttressed by five towers, the Renaissance-era Château de Maulnes, 24km east of Tonnerre, is a…

  • Fontaines Salées

    Yonne

    Located along the D958, 5km southeast of Vézelay, these ancient saltwater springs served as a salt production site in Neolithic times, then later a Celtic…

  • Chapelle Ste-Croix

    Yonne

    This Romanesque chapel on the hillside below Vézelay dates back to the 12th century, when Bernard de Clairvaux gave a sermon on this spot to launch the…

  • Musée de l'Avallonnais

    Yonne

    Founded in 1862, this wonderful small museum displays a series of expressionist watercolours by Georges Rouault (1871–1958) and an excellent art-deco…

  • Maison Jules Roy

    Yonne

    Up near the top of town, the former home of Algerian-born writer Jules Roy (1907–2000) is an enchanting spot with fine views of the basilica. Walk around…

  • Tour des Prisons

    Yonne

    The striking late-15th-century Tour des Prisons is the lone remaining tower from the original stone fortifications surrounding Auxerre's medieval Abbaye…

  • Église St-Martin

    Yonne

    The 12th- and 13th-century Gothic Église St-Martin, first founded in the 9th century by monks fleeing the Norman attacks on Tours, is two short blocks…

  • Petit Pontigny

    Yonne

    The 12th-century cellar of Petit Pontigny (viewable from the exterior only) was once used by Pontigny's Cistercian monks to ferment wine.

  • Hôtel de Ville

    Yonne

    Flanked by colourful half-timbered buildings, Auxerre's town hall forms the centrepiece of the medieval centre's most attractive square.

  • Église St-Pierre

    Yonne

    Marked by Gothic architectural elements, this church between the river and the medieval centre is a prominent Auxerre landmark.

  • Synagogue

    Yonne

    For a free tour of this lovingly restored 16th-century synagogue, just knock on the door during regular opening hours.

  • Église St-Eusèbe

    Yonne

    Presided over by a 12th-century bell tower, this church is a convenient landmark in Auxerre's medieval centre.

  • Tour de l'Horloge

    Yonne

    This solid, 15th-century clock tower spans the old city's main thoroughfare.

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