LOUHANS-CHATEAURENAUD
Capital of Bresse Bourguignonne
HOTEL DIEU - ARCADES MUSEE DE L'IMPRIMERIE -
APOTHICAIRERIE MUSEE MUNICIPAL
Louhans offers the charm of a small town with a rich history and is located on the banks of the Seille; one of the loveliest navigable waterways in France.
Faithful to local tradition, the BRESSE POULTRY MARKET is held there every Monday morning. This is an essential meeting place for local inhabitants, producers and buyers, and attracts visitors with its authenticity and size. It has been registered as a "Remarkable Gastronomic Site".
Guided tours possible. Information : Office de Tourisme.
A commercial town since its founding, Louhans still boasts many independently-owned shops today.
La Grande Rue, 400 m long, lined with its 157 ARCADES (unique in France) and 15th century façades, the Saint Pierre church with its multicolored tiled roof, the Maison du Bailli, the Saint Pierre and Saint Paul towers, the old streets and the inner courtyards all make up the town's HISTORICAL CENTRE that can be visited either with a guided tour or independently by following a pedestrian trail with explanatory signs (map and information available from the Office de Tourisme).
THE HOTEL-DIEU and ITS APOTHECARY
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The Hotel Dieu is one of the town's historical treasures : this 17th century hospital housed two large wards with enclosed patient beds, a chapel and a magnificient apothecary containing a rich collection of Italo-Spanish-Moorish china from the 15th and 16th centuries, unique in Europe.
(Rue du Capitaine Vic - Tél : 03.85.75.54.32)
THE OLD PRINTING SHOP
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The old printing shop for the former local newspaper "L'Indépendant" has preserved its authenticity and still contains linotype machines, rotary presses and other presses in working condition. Today it is the only complete French printing shop using the lead technique still in existence. Its audiovisual room offers a choice of 14 films on the Bresse area.
(29 Rue des Dôdanes - A branch of the Bresse Bourguignonne Ecomuseum - Contact Ecomusée Tel : 03.85.76.27.16)
MUNICIPAL MUSEUM
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The second floor of the Printing Museum contains a collection of national treasures and paintings by regional artists, in the director's former office and the former pressrooms.
(29 Rue des Dôdanes - Contact Ecomusée Tel : 03.85.76.27.16)
Louhans was the birthplace of Ferdinand Berthier (deaf-mute) in 1803. This professor at the Deaf-Mute Institute in Paris founded the Universal Deaf-Mute Society.
Take the towpath from the port of Louhans along the Seille for a few kilometers and you'll probably see amateur sailors in their boats, along with fishermen and their tents installed along the night fishing trail (carp fishing).
Continue along to la Chapelle Naude at the Grange Rouge, a group of Bresse farms that is also headquarters to an association organizing many events throughout the year, such as the famous fleamarket.
You can also cross the Seille at the Branges lock (now you're on the right bank!) to reach the centre of this village, where you'll find an exhibition galerie, the jardin de Beauvoir (visits by appointment) and the Bresse Poultry House.
BRESSE POULTRY HOUSE
comité interprofessionnel de la Volaille de Bresse
This building, built in the purest Bresse style, is used as a prestigious showcase to promote Bresse poultry, which holds an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée label (AOC). Videos, model poultry cages (called épinettes), and the history of the origin, genetics and selection of this special poultry. Interpretation path. Possibility to visit a poultry breeder on site. Shop.
(Bois de Chize - Tel : 03.85.75.10.07 – Fax : 03.85.75.28.99)
Rather than coming back the same way, continue to Saint Usuge and make a stop at the Bicycle Museum before returning to Louhans.