Dijon, France at Christmas, is another wonderful place to visit for that holiday spirit. Dijon is famous for mustard but there’s a lot more here in Dijon than mustard, especially at Christmas with the market kiosks selling many holiday items and people in a festive mood.
Along with visiting the Christmas market we will have a look around town, strolling through the pedestrian zone with lots of shops, and naturally a cathedral, and many classic half-timbered buildings that you find throughout northern France.
Dijon’s pedestrian streets wind between medieval houses, churches and Renaissance townhouses. The Place de la Libération, created by Hardouin-Mansart, is one of the loveliest squares in France, scene of the main Christmas market. We also visit briefly the church of Notre Dame is famous for both its art and architecture.
Dijon is located approximately 300 km (190 mi) southeast of Paris, easy to reach by TGV high-speed train.
Dijon was for some time the capital of the Dukes of Burgundy. Burgundy was a great power during the 14th and 15th centuries, when the dukes controlled a large part of what is now northeastern France, western Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
Today, Dijon is a cosmopolitan city, with universities in the center and industrial plants on the outskirts. Traffic is restricted in the center of the city, so many parts of central Dijon are quiet and relaxing.
