A Travel Guide to Burgundy
The region of Burgundy famous for it's wine comprises four departments. The Department of Yonne covers Northern Burgundy, and its capital Auxerre, which is a beautiful agricultural area and borders with Paris. Nievre has the highest peak of the Morvan hills and a major portion of the Morvan Nature Park. The capital of Nievre is Nevers and most of the Department is hilly. The North West of the Côte-d'Or department is hilly and the South East is flat. The department of Saône & Loire is located in Southern Burgundy. It covers the area between the river Loire and the foothills of Jura, and has a large portion of the Saône valley.
The famous route to the Vézelay Abbey (Basilique De Vézelay) is also considered as part of the pilgrimage by pilgrims who visit the Abbey. The village is also a great place to visit, especially due to the historic houses. If you plan to explore the village on foot, then don't forget to walk on the GR 654 footpath, which is one of the famous routes of Santiago de Compostela. The Abbey was added to UNESCO's world heritage site’s list in 1979. It became a pilgrimage site after the Pope vilified the ancient bones of Mary Magdalene in 1058.
The Hospices de Beaune ( Almshouse in Beaune or Hôtel-Dieu de Beaune) was established in 1443. It was put in place to help the poor. It is one of the finest examples of 15th century architecture in France. It has beautifully coloured tiles on the walls and roof. It has now been converted into a Museum. While all the parts of the Museum are worth exploring, the most notable one would be the room of the poor, since it contains beds that are curtained and would have had chairs and tables at the centre. The Museum gives a very clear picture of hospitals in the early times.
Whilst it’s always amazing to explore the history of any location, exploring history at the Guedelon Medieval site will surely be a unique and educational experience. A Chateau is being built from scratch using the building techniques and tools that that were used during the middle Ages. The project was started in 1997 and will take approximately 25 years to complete.
There is a wide variety of self catering holiday accommodation in Burgundy ranging from apartments in the towns to gites and cottages in the countryside.
