Jura Region of Burgundy Itinerary

12 Sep

If you’re looking for a relaxing motorhome holiday while the weather is still good in France, there is no better place to enjoy the late Summer and Early Autumn than in Burgundy in the Morvan and Jura regions. Perfect for family getaways next summer or a quiet time to recuperate now.

Cascades du Herrison Ménétrux en Joux

Cascades du Herrison Ménétrux en Joux

The Jura Region Itinerary

  • Veron
  • Les Settons
  • Cuisery
  • La Tour du Miex
  • Menetrux en Joux
  • Ounans
  • St Julien du Sault
  • Veron

Total drive time 9.30hrs – 735 kms

Burgundy is full of surprises and there is a vast difference in scenery especially just 3 hours drive away from the depot here in Veron over to one of the most spectacular parts of the country known as the Jura via the Morvan National Park.

I spent a week at the end of August in a motorhome discovering this area and have created an itinerary for those who like to do a bit of gentle sporting activity on their holidays. This itinerary is perfect for families and couples alike with plenty to do.

Day 1 – Veron to Les Settons, Morvan National Park – 2 hours driving, 160 kms

Les Settons overnight stop

Les Settons overnight stop

Campsite address: Plage des Settons, Outre Cure 58230, Co-ordinates N 47.193501, E4.060240

Lake Settons is the perfect start to your holiday. The lake itself has plenty to beaches and there are several campsites in quiet locations around it. As we were only staying overnight here, we drove through the village and around a bit to find a quiet spot for some wild camping.

However, if you’d prefer a campsite near to the village I’d recommend Plage des Settons at Outre Cure. The place is very well kept with private placements and direct access to the beach. There’s a small beach café and a pizza restaurant if you don’t want to walk into the village. Here’s the website to give you more information.

We picked up the cycle trail that goes all the way around the lake. It’s an exciting ride and takes about 2 hours to complete. Although it’s not hilly, and generally in good condition, the bikes that we hired with the motorhome which are hybrid off-road bikes with soft tyres, were perfect for this type of trail.

Day 2 – Cuisery – 2 hours driving, 140 kms

Camping and haulte nautiquie riverside view

Camping and haulte nautiquie riverside view

Campsite address:110 Chemin du Port, 71290 Cuisery, Co-ordinates N46.562302, E5.005600

This was a pit stop halfway between the Morvan and the Jura but a wonderful little spot to enjoy the Seille river. The campsite here had easy access, a free swimming pool and little café restaurant serving lunches and evening meals. By the side of the campsite was the river that had pedalos and kayak hire or a nice riverside walk to relax and enjoy.

Day 3 and 4 – La Tour Miex – 1hr 10 mins driving, 70 kms

Lac de Vouglans at Camping du Surchauffant

Lac de Vouglans at Camping du Surchauffant

Campsite address: Camping du Surchauffant, 39270 La Tour-du-Meix, Co-ordinates : N 46.522598, E5.673670

We arrived nice and early at a beautiful picnic site called Camping du Surchauffant. It’s a big picnic area by the side of the most amazing view of the Lac de Vouglans, a 35km lake of the most beautiful topaz colour. There are places to just stop overnight for motorhomes here, but we knew we wanted to spend a couple of days so went into the campsite. The campsite itself has another large swimming pool as well as direct access to its own private beach. As it is just south of the marina, it was perfect to practice my paddleboarding and swim. On bank holiday Monday in August, we counted only five families on the beach. The best part about lake swimming and beaches is that there’s plenty of shade right up to the waters edge so no chance of getting sunburnt.

In the evening we had dinner at La Guinguette restaurant which is only 200 meters away and very accommodating – Moules Frites was only €18 and a 500ml carafe of wine was only €9.

For those of you who like a hike, there’s a trail that takes you around the lac and up into the villages. It’s a seven-hour trek in total so not for the faint-hearted. However, we managed to cycle up to the first viewpoint and get an hour’s trekking in before coming back the same route. What can I say….it was an adventure!

Day 5 and 6 – Ounans via Menetrux en Joux – 1 hr 40mins, 100 kms

Kayaking on river Ounans

Kayaking on river Ounans

Campsite address: Huttopia, 3 Rue de la Plage, Ounans, 39380, Co-ordinates: N47.002300, E5.660880

With a relaxing drive through the Jura and we stopped off at Menetrux en Joux and discovered a hidden valley at the end of which was the Hedgehog Waterfalls, Les Cascades du Hérrison. There’s a campsite here too that looked quiet, although we were just stopping for lunch so stayed in the motorhome carpark that was specially set up for us. There are seven falls in total and the walk to see all of them is along a very easy path and takes about 3 hours to walk. We just went and visited the first fall 300m away from the café and I have to say it was well worth it.

From there, we went on to visit a Vigneron in a quiet little village called Molamboz and met Mme Guillot who is part of the France Passion network. She kindly gave us a selection of wines and crémant to taste. Mme Guillot has her own vineyard at the top of the hill from her house so we popped to take a look.

After stopping for an hour to sleep off the wine tasting, we decided to travel on a further three miles to our campsite. Here’s their website if you wanted more information and to book.

Cascades du Herrison  Ménétrux en Joux

Cascades du Herrison Ménétrux en Joux

As well as swimming in the river that runs alongside the campsite, there was also a swimming pool and a bar/restaurant where you could order your bread (croissants and pain au chocolat) for the next morning’s breakfast too.

Just outside this campsite’s gates is a Kayak hire centre, so we booked up for the next day to fit in a morning or kayaking down the river, or you can go all day if you wanted to travel further and have the time.

The kayak trail we took cost €20 each per kayak and took two hours to complete. We were given a little map and sent on our way with directions on how to navigate the rapids. There were three green ones, two red ones and two black runs although there were options to go to the side of the river and hop out if you really didn’t want to have a go. To be honest, when I saw the seven and eight-year-old children in their scouting group going down, I couldn’t really whimp out and it was fine. In August the river is low enough that there is little danger, and if we did fall out, we were only knee-high in water.

At the end of our two-hour paddle, we were pleased to be greeted by one of the kayak couriers who helped load up the kayaks onto her trailer and brought us all back to the campsite in her minibus.

Day 7 – St Julien du Sault – 2 hrs 30 mins – 180kms

Camping des Iles campsite is very motorhome friendly

Camping des Iles campsite is very motorhome friendly

Campsite address: Camping des Iles, Route de Villevallier, Saint-Julien du Sault, 89330, Co-ordinates N48.025600, E3.308870

We returned to the depot stopping overnight a St Julien du Sault which is a local campsite just 20 minutes south of the depot. Its always a reliable place to go and again, right next to the river Yonne. The people at St Ju, know us well now and when they spot our Apollo campervans, they always offer us a warm welcome. We stayed there overnight ready to return to the depot early in the morning.

Here’s their website for more information.

Explore on Google Maps

Enjoy this route with us

Hopefully, we have wet your appetite to explore the Jura region of Burgundy.

France Motorhome Hire have a range of campervan and motorhomes for hire from our depot just south of Paris that enable you to explore the route with freedom and independence. For availability and pricing, get a quote and start planning for an adventure of your own!

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One Response to “Jura Region of Burgundy Itinerary”

  1. Bintu September 30, 2019 at 5:05 pm #

    Beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

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