A self-guided walking holiday exploring dramatic gorges & valleys of the Jura wine-making region of France. Jura Wine Trail . Lying to the north east of the Alps in France, the Jura form an impressive arc of undulating limestone hills.
Accommodation & Meals
Charming guest houses & hotels, offering authentic and very comfortable accommodation in B&B style guest houses or small hotels where the welcome is warm and generous. Mainly 3 stars or equivalent. They include townhouses, old farms, village cottages & abbey rooms.
When to Travel
Our self-guided walking holiday in the Jura is available from mid-April to the end of October. From mid-April to October the Jura is generally warm, although it can be hot during the months of July and August. However, relative humidity is often low (except during unstable thundery weather.) Ideal walking temperatures (ie late teens to the low twenties centigrade) are generally experienced from early May to mid-June and from mid-September to mid-October. Rainfall totals are relatively high in the Jura, associated with the Jura massif. The months of May, September and October are the wettest in the walking season. June provides some of the best conditions for walking in terms of temperatures with a daytime high of 23°C and lower rainfall. Rainfall becomes more and more sporadic and linked to thunderstorms as you move from spring to summer. On average there is rain on one in every three days, but this is often for relatively short periods. This holiday is not available before mid-April because the first plateau in the Jura has a cold, continental climate in the winter and there is a risk of late snow still lying on the ground with frosty conditions.
Navigation, Walking Notes & Maps
This self-guided walking holiday follows a mix of local trails waymarked in yellow and the long-distance GR59 trail with red and white markings, which traverses the Jura from north to south. There is a fairly dense network of signposts with place names and directions in the Jura. The walking follows clear paths, tracks and minor roads for its entire duration. Our walking notes are very detailed (more information here) and include intermediate distances for sections of the trail. They also include information about the sites which can be explored along the route. We supply one walking guide per person on this holiday. As well as the detailed walking notes we supply official walking maps produced by IGN at a scale of 1:25,000. Your trail is highlighted on the maps.
Luggage Transfers
On this independent French walking holiday, your main luggage is transferred between guest houses so that you only have to carry a day rucksack with a picnic lunch (most supplied by the guest houses and included in the holiday price), water and spare clothes, waterproofs, camera etc. On this holiday your luggage transfers are carried out by a trusted local taxi company. Please limit the weight of your bags where possible to 20kg. We only use hotels and small guest houses in historic buildings and some of the rooms are accessible by stairs.
Travel Info
Meeting at your guest house in Arbois, France. Taxi transfer at end of the walking holiday to Lons le Saunier.
Train & bus: Eurostar and the TGV run trains from London to Paris. Change and take either TGV to Dole and then TER bus run by train company to Lons le Saunier or TGV to Lyon (this service can also go via Lille from London) and then take train to Lons le Saunier. At Lons take a TER bus to Arbois. Return from Lons le Saunier by train to Lyon or by bus to Dole.
Flights: The airlines Easy jet, BMI Regional and British Airways have scheduled flights from the UK – Luton, Birmingham, Gatwick, Edinburgh and Heathrow – to Lyon St Exupery airport. Tram service to Lyon Part Dieu station to catch train. As above. There are also several companies who fly to Geneva airport. From Geneva airport, train to Geneva CFF and change for train to Bourg en Bresse, change here for train to Lons le Saunier. Then as above.
Self-drive: Channel crossing by ferry with P&O or DFDS ferries and by rail with Eurotunnel. Once in France, drive time from Calais to Arbois takes about 6 hours, excluding breaks and costs about £40 in motorway tolls. Leave car in Arbois. End of walking holiday, taxi transfer to Lons le Saunier is included in price and then take bus to Arbois.
Extra Nights
It is possible to add an additional night at any of the locations. This walking holiday in the Jura already has two nights in Poligny and there are options to add additional nights in Arbois and Baume-les-Messieurs for exra day’s walking. The additional walks in Baume-les-Messieurs is especially recommended to discover its gorges from above and below as well as the waterfall at the source of the Dard.
City Breaks
The nearby city of Lyon is a great destination for a city break and can be easily combined with this walking holiday, as you’ll be picked up and dropped off in the city. Lyon, France’s second city and gastronomic capital, is a lively historic city ideal for those in search of lots to see and do. Classed as a world heritage site, Lyon has it all; roman amphitheaters, medieval streets, renaissance architecture and modern art. See more of our page dedicated to Lyon. We can book a city break for you and provide you with all the information you need for a great stay.
Please consult us for a price on any of the above options.
Combining walking holidays
This wine trail walking holiday can be combined easily with any of our walking holidays in the Beaujolais and Burgundy, which all have transfers to and from Lyon. Among the walking holidays are a number of our other wine trails hikes such as our Beaujolais Wine Trail.
Tailor-Made Trips
Jura’s Secret Trails
If you are looking for the perfect French Adventure holiday, far from the crowds, in a very natural setting, then our signature trip in the Jura is made just for you. With a mixture of multi-day and single-day activities, including horse-riding, hiking, and biking you’ll leave the beaten tracks and discover a land full of beauty and delicious local delicacies, ranging from cheeses like the famous Comté to the ‘vin jaune,’ or ‘yellow wine’—one of the driest and most unique wines you’ll ever taste!
If you are not convinced yet, check out our ‘Why Holiday in the Jura’ blog post!
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