Sisteron

Sisteron a place of unusual beauty and a paradise for gourmets

A real paradise for heritage enthusiasts and food lovers, Sisteron is a fine figure of a town ! Dominated by the citadel, which Vauban himself described as the « finest in the Kingdom », Sisteron is one of the last remaining towns in France to be surrounded by fortified towers. The town, which lies on the banks of the River Durance, is on the Route Napoléon, the Via Domitia and Routes de la Lavande (Lavender Trails). It also marks the border between Provence and Dauphiné, and was the birthplace of the poet Paul Arène.

Sisteron is unusual in many ways : for its beauty, light and colour, for its history of good times then bad, glory then misery, and for its rich collection of extraordinary buildings. It is above all a picturesque fortified town in an amazing location beside the Clue de la Durance, a colossal tertiary rock which draws your gaze like a magnet. The citadel, which dates from the 13th, 16th and 19th centuries, is perched on a gigantic rock dominating the old town, a labyrinth of covered alleyways, tiny squares and flights of steps. Here you can visit the Cathedral of Notre-Dame des Pommiers, a 12th century bijou of Romanesque architecture, the towers of the ancient ramparts (14th century), Cloister of Saint-Dominic (13th century), church of Saint-Marcel (12th century) and Bastidon (Provencal house) of Paul Arène. The Musée Terre et Temps (Museum of Earth and Time) in the old 17th century Chapel des Visitandines displays rare and unusual timepieces, including a fabulous water clock with automated figures, a Foucault pendulum and sundials.  It is also a branch of the Geological Reserve of Haute Provence.