Pontarlier

Pontarlier became France's absinthe capital in 1805 when Henri-Louis Pernod established his distillery here, and the town still produces traditional absinthe today alongside Comté and Mont d'Or cheeses. Set in the Jura Mountains near the Swiss border along the Doubs River, it has a walkable centre with a good spread of cafés and restaurants. The 17th-century Church of Saint-Bénigne, the classical triumphal arch of the Porte Saint-Pierre (1771–1773), and a Municipal Museum of Art and History housed in a 15th-century manor round out the town's heritage.

• Population20,313
• Nearest water0.3 km
• Nearest mountain7.4 km
• UNESCO within 50 km20