2024
Go there and contact
An industrial site in Arc-et-Senans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with permanent exhibitions and concerts.
"Dare and you will succeed! The example you set will give rise to new precepts that will purify the old ones" - Claude Nicolas Ledoux L'Architecture published in 1804. The architect who designed this site was listed as a Unesco heritage site in 1982. Built under Louis XVI, from 1775 to 1779, this building had for function, to cook the salted water brought from Salins by a brine pipeline. At the time, salt was an essential commodity for the preservation of food and for agriculture. Built in a semicircle, with 11 buildings, the Royal Salt Works functioned as an integrated factory where the director and the workers lived. It closed its doors in 1895. In 1927, the department of Doubs acquired it and undertook its restoration. Since 1996, it has regained a predominant place in regional life thanks to its museums, exhibitions, concerts, architecture and gardens... It is the first site of industrial origin in the world to be recognized by Unesco. Not to be missed for a simple visit or even for a stay since the Royal Saltworks has a 3 star hotel. Within the monument, you can explore 4 permanent exhibitions on the place and its creator, salt and world heritage with a new digital tour. This season, the work of Charles Belle will temporarily be in the spotlight. And let's not forget the 5-hectare gardens and their festival: a real laboratory for landscape design under the leadership of Gilles Clément.
This establishment is also referenced as :
Further information
Opening time and information on THE ROYAL SALT WORKS
Open all year round. November to March: open 10am to 12pm and 2pm to 5pm; April to June and September-October 9am to 6pm; July-August 9am to 7pm. Free for children under 6. Adults: €13. Children (aged 6 to 15): €9. Students, young people aged 16 to 25, jobseekers, social minima, disabled: €12. Guided tours. Catering (summer only). Store.
Members' reviews on THE ROYAL SALT WORKS
