From La Chaux-de-Fonds to Val de Travers

La Chaux-de-Fonds It’s one of those chilly days when the low sky makes you want to stay under the comforter. The town is quiet. The children are at school, the watchmakers at their workbenches. Why not take refuge in the Musée International d’Horlogerie? Over 4,500 objects, including 2,700 watches and 700 wall clocks, invite you to delve into the history of timekeeping. A fascinating experience! You’ll almost forget the rest of the program…

Visit the Musée international d’horlogerie website

Le Locle Just a stone’s throw from the town center, it’s time to delve into the extraordinary history of the Col-des-Roches underground mills. Built some 400 years ago to harness underground watercourses instead of surface streams and rivers whose flow was deemed too slow, the water-powered mills and sawmill are housed in karstic caves and tunnels. Impressive and unique in Europe, the site is well worth a visit.

Visit the Col-des-Roches underground mills site

Guillaume Perret

Travers Looking for a gourmet break? Head for the Café des Mines, where you can savour the famous ham baked in asphalt at a temperature of 160°C. Accompanied by a potato gratin and salad, this feast is identical to the festive menu offered on Saint Barbara’s Day to the men who worked in the Presta mines. Once you’ve had your fill – or vice versa – you’ll head down into the bowels of the earth to visit some of the asphalt mines from which men have painstakingly extracted this material for over 200 years.

Visit the Mines website

Creux du Van Luckily, the road up from Travers is clear. When you reach your destination, you’ll be treated to a sumptuous panorama of the canton’s largest nature reserve. Before your eyes is a spectacular amphitheatre over a kilometer in diameter, the result of erosion by water and ice. Don’t forget your binoculars – the view is breathtaking!

Roland Gerth

Val de Travers Here you are, off for a few hours’ peregrination in the cradle of absinthe. Born in the 18th century in the Val de Travers, the famous green fairy was prohibited in 1910 and produced clandestinely until 2005. Today, absinthe is a perfectly legal beverage whose secrets can be discovered on the “Route de l’Absinthe”, a dedicated itinerary. A stop – or several – at one of the artisanal distilleries is a must. A tasting mingled with history to quench your thirst for knowledge.

Visit the Route de l’absinthe website

St-Sulpice A strange name for this hotel-restaurant overlooking Fleurier from an altitude of 960m, but it’s at Le Chapeau de Napoléon that a stopover is in order. Built in 1894 and renovated 90 years later, this cosy establishment offers authentic cuisine and carefully selected wines. To prolong the pleasure, it’s time for a well-deserved rest in one of the hotel’s three rooms. Back under the comforter. To round off a day full of surprises, there’s nothing like a little height…

Visit the Chapeau de Napoléon website