Let's get it out of the way before we begin; yes, the famous mustard takes it's name from this city. There, that was easy. Apart from maybe a visit to the mustard museum Amora-Maille plant on the outskirts of Dijon, you'll soon discover that there's more to this place than you might have thought.

The weather in Dijon is not exactly heartening – 158 days of rainfall a year – yet the marbled skies and rain-slicked cobblestones only add to its charm and gothic presence. For 113 years that ended in 1477, it was the seat of power for one of the most powerful states in Europe, presided over by the Valois dukes, whose lands stretched through present-day Belgium and the Netherlands. So it's only fitting that the town centre is one of the best-preserved in France.

Overlooking the medieval timbered houses and cathedral spires is the famed 45-metre high Tower of Philip the Good, which was built as a lookout by the eponymous duke who spited France by turning Joan of Arc over to his pal, Henry V of England. And here's the thing with Dijon: it's not just heartbreakingly quaint and beautiful to look at. Almost all the buildings, all the streets, every statue, they all have a story that intertwines with the history of France and Europe.

While Dijon is known as the city of 100 church bell towers, after the purges of the French Revolution, there are considerably fewer spires on the skyline. But the cathedrals and churches that do remain, like St Benigne (the city's patron saint), Nortre-Dame, St Etienne and St Michel, are all incredible examples of gothic and Flemish architecture. While Dijon is a city of around 152,000 people, it feels too cosy to fit the typical city profile.

This can be evidenced in the many eateries that are tucked into jutting medieval properties with oak beam ceilings and home-cooked local dishes. A noticeable lack of over-priced menus and waiters with an attitude problem, Dijon benefits from finding a middle ground between the chaos of a city and the plodding mundanity of a rural town.

So how much should you expect to part with in order to purchase a property in the city itself? Well, according to the latest figures released by the French National Associaiton of Estate Agents (FNAIM), the average price of an apartment in the city is currently 2,225 euros per square metre. Want a trendy and historically upscale neighbourhood? Try the Place de la Libération. It's where the Ducal Palace sits, along with the tombs of the first duke, Philip the Bold; his son, John the Fearless, and John's wife, Marguerite.

Morbid fascination aside, the surrounding statuary is unnervingly lifelike and the fastidiousness with which each feature has been carved from marble arguably makes them one of France's greatest works of art.

Perhaps it's the fuzzy warmth that lends itself to anyone who sups the local tipple, crème de cassis, a blackcurrant liqueur, or maybe its the pleasant feeling of stepping back through the ages, but it's hard not to fall in love with Dijon.

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Property prospecting and the Toulouse lifestyle
Life in Tours

Article published in August 2007