How it all began
After having created the Bateaux du Saut du Doubs in 1979 (www.sautdudoubs.fr), and having a strong attraction for the wonderful city of Besançon, his birthplace, Christophe Droz-Bartholet had the idea with his wife Françoise, to make it discoverable on a cruise on the Doubs loop.
That’s how, in 1983, we put into service the very first Besançon boat “le Saint-Laurent” and created the “Vedettes Bisontines” (now known as Bateau de Besançon). Then, for the well-being of our customers, we moved up in range and abandoned the “vedettes” to put a boat into service.
Real tour boat and restaurant boat “Le Vauban” is spacious and comfortable. It has a large heated interior lounge, a covered front terrace and a large upper solarium deck with a large capacity.
The Besançon boat “Le Vauban” has been completely renovated: interior woodwork, carpeting, kitchen, sound system and it has a new commentary recorded with actors, during which, César and Vauban will tell you the history of Besançon.
In 1993, the company put into service its first “little tourist train of Besançon” allowing to make commented visits of the old town and to access to the citadel of Besançon. It became the ideal complement to the boat trip in Besançon.
During all these years, we have never stopped investing to develop our activities in order to always offer a better experience to our visitors.
Today, it is Tiffany, Christophe Droz-Bartholet’s daughter, who has now taken the direction of the company. A beautiful family story which is transmitted from generation to generation!
Protecting the environment
It is important for us to preserve the exceptional sites on which we navigate.
For many years, we have always looked for ways to improve the environmental impact of our company.
In 2019, we switched our entire fleet (in Besançon and Le Saut du Doubs) to GTL, an alternative fuel to liquefied natural gas, which is less pollutant, biodegradable and improves the air quality by considerably reducing emissions.
Quality Tourism
The Boat and Little Tourist Train of Besançon are labeled Quality Tourism. The satisfaction of our visitors is our priority.
The Quality Tourism label is the only state label awarded to tourism professionals for the quality of their welcome and their services.
To find out more : Quality Tourism.
