Here we are talking about the border area in the north of Switzerland. Firstly, there is Jura, the range of hills from Geneva to Basel forming the border with France. Secondly, there is north-western Switzerland, with the border city of Basel as its capital, and the Rhine, forming the border with Germany.
When you look north from any lookout point in Switzerland, in clear visibility you will see a blue range of hills that stretch from west to far in the east. This is Jura. It also accompanies you on every train journey through the Central Plateau from the west to the east of Switzerland (or vice versa). It is like a wall made of forests and light lime cliffs. Behind the hills is France.
Jura is far from the tourist rush which is why it is worth going there. Whether you are coming from Lausanne, Neuchâtel, Bienne or Basel, you can ride with the Swiss Travel System into another world. In Sainte-Croix, in the west, in the middle of forests and pastures you come across the world headquarters of Juke boxes and slot machines. In La Chaux-de-Fonds at 1'000 m you find a small “Manhattan“ from the 19th century, with rectangular layout, the cradle of the Swiss watch industry. And in between there are fir forests, white and yellow limestone cliffs, cow and horse pastures and unspoiled nature. There is the Freiberg area, with its own breeds of horses, and then the “blue mountains“, around Blauen towards Alsace, near Basel.
Lake Neuchâtel, Lake Bienne and Lake Morat are called the Jura lakes. They are nestled in the west at the foot of the Jura hills.
From Basel the Rhine takes on the role of guardian of Switzerland’s northern border. Basel is in the border triangle with France on one side of the Rhine and Germany on the other. The city is directly connected to the North Sea through the Rhine shipping service. The area from Basel towards Eastern Switzerland is called North-western Switzerland. The chemical-pharmaceutical industry is based in Basel. However, right next door you are really in the country in the canton of Basel Land, with its orchards and charming villages, and in the similarly rural north of Canton Aargau. Click here for information about the Central Plateau >
