Le Locle

Le Locle is the one of two big cities in the mountain region of the canton of Neuchâte in Switzerland. Often dubbed "town of precision", the city has an impressive heritage of watch making and has been inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List as "La Chaux-de-Fonds / Le Locle, Watchmaking Town Planning".

Get in

By train

• Two hourly RE trains from Le Chaux-de-Fonds (8 min), one of which comes from Neuchatel (40 min)
• A couple daily French TER trains from Besançon (1hr 45min)

By car

The main road J20 comes from La Chaux-de-Fonds and Neuchâtel. From the other direction, the main road crosses the French border just a few kilometres after the village and then goes on in direction of Besançon.

See

Museums

• 1 Underground mills of Col-des-Roches (Moulins souterrains du Col-des-Roches), Col 23, ☏ +41 32 889 68 92. May-Oct: daily 10:00-17:00 with guided tours daily at 10:30, 13:45 and 15:00; Nov-Apr: 14:00-17:00 with guided tours Tu-F at 14:30 and Sa Su at 14:30 and 16:00; closed between Dec 24 and Jan 2 and Easter Monday; Access with guided tour or audio-guide. Unique in Europe, the mills of Col-des-Roches were built in caves (which have a constant temperature of 7°C and are quite humid) during the 17th century to harvest the waterfalls' energy. They were in use until the 19th century and showcase the ingeniuity of the people in the region. The museum features a permanent display of the mills and temporary expositions about the mills, energy, cereals and local history. Warm and dry clothing is recommended. (updated Jan 2018)
• Watchmaking Museum of Le Locle – Les Monts castle (Musée d'horlogerie du Locle – Château des Monts). (updated Jan 2018)
• 2 Arts museum (Musée des Beaux-arts), Marie-Anne-Calame 6, ☏ +41 32 933 89 50. W-Su 11:00-17:00. Located in the city center for about a century, the museum mostly displays graphic art and contemporary works; it also hosts the Lermite foundation and a collection of print graphics created between the 17th century and today. Fr. 8, reduced fare Fr. 5, free up to the age of 16. (updated Jan 2018)
• 3 Museum of Natural History (Le Musée d'Histoire Naturelle), ☏ +49 76 306 27 50. Please call the museum before visiting; the museum opens one Wednesday a month during school times. Created in 1982 and located in the basement of the Jehan-Droz high school, the museum features collections of mineralogy, birds, mammals and dioramas. (updated Jan 2018)

Do

As Le Locle is known for its watchmaking industry, this is also a good place to take horology workshops:

• 1 Micromechanics workshop, Rue des Billodes 26, ☏ +41 32 889 68 82, info@explorewatch.swiss. By reservation only. An initiation workshop in the watchmaking process. Fr. 165 per group of 1 to 5 people. (updated Feb 2018)
• 2 "the apprentices of time" workshop, Rue de la Jambe Ducommun 19, ☏ +41 32 889 68 82, info@explorewatch.swiss. Twice monthly scheduled workshops. During this horology workshop, you can build your own mechanical watch. Fr. 750, extra charges for individual workshop. (updated Feb 2018)

Eat

• 1 Restaurant de la Gare (Chez Sandro), rue de la Gare 4, ☏ +41 32 931 40 87. Upscale Italian restaurant. Despite the name it’s actually located around 100 metres down the road from the railway station. Fr. 30 for pasta, Fr. 40 for meats and fish. (updated Feb 2018)

Sleep

• 1 Hotel des Trois Rois, Rue du Temple 29, ☏ +41 32 932 21 00, info@hoteldestroisrois.ch. The hotel might be quite old and in need of a renovation, but the location is convenient in the town centre and it is the only proper hotel in town. From Fr. 83 for single. (updated Feb 2018)

Nearby

1 La Brévine is located a few kilometres from le Locle. The town is known for its special microclimate, making it one of the coldest places in Switzerland. It is here that the all-time temperature record for Switzerland (-41.8 °C) has been measured.

The town can be reached by bus in 20 minutes from le Locle, however there are only a handful of trips every day.

The main attraction of the village is its lake, the 3 Lac des Taillères. In winter it freezes over and can be used for ice skating, in summer it is popular for swimming.

Go next

• La Chaux-de-Fonds, a town also part of UNESCO world heritage for watchmaking city planning.
• Besançon in France is a 2 hours train ride away, with its citadel.