Fribourg Old Town

Fribourg's Basse-Ville sits in a loop of the Sarine below the plateau, and because the city's growth went upward the medieval quarter was left largely alone - so the lower town keeps a dense gothic fabric of stone houses, covered bridges, fountains and defensive walls with towers, one of the largest such ensembles in Europe. The cathedral of St Nicholas above has a tower of about seventy-four metres that can be climbed, and a fifteenth-century tympanum of the Last Judgement. The Funiculaire Neuveville-Saint-Pierre, running since 1899, links the two levels and is counterweighted by filling its descending car with the city's wastewater - the last funicular in Europe worked this way, and the smell is part of the ride.

What you actually see

• A gothic lower town - one of the largest medieval ensembles in Europe.
• A wastewater-counterweighted funicular - running since 1899, unique in Europe.
• The cathedral tower - about 74 metres, climbable, with a Last Judgement portal.
• Covered bridges and wall towers - the surviving defences round the loop.

When to go

All year. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The lower town is a real descent and climb - steep, and the funicular is the sensible way back. The funicular does smell. The tower stairs are narrow and closed in bad weather. The city is bilingual and signage switches.

Nearby

Gruyeres is south; Bern is a short train ride north-east.