After closing in 1962, the Grande Saline became a museum, and since 2009 it has figured on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. It offers a unique testimony to one of the greatest industrial activities in history: the exploitation of salt.
As a visitor you will go into the heart of the former production facilities. It begins with a descent into the underground galleries. With their impressive criss-crossed vaults, the galleries shelter the system for pumping the brines, a system still in working order today. The visit continues through the surface buildings where you will discover the different steps involved in the production process. The room where the vats are found is of particular interest. There you will see the last vat in France to have served in producing salt via the evaporation of brine.
Further along, the Salt Museum offers testimonies and a collection of technical and artistic objects that will enable you to imagine the labour of the salt workers and the historical importance of salt.
A workshop also awaits the visit of children. As young salt workers, if only for a moment, they will collect brine and transform it into salt. Through activities specially adapted to their age, your children are invited to discover the different uses of salt, both past and present.
To visit: All necessary information (visits, times, fees...) can be found at the official site of the Grande Saline in Salins-les-Bains