In the heart of La Chaux-de-Fonds city

In the heart of La Chaux-de-Fonds city – Last year, Coworking Neuchâtel expanded its activities by opening a branch in La Chaux-de-Fonds city. But do you really know the context of this watchmaking town?

We tell you a little more about La Chaux-de-Fonds city and the advantages it can offer you.

Whether you want to come and live here, set up your business or take up an office here, here is a bit of history, culture and advantages that this town of the canton of Neuchâtel can offer you.

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Locality

La Chaux-de-Fonds is a town in the canton of Neuchâtel, situated at an altitude of 1,000 metres, with a population of just over 35,000.

It is located in a wide valley in the Jura mountains and is called the “watchmaking metropolis”. It lies close to the border with France. Its airport connects hundreds of general aviation airports in Europe and bears witness to the central position of the canton of Neuchâtel in the European Union, facilitating trade and relations between neighbouring countries.

Its famous “POD”, the city’s central and unmissable avenue linking its two ends, marks the centre of La Chaux-de-Fonds city and is the widest of all the parallel and perpendicular stretches that form the La Chaux-de-Fonds checkerboard.

The famous POD avenue

The great fountain, a cultural monument created to celebrate the arrival of water in the city, marks the end of this wide central avenue.

The Great Fountain at the end of the POD avenue

Between town and country, this commune offers a magnificent living environment, allowing for timeless escapades in its surroundings.

Did you know?

La Chaux-de-Fonds city is built in a checkerboard pattern. But this has not always been the case. A fire swept away a large part of the town in 1794, which led to the need to rebuild a wide part of it. This has been done with parallel streets, in order to avoid the spread of fires, to expose the houses and workers’ workshops to the sun and to provide gardens for the inhabitants.

Heritage

Watchmaking

A long time ago…

La Chaux-de-Fonds city is known for its watchmaking heritage, but also for the orientation of all its houses in the north/west district.

The checkerboard city takes its name from the new city plan, but it was also designed to provide as much light as possible at times convenient for the region’s craftsmen, who were devoted to watchmaking during the winter months when the climate put agriculture on hold.

Parenthese

By the way, don’t you know the Neuchâtel clocks? These clocks are often the object of inheritance and usually take their place in living rooms. Take a look at the homes of your Neuchâtel friends, family or colleagues, and you will see some lovely nuggets.

But rest assured, the town of La Chaux-de-Fonds also has other industries in its ranks, such as microtechnology, robotics or medical, and companies such as La Semeuse, active in the coffee industry and contributing to the town’s reputation.

Cultural

Sir Le Corbusier, Sir Chevrolet, Laurent Bourgnon and Blaise Cendrars were all born in the factory town, as Karl Marx liked to call it.

Le Corbusier also built three symbolic villas here, which will surely awaken some of your memories: the Villa Turque, the Villa Fallet and the Maison Blanche. These villas have made the town famous and leave still nowadays an indelible mark on the streets of La Chaux-de-Fonds city.

In the context of art nouveau, the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds is also known as the cradle of fir-tree art, an art form inspired by the flora and fauna of the Jura region and which enriches architecture, artworks and watchmaking with its natural and wild ornaments.

Museums

La Chaux-de-Fonds city relies on its watchmaking heritage, which is fuelled by extraordinary precision, growing complexity, and unfailing rigour and meticulousness. Its International W atchmaking museum bears witness to this and retraces the history of time measurement in the city that was the birthplace of this activity. Its watchmaking urbanism has earned it the honours of UNESCO, a world heritage site to which it was added in June 2009.

The Farming and Crafts Museum completes the vision of watchmaking as it presents the living environment of the region’s farmer-watchmakers, a part of the history that constitutes the region’s identity.

Nestled in an early 17th century Jura farmhouse, its location marks the beginning of the industrial zone of La Chaux-de-Fonds city, home to a number of watchmaking companies, such as Tag Heuer or Patek Philippe, and others specialized in watch components.

Keeping with the museum theme, and catering for both young and old, Muzoo, a fusion of museum and zoo, is a favourite attraction for locals and tourists alike.

The Museum of Fine Arts is also a popular excursion for visitors and locals alike.

Events

If summer is synonymous with the beach, you do not have to go far to get there! The annual La plage des 6 pompes has become one of the city’s key festivals, combining a festive and cultural atmosphere with performances, street art and entertainment for all tastes.

During the Braderie, a festival that takes place every two years and which is making its comeback this year, the Pod comes to life with activities, stalls and a procession during the first weekend of September. This festival brings together all generations and also attracts a wider population than just the faithful inhabitants of La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Nature

In terms of nature, the mountainous region of La Chaux-de-Fonds offers a multitude of landscapes to discover during the four seasons.

Located at an altitude of 1000 metres, this town will also win over the hearts of ski enthusiasts. The Chapeau-Râblé ski station will delight your winter evenings with its romantic view of the illuminated town.

Whether by bike, running or snowshoeing, the country paths offer unexpected discoveries with the local fauna and a simple way to clear your head.

To know

Come and discover the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds, new current topics and network while combining business with pleasure during our afterworks in our coworking space in La Chaux-de-Fonds. The next date will be communicated soon on our networks and we would be delighted to meet some of our readers. Follow us on our networks and be patient…