--- title: "Lac Kir, Dijon: Walks, Beach and Water Sports" description: "A 37-hectare lake opened in 1964, named after Canon Kir, mayor of Dijon. Free all year, nautical base March to mid-November. With a driver from Beaune." url: https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/lac-kir lang: en updated: 2026-10-01 generated: 2026-10-08 image: https://www.cote-privee.com/og/things-to-do/lac-kir.png --- # Lake Kir (Lac Kir) > Lake Kir: Dijon's lake, opened in 1964 and named after the mayor who gave kir its name. Lake Kir is in Dijon (Côte-d'Or), 43 min by road (47 km) from Beaune. Allow 1 to 2 hours · Private driver from Beaune: €120 one way for the whole car, up to 4 guests. Lac Kir is a 37-hectare artificial lake at the western entrance to Dijon, fed by the river Ouche. It was the project of Canon Félix Kir, mayor of Dijon, whose name also lives on in the aperitif kir. People come for walks, cycling, rowing and paddling, and in summer for the beach. ## Key facts - Type: Nature & viewpoints - Where: Dijon · Côte-d'Or - Location: 35 km north of Beaune · Côte-d'Or - Coordinates: 47.3271, 4.9995 - 43 min from Beaune - Allow 1 to 2 hours - Dijon - Official website: [dijon.fr](https://www.dijon.fr/dijon-a-votre-service/nature-et-animaux/parcs-et-jardins/) - From Beaune: ≈ 43 min · 47 km - €120 one way from Beaune with a [private driver](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver) - Or add it to our [full-day wine tour, €560](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day). ## Getting there - [Private driver from Beaune](https://www.cote-privee.com/private-driver): 43 min by road (47 km), €120 one way for the whole car. Coming by train or plane? [Transfers from stations and airports](https://www.cote-privee.com/transfers) Estimates per vehicle for up to 4 guests, tolls included. Your price is confirmed when you book. ## History Félix Kir, a Catholic priest, was mayor of Dijon from 1945 until his death in 1968. He pushed for a lake where the people of Dijon could relax, and it was inaugurated on 20 June 1964. The drink kir, white Burgundy wine with crème de cassis, took his name because he habitually served it to visiting delegations. Every summer since 2005, Dijon Plage has turned part of the shore into a beach with supervised swimming. ## What you will see Walk or cycle around the water and along the river. A green path of about 2.2 kilometres follows the Ouche from the Cité de la gastronomie to the lake. The nautical base on quai des Carrières Blanches offers canoeing, kayaking, rowing, paddle boarding and sailing. In summer, Dijon Plage adds beach games, sports and free concerts by the water. Birdwatchers come for wintering and spring birds, with guided sessions on some dates. The lake is 1.5 kilometres long and 300 metres wide, with an average depth of 3.5 metres, and the path along its shore follows the old Dijon to Épinac railway line. It was renamed in Canon Kir's honour only in 1968. Around it, 30 hectares of green space hold minigolf, play areas open to children with reduced mobility, fitness trails and free-roaming swans, ducks and geese, and herons are often seen along the Ouche. A waymarked trail climbs from the lake to the Combe à la Serpent park and on into the hills behind Dijon. ## Planning your visit The lakeside is free to visit all year. The nautical base opens from March to mid-November, and in high summer equipment hire moves to Dijon Plage. In summer 2026 Dijon Plage ran from 20 June to 30 August, with a 3,000-square-metre beach, a supervised bathing area with a section for children, paddle boards for hire at €10 an hour and deckchairs at €1. The lake is a short drive from the old town, or a pleasant walk along the Ouche. Check the official website for opening times. ## Did you know? Félix Kir was still mayor of Dijon when he died in 1968, aged 92. He had led the city since 1945, and his lake opened four years before his death. ## Around Lake Kir What to combine with Lake Kir on the same day, nearest first. ### Villages - [Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/dijon) (3 km away): Burgundy's historic capital, city of the Valois dukes and northern gateway to the Route des Grands Crus. - [Marsannay-la-Côte](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/marsannay-la-cote) (6 km away): Gateway to the Côte de Nuits and Burgundy's only village appellation making red, white and rosé. - [Fixin](https://www.cote-privee.com/villages/fixin) (9 km away): A quiet wine village with Napoleon in the woods, a Romanesque church in the vines and firm reds. ### Châteaux - [Château de Fontaine-lès-Dijon (Maison natale de saint Bernard)](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-fontaine-les-dijon), 2 km away: The hilltop birthplace of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, overlooking Dijon. - [Château de Montmusard](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-montmusard) (5 km away): The surviving wing of a daring neoclassical pleasure house designed by Charles De Wailly. - [Château de Marsannay](https://www.cote-privee.com/chateaux/chateau-de-marsannay) (7 km away): A modern wine château at the northern gateway to the Côte de Nuits. ### Things to do - [Historic Village of Talant (Site historique de Talant)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/talant), 1 km away: A hilltop village founded by the dukes, with a Gothic church and views over Lac Kir. - [Champmol Charterhouse and the Well of Moses (Chartreuse de Champmol et Puits de Moïse)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/chartreuse-de-champmol), 1 km away: Claus Sluter's Well of Moses, a masterpiece of medieval sculpture, in the dukes' vanished charterhouse. - [Mulot & Petitjean Gingerbread Factory (La Fabrique de pain d’épices Mulot & Petitjean)](https://www.cote-privee.com/things-to-do/mulot-petitjean), 1 km away: Dijon's historic gingerbread maker, with a museum space above the working bakery. ### Restaurants - [William Frachot](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/william-frachot-dijon) (3 km away · 2 MICHELIN stars): Dijon's two-star table, reinventing Burgundy's classics inside the Hostellerie du Chapeau Rouge - [Loiseau des Ducs](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/loiseau-des-ducs-dijon) (3 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): The Loiseau signature in Dijon, served beneath the vaults of a sixteenth-century mansion - [La Maison des Cariatides](https://www.cote-privee.com/restaurants/la-maison-des-cariatides-dijon) (3 km away · 1 MICHELIN star): A chef couple from Le Bristol regains a star behind one of Dijon's most ornate Renaissance façades ### Events - **Saturday, 10 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Show les papilles](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/show-les-papilles-dijon): Dijon's free festival of taste at the Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Sunday, 11 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Marathon des Grands Crus](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/marathon-des-grands-crus): A marathon on the closed Route des Grands Crus, from Dijon to the Clos de Vougeot and back. (Sport · Dijon) - **Friday 23 – Sunday 25 October 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Salon des Vignerons Indépendants de Bourgogne et du Jura](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/salon-vignerons-independants-dijon): Some sixty independent growers from Burgundy and the Jura pour and sell their wines in Dijon. (Wine festival · Dijon) - **Saturday 31 October – Wednesday 11 November 2026 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Foire internationale et gastronomique de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/foire-gastronomique-dijon): Burgundy's great food fair, held every autumn in Dijon since 1921. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Usually from the last Saturday of November to the first Sunday of January.** · [Les Fééries de Noël de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/feeries-de-noel-dijon): Chalets, vin chaud, an ice rink and a big wheel across the heart of Dijon. (Christmas · Dijon) - **Usually from late November to early December.** · [Les Nuits d’Orient et d’ailleurs](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/nuits-d-orient-et-d-ailleurs-dijon): Dijon's winter festival of music, dance and art from the Orient and beyond. (Culture · Dijon) - **Each year on the weekend after the Saint-Vincent Tournante, usually a Saturday in late January or early February.** · [Saint-Vincent de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/saint-vincent-de-dijon): Dijon honours the patron saint of winegrowers with a parade and a tasting village. (Tradition · Dijon) - **Usually a weekend in early June.** · [Grand Prix de l’Âge d’Or](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/grand-prix-age-d-or-dijon-prenois): France's oldest historic motor racing meeting, on the hills just outside Dijon. (Sport · Prenois) - **Every Sunday from late June to late September.** · [Le Brunch des Halles](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/brunch-des-halles-dijon): Summer Sunday brunches cooked by local chefs under Dijon's iron market hall. (Food & markets · Dijon) - **Every two years, in even-numbered years; recent editions were held in early July. The next is expected in 2028.** · [Les Fêtes de la Vigne de Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/fetes-de-la-vigne-dijon): Dijon's international folk festival, born in 1946 and held every two years. (Culture · Dijon) - **Friday 27 – Sunday 29 August 2027 (Confirmed by the organiser)** · [Golden Coast Festival](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/golden-coast-festival-dijon): Three days of French and international rap in a park on the edge of Dijon. (Music · Dijon) - **Usually a Sunday in mid September.** · [Vélotour Dijon](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/velotour-dijon): A playful bike ride through Dijon that opens places normally closed to cyclists. (Sport · Dijon) - **Usually the third weekend of September, during the European Heritage Days.** · [Fête de la Pressée](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/fete-de-la-pressee-chenove): The dukes' giant wine presses come back to life in Chenôve's old village. (Tradition · Chenôve) - **Usually the last days of September and the first days of October.** · [Tribu Festival](https://www.cote-privee.com/events/tribu-festival-dijon): Dijon's festival of world music, jazz and adventurous sounds, at the turn of October. (Music · Dijon) ### Guides about Lake Kir - [Burgundy with children](https://www.cote-privee.com/guides/burgundy-with-children) ## Questions about Lake Kir ### How far is Lake Kir from Beaune? Lake Kir is about 43 min from Beaune by road (47 km). With a private driver, the trip from Beaune starts at €120 for the whole car, up to 4 guests. ### How long does a visit to Lake Kir take? For the visit, allow 1 to 2 hours. ### When is Lake Kir open? Opening days and times change during the year, so check the official website (dijon.fr) before you go. Your driver can plan the day around them. ### Can a private driver take us to Lake Kir? Yes. Your driver collects you in Beaune or at your hotel in an electric Polestar 2 (up to 4 guests), waits while you visit and plans the rest of the day with you. The driver speaks English, French, Mandarin Chinese and Arabic. → [Full-day wine tour, €560](https://www.cote-privee.com/wine-tours/full-day) ## Book - [Book a driver here](https://www.cote-privee.com/book?service=driver&place=sight:lackir): €120 one way from Beaune · up to 4 guests ## Sources - - - - - - --- Canonical page: