Spreading across three Départements, the Bresse is still a primarily agricultural region, composed of tiny hamlets, situated on broad plains, near numerous lakes. It is renowned for its famous chicken, the only kind in the world to have an Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (special origin) label.

To the west of Macon towers the Roche de Solutré, overlooking the entire Bresse region: it is easy to climb with a memorable panorama from the summit. A site of importance in prehistoric times (hunting ground in the upper Palaeolithic period), the rock is famous with the general public because François Mitterrand used to make an annual ascent followed by a pack of journalists.