Alsace

Old Aug 1st, 2015, 04:18 AM
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Alsace

I am planning a visit to the Alsace region next summer for my myself, my husband and another couple. The pressure is on! We are driving there from the Black Forest area in Germany. Can anyone suggest the cities or towns that you feel are the most wonderful to see? And maybe what is there that we should visit, restaurants, hotels?

I am thinking that 7-10 days would be good. What do you think?

Hotel costs can vary, as we will be mixing it up with 3 ,4,and 5 star hotels.

Thank you,
Alison
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 04:24 AM
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Hi
I loved Strasbougr, Riquewihr, the castle of Kaysersberg and I forget some for sure.

Buy a green guide from Michelin - for France we didn't find better (in our opinion).
Enjoy your trip !
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 06:21 AM
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This is something I wrote several years ago.


Alsace is one of the most beautiful places in France. In fact, the “Wine Spectator” ran a large expose on Alsace many years ago and called it the most beautiful wine growing region in the world. I would probably include the Mosel in this category, but Alsace has gobbled up more photographs per square mile than almost anywhere else in France (we spend 2 months every year in France). It’s kinda like Vermont with vineyards – dozens of picture postcard villages with church steeples sticking up above the houses, surrounded by vineyards, and backdropped by the Vosges mountains. There is also the very pretty town of Colmar, which I would have to rank in the top 5% of all the medium sized towns I’ve visited in France (perhaps #1 even), Strasbourg is one of my favorite large towns in France. We spent a week in a lovely Gite near Riquewihr several years ago, and we’ve visited Alsace on 3 other occasions for a duration of 3-5 days on each visit. If I have any complaint about Alsace, it’s that there is not as much variety to the sites, villages, and countryside as I’ve seen in other areas of France. The villages in Alsace are almost too pretty to be real, but there are a lot of similarities to them. The Vosges are nice, but nothing like the Alps, Pyrenees, or the Cevannes. I would go there in early September, so that the geraniums that are everywhere will be in full bloom. One time we were there the last week of August, and we had no problems with crowds (I hate crowds).

We’re lucky enough to dine in France at least 30 times per year. We found the restaurants in Alsace to be excellent, in most cases. It’s very easy to avoid the pork & kraut, if that’s not your style. If you look at the red Michelin guide, there are more starred restaurants in Alsace than anywhere else in France (except Paris).

If you are starting your trip in Paris, I would recommend that you take the train from Paris Est to Nancy and visit this lovely city. It’s the center of “Beaux Arts”, and the city architecture & the Place Stanislas are spectacular – especially the golden gates around the square. Take the walking tour outlined in the Green Michelin guide for Alsace. Also visit the Musee des Beaux-Arts, if you’re interested in this style. We actually visited Nancy as a day trip by train from Colmar. We had lunch at the Excelsior Flo, which is truly a sight to behold (see the picture in the Green Michelin guide). There are about 6 direct trains from Paris to Nancy daily, and the trip is about 1 hr 40 mins or less. There are about 9 direct trains from Nancy to Strasbourg daily and I suspect that most go on to Colmar too (trip is less than 1 ½ hrs). You could stay overnight in Nancy, or even just make it a ½ day stopover, if you can find a way to stow your luggage.

If you stop or stay in Nancy and then go on to Strasbourg and stay there, you perhaps might be getting “a little too much big city”. It would be more efficient that you start your “Alsace central” visit in Strasbourg, but it might be best to stay somewhere in a small village in the countryside and visit Strasbourg as day trips. There are several trains departing from both Colmar & Ribeauville to Strasbourg. If you decide not to start in Strasbourg, I would take the train to Colmar and pick up a rental car there. Colmar is an easy town to get in & out of (Strasbourg is a little more difficult).

If you overnight in Strasbourg, we’ve stayed at the Gutenberg twice, and loved it. It’s small, centrally located, and not that expensive. It’s difficult to park nearby, however, since it’s on the fringe of the “pedestrian only” section. Take the walking tours described in the Michelin guide. I previously said I’m not a pork fan, but we dined at Chez Yvonne twice and enjoyed it. It’s a very popular brasserie serving traditional Alsace food in a rustic décor – reserve ahead. We’ve also dined at Maison Kammerzell, which is more upscale and located in one of the most beautiful buildings in Strasbourg. It was a Michelin 1 star, and the food was OK (we’ve had much better meals at other restaurants), but the main draw at this place is the décor.

The charm of Alsace is the countryside & cute villages. We’ve stayed in Oberni, Kayserberg twice, and in a Gite near Riquewihr. I would recommend that you stay in the Kayserberg/Riquewihr/Ribeauville area & take day trips from there. These villages are very close together & the area around the villages is stunning. The Route du Vin is a good road to use to visit all the villages, but it gets a lot of heavy truck traffic & there’s a little too much not-so-scenic commerce on it. There is a prettier and less traveled road that goes from village to village just west of the Route du Vin. It’s actually a very well marked bike route that is much more scenic than the Route du Vin. It probably doesn’t traverse the entire length of the Route du Vin, though. There are a lot of signposts along this route that indicate the direction to the next town, distances, etc. The best way to find this route is to go to Riquewihr & walk or drive around the perimeter of town until you find one of these signposts – it’s actually quite easy to find this route.

Villages not to miss are Oberni, Ribeauville, Riquewihr, Kayserberg, and Eguisheim. There are ramparts around Bergheim and its fun to walk on the top of them & circle the village, looking down into everyone’s back yard. There is a very nice lookout in the town of Zellenberg. Go up into the village & try to find it. There is a viewing table there that’s a little hard to locate, but worth the effort. There is also a very scenic lookout in a cemetery just outside of Sigolsheim – it’s marked on the Michelin map. Hike up to the old Chateau above Kayserberg in the early AM or late PM to get some wonderful views. Visit Haut Koenigsbourg. We really enjoyed the Ecomusee d’Alsace, although I’m usually not a fan of this “Williamsburg” type of stuff. It’s a collection of old houses that gives an insight into housing in the different periods & rural areas of Alsace. There are a lot of storks nesting on the roofs of the buildings in this Ecomusee. The Beauville linens factory & 2nds store is just west of Ribeauville on the road to Ste Marie aux Mines, but expect no bargains.

As I said earlier, Colmar is a gem. Follow the walking route indicated in the Michelin green guide & take plenty of film with you. My wife purchased some wonderful lace in this town. We enjoyed the Musee d’Unterlinden. Spend a ½ day at least in Colmar. It’s easy to drive in & out & parking is no hassle. Stores may be closed on Sunday and Monday.

Here’s a pretty drive through some villages, and then into the Vosges. Head south of Colmar going through the villages of Eguisheim (spend several hours in this village – one of our favorites), Husseren, Hattstat, Gueberschwihr, Rouffach, Westhalten, Bergholtz, and then Guebwiller (visit). Then drive to Murbach to see a nice church in a pretty setting. Take the D430 west through Lautenbach and further until it hits the D27. Take the D27 north over the Col du Platzerwasel toward Munster. Continue on to Munster (D27 changes to D10). Stop & wander around in Munster (of cheese fame). Continue on the D10 to Turckheim (visit).

A farther away trip:
Visit Wissembourg and take the walking tour described in the Michelin Green guide. Then follow drive #3 described in the VOSGES DU NORD section of the Michelin guide. This will take you to Chateau de Fleckenstein, Lembach, Hunspach, & Seebach. In these latter two villages, the houses are half-timbered & painted white – it’s quite a contrast from other villages in Alsace. If you want to see how France attempted to defend itself from the Germans and Russsians after WWI, visit a section of the Maginot line at Four-a-Chaux just outside of Lembach. We enjoyed the tour of underground fortifications, hospitals, barracks, etc.

An excellent way to get back to the CDG airport in Paris for your return home is to stay in Dijon the night before. You can take the early TGV to CDG, which leaves Dijon at 7:47 & gets you into the airport at 9:35 (Sunday schedules might be a little different). We drove from Alsace to Dijon (an easy all-freeway drive), and dropped our car off at the train station and walked across the street and checked into the Hotel Jura. Dijon is a beautiful city. We were there on a Saturday AM and we immediately went to the outdoor market next to the “Les Halles” permanent indoor market. Lots of foodstuff, brocante, etc. The “Les Halles” market is one of the largest I’ve seen. Dijon is a very lively town – especially on a Saturday. Take the walking tour described in the Green Michelin Guide (you’ll have to buy or borrow the green guide for Burgundy Jura). We dined at Pre aux Clercs which was a 1 star and also got raves from Patricia Wells. It was good, but about twice the price as places in Alsace. This year it lost its star.

Restaurants.
Maximilien at the base of Zellenberg was our favorite. The ambience was very relaxed (we had to talk in a whisper) and the setting was lovely. This is a Michelin 1 star restaurant and the food was supurb. Auberge du Schoenbourg in Riquewihr was also excellent. It is a Michlein 1 star. We did not like Table du Gourmet, also in Riquewihr (also a 1 star). I had a very sloppy presentation of overcooked Sandre on a bed of scalloped potatoes (very unimaginative). My wife’s dish also did not please her. We dined at Auberge de Norbert in Bergheim, which was excellent. In Colmar, we dined at the Maison des Tetes, which is one of the most photographed buildings in the City. Our dinner was only so-so and the service was painfully slow (we usually spend at least 2 ½ hrs at dinner).

Stu Dudley
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 06:41 AM
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 06:59 AM
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We based ourselves in Colmar at the Marachel Romantique,
the dining terrace overlooks the water with ducks passing by. Or best dinner was in Illhaeusern (Haut-Rhin)
at the Auberge De L'ILL
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 08:15 AM
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Don't miss Colmar - a charming small old town with a fantastic museum. On the road back to Strasbourg we cam across a stork sanctuary - which was fascinating and I have never seen anyone else mention. (Alsace seems to be where the storks summer - not sure where they winter - perhaps Africa?)
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 08:22 AM
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We based in Riquewihr and highly recommend it.

You can read our trip report here http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...and-alsace.cfm

And our photos are here https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...57644953485474

Have a great trip!
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 08:33 AM
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Bookmarking for Stu's comments and jamie/scott shots!
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 08:53 AM
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Make that re-reading jamie/scott's wonderful TR also.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 09:46 AM
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I only visited Nancy and Strasbourg. I highly recommend the Hotel de l'Europe in Strasbourg, it's in the Petite France area, you can walk to everything and it's very nice.

Nancy is, in fact, one of the centers of the Art Nouveau mouvement and there is a special museum dedicated to that (Musee de l'Ecole de Nancy), but that style is not actually even represented in the Musee des Beaux Arts that I can recall (that museum has works from the 15th to 20th centuries). Place Stanislas itself is Classical French style, being designed in the 18th century, as is the Musee des Beaux Arts, being part of it.

I think the Lorraine History museum (Musee Lorain) is actually more special than the Musee des Beaux Arts, in terms of seeing some things you won't see elsewhere, (although the fine arts museum has some good works). But I tend to like history/ethnographic and decorative arts museums. It has some paintings by Georges de la Tour, whom I really like.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 10:12 AM
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The Art Nouveau style is present in the Musée des Beaux Arts in its impressive collection of Daum glass. As I recall, it is exhibited on the lower level.

http://en.nancy-tourisme.fr/discover...art-deco/daum/
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 10:58 AM
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Thanks Christna - I meant the Musee de l'Ecole de Nancy - not the Musee des Beaux Arts. We never visited the latter. We'll be in a gite for 2 weeks just outside of Nancy this Sept.

Stu Dudley
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 10:58 AM
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bookmarking
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 01:11 PM
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Using les plus beaux villages would be one way of planning a trip.

http://www.les-plus-beaux-villages-d...onomy/term/136
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 01:50 PM
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Obernai remains my favourite town in Alsace. It also offers easy access to the spectacular Mont Sainte Odile.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 11:26 PM
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These towns are gorgeous in summer. Strasbourg is lovely, as is Colmar. Smaller towns that we have visited and have an abundance of colourful flowerboxes and lovely architecture are Wissembourg, Hunawihr and Bergheim. Riquewihr is probably the most visited, and is totally cute, but for visiting maybe see early or late in day to skip some of the bus tour groups. Sadly we missed Eguisheim and Obernai. Our kids loved Haut Koenigsbourg, we took the shuttle bus from Selestat, so had a wander there, another nice town. If anyone has even the slightest interest in cars, the Schlumpf collection in Mulhouse is amazing (we took a train from Strasbourg, then tram direct to museum, easy).
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Old Aug 5th, 2015, 02:20 AM
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I agree that Haut Koenigsbourg should not be missed, although if you are coming from the Black Forest, you may have already seen numerous castles in the same style.
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