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Nancy - Discover École de Nancy Art Nouveau and more

Nancy - Discover École de Nancy Art Nouveau and more

Old Apr 14th, 2011, 02:10 AM
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Nancy - Discover École de Nancy Art Nouveau and more

I noticed more people are inquiring about the city of Nancy and whether they should visit it or instead visit the nearby city of Metz (pronounced like the English word <mess I find the two very different and distinct from one another and deserving of a visit on their own merits.

When I get around to it, I will do a posting on Metz but chose to start with my favorite, Nancy. If you are into art, architecture, culture, romance, relaxation and gourmet food, as well as very friendly and young-at-heart inhabitants, then I can heartily recommend Nancy. As a matter of fact, we have been 3 times and I have YET to make it out to the actual École de Nancy Museum; there are just so many thing to see and do...I guess this just gives me an excuse for another romantic week-end to plan in the future!

HOTELS:
Our favorite hotel is Grand Hotel de la Reine, the only hotel on the famous Place Stanislas. The former abbey now-hotel, the Hotel des Prélats, is just down from the Place, near the Cathedral and receives good reviews in general; we've never stayed here as it was along the same priceline as the Grand Hotel de la Reine and we wanted to be right on the Place Stanislas. We are very happy with our decision. There is a covered parking garage just down the street, between these two hotels. The BW Hotel Crystal looks very nice and is centrally located to many of the Art Nouveau buildings and not too far a walk from the train station, if you are arriving by train. We have yet to try out the Ibis near the gare because it didn't seem to have recent positive reviews (odd for an Ibis), though we are usually Ibis fans for these shorter weekends, . We will probably try out the Logis de France's Hotel de Guise, which is a little further from the Place but located in la vieille ville, our next visit.

For those who are single travelers and more on a budget, I can recommend the Hotel Stanislas, just around the corner from the square, on rue Catherine. They are newly renovated and have very nice breakfasts, included in the price using booking.com. The double room we had was clean and spacious, if somewhat Ikea-style simple in nature. Why I can only recommend this hotel to "singles" is because even though the windows are double-glazed, the street noise is atrocious (must be many bars around that close around 3-4 am) and still comes through! Maybe it's the old thin walls? Unfortunately, all the double rooms are on the street side. All the singles are on the interior court side and quieter. Staff is fantastic and will help with any of your needs.

RESTAURANTS:
Too many favorites to choose from! The Excelsior for its Art Nouveau interior, excellent service and cuisine; seafood is their specialty and pricey, but they do have set menus starting at reasonable price of 24 euros or à la carte. If you've tried choucroute, the Alsatian sauerkraut specialty, but didn't like all the pork...order their seafood choucroute. Divine. Watching the arrivals/departures and the hectic waiters' service during lunch is very entertaining in itself. Haven't tried for dinner, but I wonder if the stained glass windows can be more appreciated in the day than at night?? Reservations a must.

La Mignardise - for more intimate dining either at lunch or dinner (expect a 2-3 hour experience depending on what you order). Traditional cuisine with a modern edge; just off Place Stanislas on rue Stanislas. Reservation a must.

Just across from La Mignardise is the affordable and friendly Bistrot des Beaux Arts. Not a lot of room, so either reserve or arrive early or late. Tasty, traditional bistrot fare; outside table in nice weather.

L'Epicerie - on rue Maréchaux. To get there, exit Place Stanislas via the Triumphal arch and immediately turn left. L' Épicerie is where the locals go for good, country cooking. Huge, varied menu/carte so everyone in your party can find something to suit their tastes and appetite size. Friendly wait staff. Only negative point: I usually order the house pichet at a locals' place, but here it was pretty "vins de pays-ish" tart...spring for a real bottle of wine or a beer at L'Epicerie.

Novidin's - Italian, near the covered market. I wouldn't call this a "must" destination at all; there are many other places to try that are probably as good. But if you were hungry and passing by and wanted to eat Italian, this is as good "rapport qualité/prix" place to chow down at as any, so just wanted to mention it. Large restaurant where the locals come for its varied menu. We had snails, crudités and pizza. House wine in pichet was good quality. Also several chinese/oriental places in this same area...on the list for next time.

Hope this helps those who might be planning a trip to the lovely city of Nancy!
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 02:19 AM
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For those interested, here is my Alace-Lorraine sub-album slideshow on Nancy:

http://s918.photobucket.com/albums/a...view=slideshow

Hope the link works.
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 02:35 AM
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This is great thanks Klondike. Didn't get there on my recent trip, but Nancy and Metz are definite starters next time.
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 03:13 AM
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Very interesting. Loved the pics, too.

Here is the hotel link, in case anyone else is interested:

http://www.hoteldelareine.com/
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 03:51 AM
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Thanks, klondike. I never manage to make a report about Nancy because I seem to pass through too quickly.
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 04:25 AM
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We will be visiting Nancy in May and decided not to book the hotel de la Reine because of the constantly bad reviews it is getting (look at tripadvisor for example). The rooms are described as old and shabby. Did I miss anything, did they renovate recently?? I would love to be right on the place Stanislas but certainly not in a shabby room.
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Old Apr 14th, 2011, 06:28 AM
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Thank you all for the interest and positive comments.

KarenE: Yes, I was aware of some negative comments re: the hotel, but decided at 107 euros it was worth it to me to sleep in a hotel that the Queen of France had slept in and to be on the Place Stanislas. What some describe as <old and shabby> to me is what the French call being <vieillotte>. It's old fashioned, with old-fashioned plumbing i.e. my friend's room which had a 4 footed bathtub with a beautifully rolled marble head rest; I'm sure some people would be rather squeamish about getting into it but my friend loved it. Our mattress was new and comfortable and the bedding was not torn or repaired. The carpet was old but clean.

Some folks expectations of a 4 starred are much higher than mine and they go in with a "magnifying glass" attitude perhaps, but then, I'm sure they also were paying more for their room than I was. For example, I would never spend 20 euro on breakfast (what the bkf buffet costs); we enjoyed having a more than adequate continental breakfast sitting out at one of the cafés on the square for well less than half that cost.

I have added a few more pictures that might show you more. So you don't have to watch the slide show again hopefully the link below will connect you to that section of the album. The room is extremely small by American standards, but my husband requested the same room a second stay because he found it "cozy". I love the real crystal chandelier it has, and my husband liked having the flat screen tv to watch when he needed a rest from walking.

My friends room had a hair dryer, old fashioned vacumn looking/sounding kind, and I had to ask for one at the front desk as my room didn't have an installed one; the front desk had no problem providing one. If you have every stayed at Hotel Le Clément in Paris (3 starred) you will have a good idea of the rooms and their conditions and the small elevator. I don't pay too much attention to the starred system since the services don't always match up/aren't consistent.

http://i918.photobucket.com/albums/a...u/IMG_0670.jpg

If you have any qualms, you are probably better off sticking with wherever you have chosen. Happy travels!
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Old Apr 19th, 2011, 07:40 AM
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klondiketoo,

Thanks for posting this, it will be very helpful for my December trip planning!
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Old Apr 19th, 2011, 11:13 AM
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For anybody needing anything a little more modern but also affordable and in a nice setting, I would recommend the Suite Novotel over by the canal. I will definitely return there on my next trip to Nancy.
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