Planning a trip in Alsace ? I can help you !

I'm starting thinking you don't want to visit Alsace.
I posted 2 days ago and not a single question. What's wrong with me ?

OK, I'll jump in. I am beginning to look at a trip to the Alsace in the May-June time frame next year for two couples. We are thinking about renting a house or apartment in a village and doing day trips from there by car. We would like to be in (not near) a village where there are a few restaurants, etc., but I don't know which villages to consider and am not finding many rentals that fit that description. Any advice welcomed.

Thanx for coming !
I think Colmar is the best spot for you. I agree that it's not a village but a city of near 70 000 inhabitants but the historic downtown is lovely, full of restaurants and much more lively than villages in the area. Colmar is centrally located in Alsace, very convenient for day trips.
Eguisheim, Kaysersberg and Ribeauvillé are beautiful villages where you can stay but not many restaurants (in my opinion).
Go to this web-site : homelidays.com (for information, Colmar
and other villages I mentioned are located in the Haut-Rhin,
zip code 68)
Bye.

Dear Bertrand, I realize this may be out of your zone, but would your recommend Grasse for a July holiday? We are looking to rent a home for the month, with access to the airport (Nice) for husbands traveling back to Prague for work. Or would Cote de Azur be better? I had heard Grasse might be less touristy, but is it too far from the sea? Hope your trip to China goes well.

Hi,
Trip to China is canceled ( not canceled but delayed, I prefer ).
As you said, Grasse is a part of France I don't really know.
IMO, If you can, try another month. July and August are awful ( with all the inconveniences of a crowded area ).
I'm sorry not to be helpful.
Bye

Bertrand, living in Heidelberg now I wanted to make a day trip across the border to get my "French Fix" as well as take a break from the German cuisine (What I wouldn't give for some elegant French food tonight!).

We don't particularly like large cities, but much prefer the smaller towns. Don't necessarily have to do a lot of sight seeing proper but enjoy the local market, architechture, and history by just walking the town or visiting a specifi site or two i.e. the local museum, castle or other monument if it fits our mood that day.

Being winter, I don't want to travel too far and had heard good things from German locals about Wissembourg, Bitche and Haguenau. The Bitche "draw" seems obvious, but which of the other towns do you prefer, Wissembourg or Hagenau? Or do you have a different town close by that you prefer?

Any yummy restaurants you know of in the 25-40 euros menu/forfaits range that is traditional French, not German-based?-- just experienced the Sankt Leon-Rot Sauerkraut Fest and really don't need anymore sausage/kraut meals for a while if you know what I mean!
Merci!

ps: all opinions/thoughts of any poster welcome while waiting for Bertand to respond.

B - We are planning an independent walking trip in Alsace region next May or June. We have walked with ATG Oxford, but are looking at other providers as well. Any suggestions of small towns not to miss. We enjoy a glass of wine and good food but are not gourmets. Is this the right region for us? We are in our 60's - very fit. Thanks for your suggestions.

Hi Klondike,
Wissembourg or Saverne are the cities I prefer in this area. 10 kms south of Wissembourg are located the villages of Seebach and Hunspach which worth the visit.
A lot of restaurants along the way.
Bye

Hi Rockcrest,
For sure Alsace is the right region for you.
Which part are you going to visit and how much time will you stay ?

bertrand has so kindly contributed a ton of ideas of Alsatian possibilities on his other thread Can I Help so just click on his name at the top of this thread to see a lot of great ideas IMO

Thank you, Bertrand. I am sorry to read on the other thread that your wife is not well. My best wishes to her.

Thank you for your input. I know Saverne, having spent a night there before picking up our self-drive barge in Lutzelbourg some years past so that gives me an idea how compatable our "town preferences" are.

Another question, I have purchased some sncf tickets with my credit card that I need to pick up at a sncf boutique by showing them my credit card the replay email states. Does this mean I have to go to a larger city, like Strasbourg? Or can I pick them up at any sncf gare, like if I go to Wissembourg this weekend?

Again, I know Bertrand is preoccupied at present so anyone's input is welcome.

Well you can pick them up at any SNCF train station either in the automatic machines, which may not take your American credit card or certainly at ticket windows in the station. This is what has been said several times here - i have no experience actually retrieving online ordered tickets.

Thanks for the fast reply, Palenque. I was much more in the mood for Wissembourg than Strasbourg..now we'll see if the weather will cooperate...looks like it's supposed to.

I was in Nice this summer and took a bus to Grasse. It is about an 1.5 hr. ride each way on curvy mountain roads. Not really close to the sea. I would stay in Nice. Larger and better restaurants and shopping. With the train station there, the rest of the coast is yours to travel to and back each day. Get an apt. there and enjoy it.

Bertrand, how is the weather in December?

Hi beaux
December is generally cold. Today 5° C with a freezing wind and maybe down to zero at night.
You can expect some snow from late November 'til the end of March. January and Frebruary are the coldest.
Alsace is wonderful during X-mas time ( from 25.11 'til 25.12 ). Less crowded in the beginning of december.
Bye

I'll be in Alsace 2 days and would like to get out into wine country and see some of the smaller villages. Renting a car for a short period seems impossible. Do you have any ideas of how I could get around? Are there any day tours, etc.?

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