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A wonderful little budget hotel in Alsace and Alsatian thoughts

A wonderful little budget hotel in Alsace and Alsatian thoughts

Old Jun 7th, 2003, 01:51 AM
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A wonderful little budget hotel in Alsace and Alsatian thoughts

Greetings,

We have just returned from our annual 2 week trip to France and enjoyed it very much. One of the treats of this trip was arriving in Dambach-la-Ville in Alsace, a beautiful, quiet wine village at the hotel we selected. It is a 7 room hotel--Le Raisin d'Or-2 star-where everything is very clean, nice small bathroom,comfortable beds, but basic with tv and a little balcony, carpet is worn but everything is spotless--no a/c, which was fine even in the high heat. The dining room in the hotel serves lovely meals --we chose the demi-pension plan with a very nice breakfast-- croissants, bread, butter, jam, juice, ham, cheese and a dinner with minimal choices but 3 course and very good. Mme Imbs is the chef and the family owns a vineyard. Their wines are sold as house wines in carafes with meals (as well as by the bottle) and they are very good and so inexpensive. They also have a comprehensive wine list if you prefer. We particularly liked the Reisling and Pinot Noir.

The best of all this is the price--74 euros for a room for 2 with 2 meals included--that is per couple not per person. Wine and coffee are not included at dinner as usual. They also own a little bar attached to the hotels which seems popular with tourists and locals alike. We would return after touring and enjoy a drink and read the paper on the little terrace or watch the French Open in the bar on the larger screen TV. We also took a lovely walk around town each day and out to the vineyards surrounded the town where there is a beautiful chapel and the village gates have a stork nest on top with resident storks included--really special.

One special drink we had there each evening was a Kir made with Peche de vigne and white wine rather than the normal creme de cassis. The liqueur is made with small peaches which grow in the vineyard along side the grapes and make a very perfumed liqueur--doesn't take much with a cold Riesling to make a beautiful aperitif. The Imbs sent us to the local coop to buy and we brought home 3 bottles at 9 euros each--a steal as we saw the little half bottles in the local shops for 10-12 euros and these were full bottles.

As I hadn't been to Alsace in 40 years since I was in school, we were bowled over by the beauty of the lovely little towns, many of which were very close to Dambach--we loved Bergheim and Scherwiller, a few miles away and many other small ones. While Colmar had many beautiful sites, it was too crowded for us and we didn't stay long. We spent several hours in Strasbourg, also crowded but certainly the cathedral and petite France are not to be missed.

The 1 day we did not elect demi-pension (you must do a minimum of 3 days in order to get it), we selected another modest hotel dining room--Aux Deux Clefs and had a very nice 3 course set menu for 15 euros each--simple an well prepared. Many of the little restaurants in the area do not offer menus so this allowed for a budget and surprisingly good meal.

If you select Au Raisin d'Or, please tell them the Mixons sent you. Here is there information page. http://www.visit-alsace.com/raisin-or/index.html and request a room with a little terrace.

I will be glad to answer any other questions so feel free to leave any responses here and I will get back to you.

Take care,
Robyn France
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Old Jun 7th, 2003, 05:59 AM
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jmw
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My goodness, Robyn, I think that's the little two-star I enjoyed maybe ten years ago! What memories you bring back. I'm going to dig through my old stuff to see if I can find my notes! I thought I was the only person at this forum who had ever been to Dambach-la-Ville! I loved it! The crucifix at the little crossroads (?), the quiet streets, the little square, the church bells that sort of rang off key, the walk up to the vineyards and the little church above. Yes? Not only that, but I found it easy to day-trip via train and/or bus! Shhhhh, don't tell too many people about it. J.
 
Old Jun 7th, 2003, 04:37 PM
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Hi J--thanks for the reinforcement on this--it really was a lovely spot and so reasonable for all it offered.

Take care,
RobynFrance
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Old Jun 8th, 2003, 05:07 AM
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Topping this, Robyn, so others will have another chance to read your lovely description. I think we can safely let one or two people in on our secret w/o risking overcrowding. Your post made me want to pack my bags. Did you taste an onion pie? J.
 
Old Jun 29th, 2003, 08:38 AM
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http://www.photo-alsace.com/2_photo/...bach-ville.htm

Hi Robyn. I've just stumbled upon this website with the most beautiful photographs of Dambach-la-ville. It looks just the way I remember it. J.
 
Old Jun 29th, 2003, 03:12 PM
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Robyn, sounds like you had a wonderful time. Please tell us about the rest of your trip. Would love to hear.
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Old Jul 1st, 2003, 12:49 PM
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Hi Ronda,

We are in love with France, so please factor that in. We go every year for about 2-3 weeks, and this year spent the first 4 days of our trip in a lovely b&b in Mougins, outside of Cannes. It was in a residential area, and the hosts only rented to one family at a time, but the home and gardens were lovely and the terrace from our room opened out to their pool. Another bargain--it's the only way we can go--at 65 Euro a night, including a gorgeous breakfast, our own little coffee maker and a mini fridge and beautiful modern bathroom in our private little wing. We spent the first 4 days going out from Mougins--east to Eze and Menton, North to Tourettes sur Loup and Gourdon and West to Cassis and a boat trip of the Calanques, beautiful limestone fjords in Cassis. There were nice restaurants we could afford that Madame told us about--in little villages nearby. The address is http://www.bbfrance.com/pinazo.html

Ronda--I think I shall post this on a separate entry and finish it there--as it doesn't relate to the Alsace title. Hope that works.

Take care,
Robyn France
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