Basel Colmar Strasbourg
 

Hello
We have plane tickets to Basel (for me, my son(12) and and my husband )We will arrive on 25 th of January and leave on29th ,only four nights. We are planning to hire a car and see Colmar , Strasbourg even Freiburg and the Black Forest. My son is so excited about CERN in Geneva but we have a little time so I am not sure if we can make it. In fact I would like to know if it is wise to go between these days, in January. I haven't tought much as I have found pretty cheap tickets but now I am a bit worried about cold and snow. Do you think we will be able to go around easily? What else do you suggest. I appreciate a good plan .
Thanks

If I had only 4 days, I would just go by airport bus from Basel airport to Freiburg, then by train to Offenburg - Strasbourg - Colmar - Mulhouse and by airport bus back to Basel airport.
Or try to include the very interesting city of Basel: Airport - airport bus - Basel - train - Freiburg .....

CERN is a long way from Basel, by train nearly 3 hours each way so a long day trip from Colmar or Basel.

Why have you chosen Colmar, Strasbourg, etc in January? Driving can always be dicey with ice -consider trains - and staying in cities - for lots of rail info - www.bahn.de/en - German Railways site for schedules and fares- www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

How about a Lake Geneva stay - say in cute Montreux or Vevey and easily do CERN on a day trip - maybe visit the Callier Chocolate Factory at Broc (can do by train) or take a mountain-climbing train Montreux to Rochers de Naye?

Seems more to easily do in compact area and CERN would be special for your son.

Four nights is only three full days, so you have less time than you thought. You will have to edit your wish list in order to see/do anything in your limited time. Like others, I don't recommend a car rental - use the trains.

Do you think we will be able to go around easily?>

Trains are very frequent and easy - driving too if weather is OK - like Kathie says with that short time take trains.

I'd concentrate on cities in winter - dark short days - good chance of wet weather in that area. Cities can be fun in such weather but Black Forest, Colmar vineyareds, etc not so much IMO.

Are you experienced in driving in winter conditions? If not, you might want to consider planning a route using public transportation. As someone with extensive experience in driving in snow, sleet, and ice, I can assure you I would do everything in my power to avoid it – particularly on a vacation!

And if there is any chance that you will have jet lag, I would strongly encourage you to take public transportation for your first night or two. Although many people are not aware of it, there is mounting evidence that driving with jet lag is just as dangerous -- to yourself and others -- as driving drunk, and <b>nothing</b> you can do will prevent the microsleeps (which you might not even notice) that are the apparent culprit. Seriously -- NOT a good idea, no matter your other constraints and no matter your prior experience! And please be patient with me if you think I’m being overly adamant, but I know too many people who have died or been seriously injured in accidents to which jet lag was a contributing factor, and I know too many people who will spend the rest of their lives dealing with the knowledge that they were responsible for accidents that resulted in multiple deaths, including those of children, all because they were too confident in their ability to drive safely with jet lag. The issue has become a bit of cause célèbre for me….

BTW, Basel itself is well worth seeing, IMO.

Yes where are you flying from - UK or US- jet-lag is a real concern with driving.

I would travel by train or other public transportation. The upper Rhine Valley is often covered in dense fog in winter and while you would not likely encounter much if any snow there is often black ice (glatteis) on the roads which can be very hazardous. At higher altitudes, such as in the Black Forest or Vosges, you will very likely find snow and winter driving conditions.

Colmar is a nice small town but not much to see - folks go there if interested in Alsace wine and the little wine towns nearby but in winter many may not be open and beauty of area asleep.

Maybe skip Colmar?

Colmar has the fabulous Unterlinden museum -- that is most definitely worth a look.

http://anyportinastorm.proboards.com...rlinden-colmar

Well Colmar also has a workshop where the Statue of Liberty was cast before being shipped in bits to New Jersey and a scale-model replica of it on edge of town- plus lots of nice buildings:

https://www.tourisme-colmar.com/en/v...liberty-colmar

http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/s...liberty-colmar

I retract my statement not much to see in Colmar!