padams421

We are traveling through Bavaria, western Austria and Switzerland this summer. We have 2-3 days at the end of the trip when we will need to drive back from the Berner Oberland area to catch our plane in Stuttgart. We have been through the Black Forest on a previous trip. I was thinking about driving up through France this time and spending a couple of nights in Strasbourg, or perhaps Colmar. We have been to France but not this area. Is it a scenic drive? What are the sights in this area? Any hotel or restaurant recommendations? Thank you.

MorganB

Alsace is one of my favorite regions in France. The Route des Vins between Colmar and Strasbourg is lovely. The Jura mountains are on one side with vineyards climing up the hills and small beautiful villages that are lined with half timber buildings.

Both Colmar and Strasbourg are lovely as well. The Petit France neighborhood of Strasbourg is a must see as well as the cathedral. I personally like the Hotel Regent Petit France . Almost all of the rooms look out on the river. The exterior is very old and attractive and the interior and the rooms are very modern. http://www.regent-hotels.com/petite-.../us/index.html

Peteralan

I agree with Morgan B..we stayed in Strasbourg which is a lovely place especially the Petit France area.We did a day trip down the Route des Vins and another day went by train for the day just to Colmar. See if you can do both . I'm sure you will enjoy!

StCirq

Yes, it's a scenic area - very. I've only stayed in Strasbourg once, but have stayed along the route du Vin in Obernai and loved it. That said, Strasbourg, being the seat of the European Parliament, is a lively town with many good restaurants (Le Crocodile for haute cuisine, Zum Strissel for local fare and good wines). The cathedral is magnificent. Many of the towns along the Route du Vin are worth a stop, especially Haute Königsberg and Obernai. I personally did not like Riquewihr or Ribeauvillé that much - too touristy and kitschy - but they seem to be popular among a lot of travelers. I also didn't like Colmar anywhere as much as Strasbourg, but those are just personal impressions. The area itself is fascinating and beautiful. If you have time, the Route des Crêtes is also interesting - following the "crests" that the French built to shield themselves from the Germans during WWII.

LynFrance

If you have time have a meal at the wonderful Auberge de Lille in Illerhausen.

francophile03

It's a great little city and it's very picturesque. The Alsatian restaurants are memorable also.

socialworker

HI--it is hard to know what will appeal to someone else--not knowing what experiences they have already had--but as people who had been to Paris and several parts of Germany more than once, we found Strasbourg to be wonderful. We were there in March and loved it. To us it was unique because even though the people speak French, it was like a place unto itself. I likened it to being sort of a "Europe World" where the scenery gave no clear indication of what country you were in and so it was--to me--like being some place very special. We stayed at the Hotel des Rohan which had a perfect location just off to the side of the Cathedral, very convenient for walking but not all the noise of being right in front of the Cathedral. If you decide to stay there, some of the rooms seemed small and overlooked an airshaft. We had a wonderful large king bed room that looked out onto a pedestrian street behind the hotel. It seems that you can go into any restaurant and get a great meal, but if you search this forum, you will get some specific recommendations. We took the train to Obernai for a day and found it to be a lovely little town. We did not have a car, so you may decide to do more exploring. If you go to Strasbourg, the boat tour is really nice and the landing is just down the little pedestrian street that the above hotel is on. As you can see we loved Strasbourg.

Peteralan

As I mentioned earlier you will be happy with both Colmar and Strasbourg but if you only really have time for one of them I would say make it Strasbourg. I agree with the above comments..it is a lovely place.You will enjoy the Wine Road itself and yes there are some kitchy aspects to some of it but you are only passing through and can move on if something doesn't take your fancy.Cheers!

SalB

I love Colmar, but it's a smaller town with a more compact tourist area. I'd recommend it as a day trip, but Strasbourg is larger and much more diverse so would be more interesting as a travel base.

We usually stay in one of the wine villages and travel to Strasbourg, but if I had a choice of Strasbourg or Colmar, I'd stay in Strasbourg and visit Colmar for a pleasant day.

Try to visit some of the wine villages. They are touristy but they are also beautiful and very friendly. It's fun.

Enjoy your trip.