54 Best Sights in Alsace-Lorraine, France

In a splendid building that now spills over into a spectacular modern wing, a broad and varied collection of art treasures lives up to the noble white facade designed by Emmanuel Héré. The showpiece is Rubens's massive Transfiguration, and among the most striking works are the freeze-the-moment realist tableaux painted by native son Émile Friant at the turn of the 20th century. A sizable collection of Lipchitz sculptures includes portrait busts of Gertrude Stein, Jean Cocteau, and Coco Chanel. You'll also find 19th- and 20th-century paintings by Monet, Manet, Utrillo, and Modigliani; a Caravaggio Annunciation; and a wealth of other old masters from the Italian, Dutch, Flemish, and French schools; and impressive glassworks by Nancy native Antonin Daum. A free smartphone app can be downloaded in English and can help you navigate the museum.

This interactive museum of Strasbourg history, housed in a step-gabled former slaughterhouse dating from 1588, contains a collection of maps, armor, arms, bells, uniforms, traditional outfits, printing paraphernalia, and two huge relief models of the city. The newer collection on the first floor covers civic history from the Napoleonic era to the present day.

Built in 1901 to house the Vaxelaire department store, this imposing metallic façade is the last vestige of the work of Émile André and Eugène Vallin.

This elaborately-worked metal exoskeleton, the first in Nancy (1901), exudes functional beauty. The floral decoration is a reminder of the building's past as a seed supply store. Windows were worked by Jacques Gruber; the building was designed by Henri Gutton and his nephew Henry Gutton, while Frédéric Schertzer conceived the metal frame.

Housing the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, this 1908 building is remarkable for the Lorraine thistle (a civic emblem) and brewing hops woven into its undulating exterior. It was designed by architects Émile Toussaint and Louis Marchal, with Gruber's windows enhanced by the curving metalwork of Louis Majorelle.

Designed by architect Émile André, this lovely structure—now a bank—can be visited during business hours. You can still see the cabinetry of Louis Majorelle, the decor of Paul Charbonnier, and the stained glass windows of Jacques Gruber.

Furniture maker Eugène Vallin and architect Georges Biet left their mark on this graceful 1903 bank.

Designed by Paris architect Henri Bernard in 1977, this continental landmark is headquarters to the Council of Europe, founded in 1949 and independent of the European Union. Guided tours (75 minutes) are availalbe only to groups of at least 15 people, and must be booked online.

Built in the 15th century and again after a fire at the end of the 19th century, this impressive palace originally housed the dukes of Lorraine. The stunning architecture combines Flamboyant Gothic with Renaissance. Today, the palace houses one part of the expansive Musée Lorrain, along with the neighboring Couvent des Cordeliers and the Palais du Gouvernment. A major renovation project means the museum is closed to the public until 2029. Next door, a small, free exhibition from the collection is hosted in the Eglise des Cordeliers.

Like a private backyard for the Eurocrats in the Palais de l'Europe, this delightful flower-laden park is punctuated by noble copper beeches and home to a large boating lake. Noisy local storks make their nests on top of the central pavilion and in nearby trees.

This picturesque, landscaped city park has labeled ancient trees, a rose garden, playgrounds, a carousel, and a small zoo.

Ignore the guides herding around French and German tour groups, and head straight for the Place de l'Hôtel de Ville. Its town hall contains a famous collection of silver-gilt, 17th-century tankards, and the place itself is a pretty place to perch. It is particularly lively the first Sunday in September, when the town hosts a grand parade to celebrate the Fête des Ménétriers (Festival of the Minstrels)—a day when at least one fountain here spouts free wine. Headlined by medieval musicians, the party begins in the morning with the parade in the early afternoon. Entrance tickets cost €10 (contact the tourist office for details).

Lined with pollarded trees and handsome, 18th-century mansions (another successful collaboration between King Stanislas and Emmanuel Héré), this UNESCO World Heritage site's elegant rectangle leads from Place Stanislas to the colonnaded facade of the Palais du Gouvernement (Government Palace), former home of the governors of Lorraine.

Northwest of the cathedral, this classical square is the centerpiece of the tiny Ile du Petit-Saulcy. The Jaumont stone of the grandiose 18th-century Opéra-Theatre (the country’s oldest active opera theater) forms a stark contrast to the gray sandstone Temple Neuf, a Protestant church erected in Romanesque Revival style by the Germans from 1901 to 1904. Every summer, the square hosts an ephemeral garden, bringing fountains, flowers, and shrubs to the city center.

The spacious layout and ponderous architecture of this monumental cirque (circle) have nothing in common with the Vieille Ville except for the local red sandstone. A different hand was at work here—that of occupying Germans, who erected the former Ministry (1902), the Academy of Music (1882–92), and the Palais du Rhin (1883–88). Five hundred yards southeast, the handsome neo-Gothic church of St-Paul and, another 200 yards further on, the pseudo-Renaissance Palais de l'Université (University Palace), constructed between 1875 and 1885, also bear the German stamp. From here, the tree-lined boulevard of Allée de la Robertsau heads northeast towards the Parc de l'Orangerie. Its heavy turn-of-the-20th-century houses, some reflecting the whimsical curves of the Art Nouveau style, would not look out of place in Berlin.

This central marketplace is overlooked by the 13th-century Kappelturm Beffroi (Chapel Tower Belfry). The stout, square structure is topped by a pointed steeple that's flanked at each corner by frilly openwork turrets. Next to it, the Hôtel de Ville, parts of which date from the 14th century, is open to visitors the third weekend of September during Les Journées du Patrimoine (Heritage Days).

On its western side, this medieval square is lined by rows of old town houses in yellow Jaumont stone, underpinned by elegant, curvaceous arcades. The square was once occupied by moneychangers, and its design was inspired by the Italian Republics they traded with. Today, the arcades are filled with bars and restaurants.

These three bridges, distinguished by their four stone towers, were once covered with wooden walls and a tiled roof. Part of the 14th-century ramparts that framed Old Strasbourg, they span the Ill as it branches into a quartet of fingerlike canals.

A fairy-tale vision out of the late Middle Ages, this 14th- and 15th-century gate is all that remains of Nancy's medieval fortifications. With its twin turrets looming at one end of the Grande-Rue, the arch served as a prison through the Revolution. Above the main portal is the two-barred Lorraine Cross.

An elaborate Renaissance well near the belfry, the Puits à Six-Seaux was constructed in 1579. Its name recalls the six buckets suspended from its metal chains.

A 275-foot spire towers over this splendid neo-Gothic church, completed in 1451 and rebuilt in the 1860s. Most of the 2,800 square yards of stained glass were created by the Geyling workshop in Vienna while many carvings are the work of Margraff of Munich. The heaviest of the eight bells was cast in Budapest, and the organ, though manufactured by Merklin of Paris, was inaugurated in 1869 by Austrian composer Anton Bruckner. It is only open to the public on Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons.

The church of St-Foy dates from between 1152 and 1190. Its Romanesque facade remains largely intact (the spires were added in the 19th century), as does the 140-foot octagonal tower over the crossing. Sadly, the interior has been mangled over the centuries, chiefly by the Jesuits, whose most inspired legacy is the Baroque, 1733 pulpit depicting the life of St-Francis Xavier. Note the Romanesque bas-relief next to the baptistery, originally the lid of a sarcophagus.

The twin spires of this parish church compete with the belfry for skyline preeminence. Like the rest of the sanctuary, the spires date from the 1860s, although the 1504 Holy Sepulchre altarpiece in the north transept is a survivor from the previous church.

This bustling brasserie has a severely rhythmic facade that is invitingly illuminated at night. Inside, the decor continues to evoke the Belle Époque.