Must-see attractions in Alsace & Lorraine

  • View of Strasbourg Cathedral from ground. Alsace; Shutterstock ID 543791347; Your name (First / Last): Daniel Fahey; GL account no.: 65050; Netsuite department name: Online Editorial; Full Product or Project name including edition: Cathédrale Notre-Dame Strasbourg POI

    Cathédrale Notre-Dame

    Strasbourg

    Nothing prepares you for your first glimpse of Strasbourg's Cathédrale Notre-Dame, completed in all its Gothic grandeur in 1439. The lace-fine facade…

  • gothic cathedral Saint Étienne against sky in french city Metz; Shutterstock ID 2220886635; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Cathédrale St-Étienne

    Metz

    The lacy golden spires of this Gothic cathedral crown Metz’ skyline. Exquisitely lit by kaleidoscopic curtains of 13th- to 20th-century stained glass, the…

  • Musée des Beaux-Arts

    Nancy

    Lodged in a regal 18th-century edifice, Nancy's standout gallery occupies art lovers for hours. A wrought-iron staircase curls gracefully up to the 2nd…

  • The fountain of Neptune in the Rococo style and the gilded wrought iron portico in the north-west corner of the place Stanislas in Nancy, France.

    Place Stanislas

    Nancy

    Nancy’s crowning glory is this grand neoclassical square and Unesco World Heritage Site. Designed by Emmanuel Héré in the 1750s, it was named after the…

  • METZ, 10 September 2017 - Entrance Georges Pompidou museum building at the early morning in Metz, France; Shutterstock ID 714439267; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
714439267

    Centre Pompidou-Metz

    Metz

    Designed by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban, with a curved roof resembling a space-age Chinese hat, the architecturally innovative Centre Pompidou-Metz is…

  • Palais Rohan

    Strasbourg

    Hailed as a ‘Versailles in miniature’, this opulent 18th-century residence is loaded with treasures. The basement Musée Archéologique takes you from the…

  • Grande Île

    Strasbourg

    History seeps through the twisting lanes and cafe-rimmed plazas of Grande Île, Strasbourg's Unesco World Heritage–listed island bordered by the River Ill…

  • Musée d’Unterlinden

    Colmar

    Gathered around a Gothic-style Dominican cloister, this revamped museum hides a prized medieval stone statue collection, late-15th-century prints by…

  • Cave de Ribeauvillé

    Alsace

    France’s oldest winegrowers’ cooperative, which brings together 40 vintners, was founded in 1895. The huge, contemporary building contains a viniculture…

  • France, Alsace, Strasbourg, Petite-France, View of restaurants, taverns and framed houses

    Petite France

    Strasbourg

    Criss-crossed by narrow lanes, canals and locks, Petite France is where artisans plied their trades in the Middle Ages. The half-timbered houses,…

  • Old colorful half-timbered houses in the quatrer Petite Venise (Little Venice) in Colmar, France.; Shutterstock ID 748217683; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
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    Petite Venise

    Colmar

    If you see just one thing in Colmar, make it the Little Venice quarter. Canal connection aside, it doesn’t resemble Venice in the slightest, but it's…

  • View from the wall of the Haut-Koenigsbourg castle ( Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg ) over the Alsatian panorama and vineyards up to the Black Forest; Shutterstock ID 1780073546; your: Sloane Tucker; gl: 65050; netsuite: Online Editorial; full: POI
1780073546

    Château du Haut Kœnigsbourg

    Alsace

    On its fairy-tale perch above vineyards and hills, the turreted red-sandstone Château du Haut Kœnigsbourg is worth a detour for the wraparound panorama…

  • Vieille Ville

    Alsace

    Along the main street that threads through the old town, keep an eye out for the 17th-century Pfifferhüs, which once housed the town’s fife-playing…

  • Old trench of the first world war on the Ballon d'Alsace in France.

    Ballon d’Alsace

    Alsace

    Three régions (Alsace, Franche-Comté and Lorraine) converge at the rounded 1247m-high summit of Ballon d’Alsace. The mountain is a scenic base for…

  • Musée de l’Œuvre Notre-Dame in Strasbourg, France.

    Musée de l’Œuvre Notre-Dame

    Strasbourg

    Occupying a cluster of sublime 14th- and 16th-century buildings, this museum harbours one of Europe’s premier collections of Romanesque, Gothic and…

  • The Lorraine Museum, also called the Palace of the Dukes of Lorraine is the historical museum of the Lorraine region in Nancy, France.

    Musée Lorrain

    Nancy

    Once home to the dukes of Lorraine, the regal Renaissance Palais Ducal now shelters the Musée Lorrain. The rich fine arts and history collection…

  • The Strasbourg Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, MAMCS.

    Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain

    Strasbourg

    This striking glass-and-steel cube showcases an outstanding fine-art, graphic-art and photography collection. Besides modern and contemporary works of the…

  • Traditional blacksmith in an old alsatian house in the Ecomuseum Alsace.

    Ecomusée d’Alsace

    Alsace

    Ecomusée d’Alsace is a fascinating excursion into Alsatian country life and time-honoured crafts. Smiths, cartwrights, potters and coopers do their thing…

  • Grande Mosquee de Strasbourg.

    Grande Mosquée de Strasbourg

    Strasbourg

    Designed by Italian architect Paolo Portoghesi and opened in September 2012, France's biggest mosque (accommodating 1500 worshippers) sits on a bend in…

  • Barrage Vauban.

    Barrage Vauban

    Strasbourg

    A triumph of 17th-century engineering, the Barrage Vauban bears the architectural imprint of the leading French military engineer of the age – Sébastien…

  • Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi Museum in Colmar, Alsace, France.

    Musée Bartholdi

    Colmar

    In the house where Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi was born in 1834, this museum pays homage to the sculptor who captured the spirit of a nation with his…

  • The Market square in the old center of Obernai, France.

    Place du Marché

    Alsace

    Life spirals around this market square, put to use each Thursday morning, where you’ll find the 16th-century hôtel de ville (town-hall building)…

  • White herons in Naturoparc.

    NaturOparC

    Alsace

    Set amid the vines, this delightful centre is home base for 200 free-flying storks; visit in spring and you're guaranteed to see hatchlings. Cormorants,…

  • Cyclist on the central cobblestone pavement road of Bergheim, France.

    Medieval Centre

    Alsace

    A stroll through the cobbled streets of the well-preserved medieval centre takes in the early Gothic church; the wall-mounted sundial, dating from 1711;…

  • The Museum of Nancy School of Art Nouveau, in Nancy, France.

    Musée de l’École de Nancy

    Nancy

    A highlight of a visit to Nancy, the Musée de l’École de Nancy brings together an exquisite collection of art-nouveau interiors, curvaceous glass and…

  • The Porte de la Craffe in Nancy, France.

    Vieille Ville

    Nancy

    A saunter through the charming old town takes in the silver-turreted, 14th-century Porte de la Craffe, Nancy’s oldest city gate, and place St-Epvre,…

  • Musée Lalique

    Alsace

    A stunning, romantic tribute to French art-nouveau designer René Lalique, the Musée Lalique harbours a collection assembling exquisite gem-encrusted and…

  • Place de la République

    Strasbourg

    Many of Strasbourg’s grandest public buildings, constructed when the city was ruled by the German Reich, huddle northeast of the Grande Île area in the so…

  • Fort du Hackenberg

    Metz

    The largest single Maginot Line bastion in the Metz area was the 1000-man Fort du Hackenberg, whose 10km of galleries were designed to be self-sufficient…

  • Musée La Cour d’Or

    Metz

    Delve into the past at this trove of Gallo-Roman antiquities, hiding remnants of the city’s Roman baths and a statue of the Egyptian goddess Isis…

  • Bibliothèque Humaniste

    Alsace

    Founded in 1452, this library’s stellar collection features a 7th-century book of Merovingian liturgy, a copy of Cosmographiae Introductio (printed in…

  • Musée de l’Impression sur Étoffes

    Alsace

    Once known as the ‘French Manchester’, Mulhouse is fittingly home to this peerless collection of six million textile samples – from brilliant cashmeres…

  • Musée du Papier Peint

    Alsace

    More stimulating than it sounds, this is a treasure trove of wallpaper (some of the scenic stuff is as detailed as an oil painting) and the machines used…

  • Villa Majorelle

    Nancy

    The whimsical Villa Majorelle, built by Henri Sauvage in 1901, bears the hallmarks of Majorelle (furniture) and Gruber (stained glass). The centrepiece is…

  • Église des Dominicains

    Colmar

    Lit by late-medieval stained glass, this desanctified Gothic church shelters the celebrated triptych La Vierge au Buisson de Roses (The Virgin in the Rose…

  • Église St-Georges

    Alsace

    One of Alsace’s most striking churches, this Gothic giant, built from weighty red sandstone and sporting a colourful mosaic-tile roof, is illuminated by…

  • Quartier Impérial

    Metz

    The stately boulevards and bourgeois villas of the German Imperial Quarter, including rue Gambetta and av Foch, are the brainchild of Kaiser Wilhelm II…

  • Natzweiler-Struthof

    Alsace

    About 25km west of Obernai, off the D130, stands Natzweiler-Struthof, the only Nazi concentration camp on French territory. Today the sombre remains of…

  • Jardin des Deux Rives

    Strasbourg

    An expression of flourishing Franco-German friendship, Strasbourg and its German neighbour Kehl have turned former customs posts and military…