Alsace is known for its picturesque villages and towns, each with its own unique charm and attractions. Alsace, located in northeastern France, is a region known for its picturesque villages, vineyard-covered hills, and a blend of French and Germanic culture. Don’t miss the chance to savor dishes like choucroute (sauerkraut with sausages and other meats), tarte flambée (similar to pizza), and delicious Alsatian wines, including Riesling and Gewürztraminer. You can visit wineries for tastings and explore charming towns like Riquewihr, Eguisheim, and Kaysersberg.
- It can change from one village to another, and some areas have their own characteristic costumes which may differ greatly, in particular in the Vosges mountains, the Sundgau and Alsace Bossue.
- During the war, 130,000 young men from Alsace and Lorraine were conscripted into the German armies against their will (malgré-nous).
- This had grave effects on trade and the economy of the region since former overland trade routes were switched to newly opened Mediterranean and Atlantic seaports.
- You can visit wineries for tastings and explore charming towns like Riquewihr, Eguisheim, and Kaysersberg.
- France consolidated its hold with the 1679 Treaties of Nijmegen, which brought most remaining towns under its control.
- Alsace is also well known for its foie gras made in the region since the 17th century.
Get my personal insider insights, travel guides, cultural gems delivered and exclusive offers to your inbox.Your journey to Paris and France begins when you sign up on our Substack! Get insider insights, travel guides, cultural gems delivered and exclusive offers to your inbox twice a week. The view from its summit offers a panorama of the city, the valley of the Weiss, the vineyards and the Plain of Alsace, and beyond, the Black Forest in Germany.
Traditional costume
In order not to antagonize the Alsatians, the region was not subjected to some legal changes that had glitzbets casino registration occurred in the rest of France between 1871 and 1919, such as the 1905 French law on the separation of Church and State. With the arrival of the French soldiers, many Alsatians and local Prussian/German administrators and bureaucrats cheered the re-establishment of order. Between 100,000 and 130,000 Alsatians (of a total population of about a million and a half) chose to remain French citizens and leave Reichsland Elsaß–Lothringen, many of them resettling in French Algeria as Pieds-Noirs. The constitution of the Reichsland of 1911 reserved one seat in the first chamber of the Landtag for a representative of the Jewish Consistory of Alsace–Lorraine (besides two seats respectively for the two main Christian denominations). Antisemitic local riots occasionally occurred, especially during the Revolution of 1848.
The Route des Crêtes of the Vosges
Look for rue des Clefs, Grand’ Rue and rue des Marchands, medieval streets lined with dozens of restored, half-timbered buildings. The historic center of Colmar is a maze of pedestrian malls dotted with plenty of cultural highlights. Both villages have main streets dotted with pottery shops and potters’ workshops, which welcome visitors.
Alsace, historical region and former région of France, incorporated since January 2016 into the région of Grand Est. Share your best experiences in Alsace with #visitalsace In the hollow where the Lorraine plateau meets Northern Alsace lies a secret region with rich, rugged landscapes.
Northern Alsace
For more than 300 years, from the Thirty Years' War to World War II, the political status of Alsace was heavily contested between France and various German states in wars and diplomatic conferences. On 1 January 2021, the departments of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin merged into the new European Collectivity of Alsace but remained part of the region Grand Est. Territorial reform passed by the French Parliament in 2014 resulted in the merger of the Alsace administrative region with Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine to form Grand Est. Alsacea is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland.
- It is common to see new official bilingual street signs in Alsatian cities and villages.
- On 21 July 1789, after receiving news of the Storming of the Bastille in Paris, a crowd of people stormed the Strasbourg city hall, forcing the city administrators to flee and putting symbolically an end to the feudal system in Alsace.
- Many town names have become synonymous with rich traditions, friendliness, prosperity and great wines.
- Today, the mountain range provides a habitat for about 30 lynxes.
- White storks are one of the region’s most beloved symbols, and for many centuries, they return every year from Africa to announce the coming of spring in France.
- Located between the Plain of Alsace, the Rhine River, the Vosges and the Jura mountains, the Sundgau region has its own distinctive geographic character.
Explore the River III via electric boat
At that time, the French trunk road left of the Rhine not been built, so that traffic would cross into Germany to use the Karlsruhe-Basel Autobahn. These cause a major buildup of traffic and are the main sources of pollution in the towns, notably in Strasbourg where the motorway traffic of the A35 was 170,000 per day in 2002. The A4 toll road (towards Paris) begins 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Strasbourg and the A36 toll road towards Lyon, begins 10 km (6.2 mi) west from Mulhouse. Most major car journeys are made on the A35 autoroute, which links Saint-Louis on the Swiss border to Lauterbourg on the German border. According to the Institut National de la Statistique et des Études Économiques (INSEE), Alsace had a gross domestic product of 44.3 billion euros in 2002. Derived from the above, "Alsatia" was historically a cant term for the area near Whitefriars, London, which was for a long time a sanctuary.
During the next century, France was to be militarily shattered by the Hundred Years' War, which prevented for a time any further tendencies in this direction. France began an aggressive policy of expanding eastward, first to the rivers Rhône and Meuse, and when those borders were reached, aiming for the Rhine. Though little is known about the early history of the Jews of Alsace, there is a lot of information from the 12th century onwards. Cities such as Colmar and Hagenau also began to grow in economic importance and gained a kind of autonomy within the "Décapole" (or "Zehnstädtebund"), a federation of ten free towns. In 1262, after a long struggle with the ruling bishops, its citizens gained the status of free imperial city.
However, the Constitution of France still requires that French be the only official language of the Republic. Today, the territory is in certain areas subject to some laws that are significantly different from the rest of France, which is known as the local law. During the war, 130,000 young men from Alsace and Lorraine were conscripted into the German armies against their will (malgré-nous).
Travel through time at the Castle of Haut-Koenigsbourg
The Alemanni were agricultural people, and their Germanic language formed the basis of modern-day dialects spoken along the Upper Rhine (Alsatian, Alemannian, Swabian, Swiss). As a border province, the Romans built fortifications and military camps, many of which, including Argentoratum (Strasbourg), evolved into modern towns and cities. From the time of Augustus to the early fifth century AD, the area of Alsace was incorporated into the Roman province of Germania Superior. In 58 BC, after negotiations with Ariovistus failed, Julius Caesar routed the Suebi at the foot of the Vosges near what became Cernay in southern Alsace. The culture was characterized by "timber longhouse settlements and incised pottery … favoring floodplain edge situations for their permanent villages … and small clearings in the forest" for their crops and animals."
Small in size but big in its diversity, Alsace is an endless source of surprises and variety, promising a truly exceptional time! As the seasons change, so do the festivities.Welcome to the official destination website #VisitAlsace Castles of Alsace, a unique heritage in EuropeWelcome to the official #VisitAlsace destination website Welcome to the official destination website #VisitAlsace All the towpaths of the canals in Alsace (canal des houillères de la Sarre, canal de la Marne au Rhin, canal de la Bruche, canal du Rhône au Rhin) are tarred.
The agglomération of Strasbourg comprises 485,000 inhabitants when the German city of Kehl Am Rhein is included. Until the 1st January 2016, when it was integrated into the Grand-Est region, Alsace was the smallest region of metropolitan France. White storks are one of the region’s most beloved symbols, and for many centuries, they return every year from Africa to announce the coming of spring in France. The friendly white storks, the iconic emblem of Alsace, are found in large numbers throughout the region. Protected in Italy since 1976, the grey wolf has since entered France through the Maritime Alps.
Pocket Guides are compact guides for short trips that offer the best local experiences. Epic Guides provide inspiration and first-person stories for a lifetime of unforgettable travel experiences. Language Guides help to let no barriers – language or culture – get in your way. For travelers looking to immerse themselves in local culture and language essentials. Take your time discovering its varied landscapes by bike or on foot, from the Rhine plain to the Vosges mountains, and join in the joyful celebrations that punctuate the year, from carnivals and Easter to the grape harvest and the magical Advent season. A tourist hotspot, the little city houses some of the most beautiful half-timbered houses of the Renaissance in Alsace in its entirely pedestrian centre.
Audioguides delve into the turbulent 900-year history of the castle, which makes a very medieval impression despite having been reconstructed, with German imperial pomposity, by Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1908. This is a great way to see the city from another perspective whether you’re traveling solo or with a group, the boats can hold 5, 7 or 11 people. Most dishes are based on pork and veal; specialties include baeckeoffe (meat stew), jambonneau braisé (braised knuckle of ham), (minced meat rolls) and choucroute garnie (sauerkraut garnished with meat). Dishes feature the freshest local ingredients, with a French knack for presentation and a German liking for extra large portions. Completed in all its Gothic grandeur in 1439, Cathédrale Notre-Dame is the unchallenged Strasbourg icon in the heart of the city.
This tragic wartime episode gave them the name “les Malgré-Nous” (“in spite of our will”). From that time, the Alsace region was ruled by France and remained under its national colours until 1871. In the prosperous city of Strasbourg, the bourgeoisie took over the local authority of the bishop. The region was originally populated by Celtic tribes who founded Argentorate (now Strasbourg) towards the end of the 3rd century BC. Textile manufacturing, based in and around Mulhouse, is one of the region’s oldest industries, though now it has little importance.
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