Welcome to Alsace & Lorraine
Alsace is a cultural one-off. With its Germanic dialect and French sense of fashion, love of foie gras and choucroute (sauerkraut), fine wine and beer, this region often leaves you wondering quite where you are. Where are you? Why, in the land of living fairy tales, of course, where vineyards fade into watercolour distance, hilltop castles send spirits soaring higher than the region’s emblematic storks and half-timbered villages garlanded with geraniums look fresh-minted for a Disney film set.
Top experiences in Alsace & Lorraine
Alsace & Lorraine activities
Alsace Day Tour: Colmar, Eguisheim, Winery from Strasbourg
Meet your guide in central Strasbourg and board your air-conditioned minivan. Then, enjoy the views over the lush countryside on your way to Colmar. Enjoy a guided walking tour of this gorgeous town, known for its cobbled streets, canals and half-timbered houses. Wander around the old quarter to see landmarks such as the painted 16th-century Pfister House, Customs House and Saint Martin’s Church, and explore the pretty neighborhoods of the Tanners or Little Venice.Continue to Eguisheim, one of Alsace’s most beautiful villages, and delve into its cobbled alleyways lined with flower-decked medieval houses before reaching Riquewihr. Girded by medieval ramparts, this enchanting town boasts crooked lanes and chocolate-box houses. Use your free time to explore independently and have lunch (own expense) at one of the many restaurants.Afterward, drive along the Alsace Wine Route (Route des Vins d'Alsace), a 105-mile (170-km) route that snakes through vineyards amid the foothills of the Vosges mountains. Then, after traveling through rolling hills and quaint villages you will reach your final stop, Haut Koenigsbourg Castle (Château du Haut-Koenigsbourg). Step inside the 12th-century hilltop fortress to see its living quarters, and learn how it once controlled the wine, wheat and salt routes leading here from north and east Europe. Take time to enjoy the awesome views stretching over the Vosges and Alsace plain from the ramparts.Then, enjoy the picturesque drive back to Strasbourg for a drop-off at the original start-point of your tour.
Strasbourg to Alsace Wine Route Half-Day Tasting Tour
Meet your guide in central Strasbourg for your morning or afternoon wine tour. After boarding your 8-passenger minivan, travel away from the hustle and bustle of Strasbourg, and along the beautiful Alsace Wine Route (Route des Vins d'Alsace), a 105-mile (170-km) stretch of road that meanders through the bright-green foothills of the Vosges mountains and past Alsace’s prized vineyards.Your first stop along the route is the pretty little town of Obernai. Hop out for a walking tour around Obernai’s winding streets, full of typical half-timbered houses decorated in multicolored tiles, before arriving at a local winery for a wine-tasting session.Learn how the region’s dry and sunny climate, complex geology, favorable soils and sun exposure produce Alsace’s aromatic white wine. Note the range of fruity, light, dry and spicy flavors as you sample most or all of the seven different varietals that the region produces, including Riesling and gewürztraminer wine.Continue along the Alsace Wine Route to your second stop, a typical Alsace caveau (wine cellar). Taste more local wine here, and learn how the cave’s cold temperatures and darkness allow for optimal storage and aging.After your second wine tasting, relax on the scenic drive back to Strasbourg.
Strasbourg to Alsace Wine Route Full-Day Tasting Tour
Your full-day wine tour starts in the morning from the tourist office in central Strasbourg. Board your luxury minivan with your expert guide, and leave the busy city behind as you travel along the beautiful Alsace Wine Route (Route des Vins d'Alsace). The 105-mile (170-km) stretch of road snakes through the bright-green foothills of the Vosges mountains and features hundreds of Alsace’s prized vineyards. You’ll be treated to views of rolling vine-covered hills and quaint red-roofed villages around every turn.Stop in the Mittelbergheim wine area, home to the Zotzenberg, Kastelberg and Wiebelsberg grands crus. The soils here are perfect for producing Riesling wine — a varietal known as a German wine but produced extensively in Alsace. Head to your first winery to taste a selection of Alsatian wines including Pinot blanc, Sylvaner and Riesling.Continue to Dambach-la-Ville, the largest wine-producing village in Alsace, whose vineyards produce one of the finest Alsatian wines: frankstein grand cru. Enjoy a second tasting session at a traditional caveau (wine cellar) and hear how the area’s soil creates crisp Riesling and gewürztraminer wine.After some free time for lunch (own expense), depart for the Ribeauvillé-Riquewihr wine area, surrounded by five grand cru appellations: Geisberg, Kirchberg, Osterberg, Schoenenbourg and Sporen. Riesling grapes reign supreme here, but pinot gris, Muscat and gewürztraminer varietals are also excellent.Visit the picturesque medieval villages of Ribeauvillé and Riquewihr for your last wine-tasting session at some of the most highly praised wineries in the region. Learn about famous local wine growers including the Trimbach family and Hugel family, who have been producing wine here for centuries!After a full day wine tasting your way through the Alsace region, relax on the scenic drive back to Strasbourg.
Alsace Small-Group Day Tour from Colmar
Pick up in Colmar and depart for the beautiful village of Eguisheim. Surrounded by vineyards, the narrow and concentric streets highlight the architectural merits of its half-timbered houses, lovingly decorated with flowers. After a walk in the village participate in a wine tasting session to discover the world renowned Alsace wines in a typical winery.Your tour then continues on to the beautiful town of Riquewihr. Surrounded by ramparts, the village has been very fortunate to survive war and destruction. Its tiny streets, fortified walls and old houses have preserved their 16th century splendor virtually intact, making for remarkable architectural harmony. Free time for personal discovery and lunch.After lunch you will follow the breathtaking Alsace ‘Wine Route’. Located between the Rhine valley and the Vosges mountain range, the 60 year old route winds across the slopes for more than 106 miles (170km). The itinerary leads across rows of undulating, vine covered hills, and through quaint villages with narrow streets and charming flower decked houses clustered around the local church steeple.Finally, reach Haut Koenigsbourg castle. Here, follow your guide for a tour of this mighty fortress that overlooks the valley. Built in 12th century, the Castle occupied a strategic position controlling the wine and wheat routes to the North and the salt route that came from the East.After the visit return to Colmar.
Colmar to Alsace Full-Day Small-Group Wine Tasting Tour
In the morning, pick up from a centrally located point in Colmar and depart with your English speaking guide towards the Alsace wine route. Your morning will be dedicated to the Riquewihr / Ribeauville wine producing area. Here, you will participate in two guided wine tastings of Alsace wines. There are many chances that you will be welcomed by the wine maker or someone of the family who will happily explain the specificity of the local "terroir" and how this has a large influence on the type of wine produced here. During your tasting you will certainly have the opportunity to taste fantastic Rieslings, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris and many more.Then enjoy some free time in Riquewihr or the surrounding area for lunch (own expense). After lunch, the tour will head south so that you may discover another part of the Alsace wine region. On the southern Alsace wine route the vines are mainly found on steep slopes and often require grape harvesters to rope up. Here some of the Grands Crus that you might encounter include Grands Crus Eichberg, Pfersigberg, Vorbourg, or Zinnkoepflé. 1 guided tasting will be done in this part of the wine region before returning to Colmar.
Colmar to Alsace Small-Group Day Trip with Wine Tasting
Enjoy a pickup and transfer from Colmar before taking a day tour through the Alsace in a comfortable minivan. Departing from the historical center of Colmar, you will pass through the wine route along the beautiful vineyards and little villages, from there you can explore the typical Alsatian architecture which is magical, colorful, and unique. You will make a stop at the four wonders of the Alsace as they are called. The first one is Eguisheim, one of the Most Beautiful Villages of France. Then drive further along the Alsatian Wine Route, immerse yourself in the world of vineyards and products which make the Ribeauvillé and Riquewihr region’s reputation. To test the region’s wine reputation, you will visit a typical wine cave and you can taste a big variety of wines such as Gewurztraminer, pinot gris, pinot blanc and many more. Our tour will end with Kayserberg, where its high fortress dominates the city and serves as a reminder of both its strategic importance, and its warlike past. After visiting these 4 wonders, our driver will bring you safely back to Colmar.