Hello, I wonder what is best base in Burgundy without car at the end July. We prefer to spend time walking in historic downtowns or in the countryside, but skip museum unless weather is rainy. It is OK for us to try some local wines in bars or restaurants without pressure to buy on winery tours, we cannot bring back bottles on a flight to US.
Does anybody know when SNCF tickets for July will be available?
Thank you in advance.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10849 posts
Yes, Dijon is good for what you have described. It has a real city center, whereas Beaune where a lot of people here go has a city center that can be visited in two hours. I've been to both places several times.
I don't know when SNCF will release the July tickets, but if you know your dates, you can sign up for an alert on the SNCF site or app.
Posted by
119 posts
we cannot bring back bottles on a flight to US.
Yes you can. The winery will sell padded, sealable plastic sleeves for putting in your checked bags. Or buy your own before going. Just be sure packed bottles can’t hit each other inside the bag and break.
Posted by
OP
24 posts
Thank you Elizabeth and Toby! May be you can also suggest 3-4 days base in Alsace too, it is our next stop? I am choosing between Colmar and Kayserberg or other villages. Advantage of Kaysenberg or nearby villages for us that we can start walking in the morning without taking a bus. From Comar we have to start every day with bus trip. But we are not going to rent a car, and it might be a problem, especially on weekend or if we need to catch an early train on our last day.
Toby, no we can't take a wine back, we are not going to check our luggage. Last year my luggage disappeared on a flight to Brussels and was returned only when came back to Florida.
Posted by
Washington DC
28840 posts
I'm not familiar with the bus routes from Colmar to the small villages in the area, but I know they are multiple. The advantage of staying in Colmar is that you'd probably be able to get to any village with just one bus ride, assuming the village was served by buses at all. If you stay in one of the small villages, you are likely sometimes to need two buses to get to another village, because the second village might not be on the same bus line as the first. In addition, Colmar (though very touristy) is quite beautiful.
If you know which specific villages you'd like to see, posting a list here may produce useful suggestions.
Posted by
OP
24 posts
acraven, names of the villages are Kaysersberg, Riquewihr, Ribeauvillé, may be others nearby, it is 1-1.5 hours walk between each. It is possible to walk to Château de Saint-Ulrich in Ribeauvillé. The problem is with buses to Colmar and luck of supermarkets in the villages. Last year we were in similar area near the Rhine and it was very easy to get everywhere on train. I am looking for something similar in France.
Posted by
233 posts
we stayed for a few days in Dijon and found it was a good city to venture out from to explore the region (we had a rental car). We stayed in the old part of the city, which is beautiful, but parking is difficult (but not impossible). Try going to the local wine shops and tasting wines they recommend. If you buy a bottle, you can finish it at your hotel or apartment, or even take it to a restaurant (although there may be a corkage fee). Peter
Posted by
Middletown, RI
1304 posts
Way back in the mid-90s (that's the last century for you young folks), I started in Colmar and drove to and through Kaysersberg, Riquewihr, Ribeauvillé along the Route des Vins d'Alsace. It was a short drive between towns driving through beautiful vineyards as I recall. We visited several small wineries and tasted and bought several bottles. I also stayed in one of those towns en route (don't remember which one), and also took a hike to the ruins of an old castle somewhere off the road. (Maybe Château du Haut-Ribeaupierre or Burg Reichenstein? It wasn't the famous tourist castle).