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Kaysersberg in early December - Help with bus timetable from Colmar

Hi all!

I am interested to do a day trip from Colmar/Strasbourg to check out Kaysersberg in the first week of December 2022. I have a morbid curiosity to see Kayserberg as it was the place where Anthony Bourdain spent his last few days. And some of the Forum folks said it is a picturesque village with great food.

I have some questions that I hope to have some help!

  1. Transportation - How to get to Kayserberg from Colmar and get back to Colmar? I found some posts in the forum that said there is a regular bus service but I can't seem to find the website/time table.

  2. Christmas Market - Is Kayserberg Christmas Market similar to Strasbourg and Colmar's markets? If so, I may not stay for the christmas market (or stay overnight) and head back to Colmar for the night.

  3. Cycling in winter - Rick Steve recommended cycling along the wine road (Route du Vin) connecting Kayserberg and some of the villages. Is it possible to do that in winter (on my own with a rental bike or join a tour)?

Thanks!

Posted by
172 posts

During the Christmas market in Colmar, there are small buses (navettes) that make almost continuous runs from Colmar to Kayserberg, Eguisheim and Riquewihr. Their schedule will be on the Christmas market website for Colmar. It may be too early (I haven’t looked tbh). I can’t recall if the navettes only run on weekends, so be sure to check that too.

There are also regular municipal buses but they’re primarily for school children and aren’t really suitable for visiting the small villages.

Kayserberg is a beautiful little village with a lovely market and is definitely worth a visit. There’s a walking loop past homes that are all decorated and it’s very nice....but an afternoon will about do it.

Posted by
11569 posts

We enjoyed touring Kaysersburg and went to the Dr. Albert Schweitzer museum. He was born there when it was part of Germany.

Posted by
5293 posts

I haven’t been to this beautiful region of France (yet) but have done some research.

You will find the bus schedules on this website:
Kaysersberg.com

You may want to ask your hotel staff about which bus stop is the closest to you, as there are several in Colmar.
There are several bus stops in Kaysersberg as well.

Check the bus schedules CAREFULLY.
Note the various descriptions at the top of each schedule, such as; Scolaire, Annuel, etc, and the days of the week designated by the first initial of each day such as “lmMjvs” (lundi, mardi, Mercredi Jeudi, vendredi, samedi)

  • Some buses only run during the school year (Scolaire)
  • some buses run Monday to Saturday, or Monday to Friday, and some don’t run on Wednesday.

  • Annuel means throughout the year

  • Vacances means holidays (or vacations)

    • And… Don’t forget to check the time of the last bus back to Colmar!

Enjoy your trip and please report back!

Edited to add…

Here is the newest bus schedule, effective October 3, 2022

Edited to clarify the bus schedules.

Posted by
1677 posts

Kaysersberg is smaller than Colmar and way smaller than Strasbourg, so I imagine differences in the market sizes. Also, some of the village markets in the region may only be open on weekends. Regardless, Kaysersberg is worth visiting and should be nicely lit up and decorated. I wouldn't change accommodations for the one night.

I had a car when in Alsace but took a bus a couple of times. Regular bus routes from Colmar:

https://www.l-k.fr/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/68R013-au-03.10.22.pdf

https://www.ribeauville-riquewihr.com/en/come/bus.htm

This is from last Christmas, should be similar this year:

https://www.noel-a-kaysersberg.com/en/car-and-bus-parking-and-shuttle-bus

You'll have to use your own judgement regarding cycling: weather, road conditions etc.

Posted by
172 posts

Be careful with those bus schedules in the link above. At the top, where it says Scolaire, it means it’s only on school days (not weekends or vacations).

The free Christmas Market shuttles (navettes) run every day from Colmar to Eguisheim. They run on weekends only to Kayserberg, Riquewihr and Ribeauville. You buy a ticket from the driver.

Posted by
75 posts

A very useful thread for those trying to figure out transportation from Colmar to nearby villages over Christmas.

Rather than start a new thread, thought it might be better to simply jump on this one.

While researching I was getting a bit confused by the variety of names for the bus networks that serve Colmar and surroundings.

1) I think over time some consolidation and renaming has happened. Is it fair to say that Fluo.eu is the website to visit for bus timetables relating to both, buses within Colmar AND buses connecting Colmar to other nearby towns?

2) l-k.fr appears to be the operator of the Fluo Grand Est bus network, correct? If one goes to that website looking for schedules, one will ultimately end up on Fluo.eu?

3) Where does the TRACE network fit within all this? Or is that an obsolete terminology now?

Thanks @Priscilla and @Gundersen for the timetables.

4) For timetables effective Oct 3, 2022... will those timetables continue to be in effect over Christmas, or will there be further changes?

5) Since I will be in Colmar during the weekdays, I will most unfortunately not be able to benefit from the free weekend buses/shuttles (aside from Colmar to Eguisheim.) But looking at the regular bus schedule it seems there will be enough options during the weekdays. Although, if I am reading things right, the return from surrounding villages to Colmar has to be by 7pm.

Hope these clarifications will also help others.

Thanks!!