Hey Folks,
We're trying to break up the travel time from the Rhine region (bacharach or Koblenz) to Beaune and Metz seems to be about halfway and has train access. Seems like the city has some cool sights to see, but haven't really heard from many folks who have been there. It would be a stopover, but would like to know if this is a good city to try. Anyone have some visits to Metz? Thanks!
Darren
Darren - Haven't been there yet, but we will start a bike tour of the Mosel in Metz this summer. It does look like it has some cool sights and beautiful river front. If you search Metz on this site I believe there have been a few posts by people who have been there.
The biggest two sights in Metz are the Cathedral, and the branch there of the Centre Pompidou (twentieth-century art). The city also has a very well-preserved old town (due to being under German rule in the late-nineteenth century it didn't get redeveloped with broad avenues as many French cities did), and the ring road around the old town has some attractive German-style art nouveau architecture.
Metz also has a well-known train station thanks to the German influence. However, the station is on the edge rather than downtown. The Pompidou branch is also in that area so both will require a brisk walk or transit to the centre. The Pompidou usually displays a special exhibit of some sort and a modest selection from the permanent collection. Currently the show is about contemporary Japan, what may be considered "experimental" to some viewers. Its space-age building, like the home base, will also interest some but not all. Good food in Metz, some nice public gardens, handsome cathedral and hospitable places to drink beer, thanks to the nearby Belgians and the back-and-forth German connections.
http://www.tourisme-metz.com/en/home.html
We spent a couple of days in Metz while waiting for our sons to join us from the U.S.
It's a pretty town with some lovely sights. It's easily worth a day or two.
Metz is an enchanting town. It has the largest pedestrian only old-town in France. The buildings date from the 15th century. It has beautiful canals with swans and plenty of places to stroll and take in the atmosphere. The huge Cathedral is visible from everywhere and has the largest expanse of any Cathedral in Europe. Metz is also well known for having a mix of German and French architectural influence since it was part of Germany for many years. The oldest opera house in Europe is there. You also have to see one of the best food markets anywhere the Marche John Paul. You cannot go wrong with Metz, it is the capital of Lorraine. make sure to eat the local specialty, the flammekueche
We went to Metz to visit an artist we discovered in a gallery in Paris and from whom we purchased some paintings. It's an interesting town not far from Germany. The cathedral is one of the highlights of a visit there with huge stained glass windows including some by Chagall. Also, there is a branch of the Pompidou Center there and it has very good traveling exhibits. The river runs through the town and you can get some nice photographs there. If you're going there by train from Paris, buy your tickets as early as possible because they are a lot cheaper that way. They have very fast trains from Paris to get there, I think from Gare de Nord.
In addition to the places mentioned above, the regional museum, next to the cathedral is outstanding. We spent four hours in the museum looking at the collection that ranged from Gallo-Roman through Medieval.
Hi,
I have been to Metz several times, as day trips and also staying almost a week. I would recommend it since you have never been there. What are you after there? Keep in mind Metz was fought over 4 times, ie, 1870, 1914 as a pivoting point along with Thioneville (then called Diedenhoffen), 1918, and 1944.
If you're not after history, there is a cathedral well worth seeing, Metz was a province capital, that of Lorraine. If you are into the history, get a rental car to battlefield sites west of Metz, ie, Mars-la-Tour, St Privat, Gravolotte, where the Prussian-German military cemetery is...very interesting and poignant.
