I am planning a side trip from Paris and want to visit Colmar. We plan on doing a one day tour of other villages with wine tasting and castle visit, I am not sure if Strasbourg would be worth a one day stop ahead of Colmar....or if we should head staright to Colmar.
After Paris and train travel to Luxembourg I am thinking that we may enjoy a slower pace and nights in one spot. We will head back to Paris after for more days.
Advice???
Posted by
Mid-Atlantic area
7630 posts
To me, a day in Strasbourg is sufficient, but others think very differently. Conversely, while we thoroughly enjoyed Colmar, others think very differently. It’s all personal preference. We visited Strasbourg via train as a day trip from Colmar and spent another day visiting villages in the area. We did have a rental car.
Posted by
11940 posts
I rank Strasbourg way above Colmar. If I were you, I would replace Colmar with the Wine Villages such as Riquewehr. Honestly, we were sorry we spent any time in Colmar as we much preferred the Wine Villages and Strasbourg.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA ☔️
6981 posts
This is a highly subjective question. My 2 cents:
We flew in to Strasbourg and spent an afternoon exploring, and wished we had had more time there. We took the train to Colmar and spent 3 nights there. I thought Strasbourg was lovely and not to be missed. I was less thrilled by Colmar - my wife loved it, but for me, there was just too much "Hello Kitty" in Colmar (crowded, inauthentic, touristy). We especially loved Eguisheim, which I thought had the right amount/balance of cute and authentic, without the over-the-top candy-coating. Tastes vary. But I'd say don't miss Strasbourg.
Posted by
Bend, Oregon
2724 posts
You can always visit Strasbourg from Colmar, if you want to. It’s only 30 minutes away by train. I would not make it a separate stop with a change of hotel. Just hop on the train and go for a day if you want to.
Posted by
USA
425 posts
It's all personal preference but having been to both I'm another vote for staying in Strasbourg and visiting Colmar as a day trip. I bet you could do the wine tasting and castle visits with guided tours starting from Strasbourg as well.
Posted by
SF Bay Area
991 posts
We spent 5 nights in Strasbourg and visited Colmar as a day trip. But you could do the opposite with Colmar as your base.
Of the wine villages, we preferred Kaysersberg to Riquewihr, which was very crowded and touristy in early June 2024. I think it may have become too popular in the last few years.
Posted by
3558 posts
I would head straight to Colmar. Strasbourg and Colmar are barely an hour apart, and you could easily do Strasbourg as a day trip, and save yourself the hassle of a one-night hotel stay.