Strasbourg or Colmar

Help my wife and I. We can’t decide whether to spend a night in Colmar or Strasbourg. Here’s the lowdown -

• I have one night in Alsace, Nov. 26
• leaving from Paris in the morning of Nov. 26
• coming back to CDG the evening of Nov. 27, staying in airport hotel for AM flight back to states
• definitely want to spend the afternoon of the 27th in Strasbourg at the opening-that-day Christmas market
• not sure whether to go to Colmar or Strasbourg on the 26th, and whether to sleep in Colmar or Strasbourg
• our priorities - the best dinner, the best walks, a nice hotel, seeing the Alsatian countryside from the train, probably in that order

Notes:

• first trip to Alsace for either of us
• we’re not interested in winery visits, hence not planning to go to those villages
• I understand Auberge de L’ill has lost a step, so we were not planning to go. If that’s wrong, please correct me!
• it looks like the cuisine in Strasbourg is unexciting? It seems like all the action in Alsace is, well, everywhere else…

Strasbourg has more character. Xmas market is great. Colmar is pretty blah. As for restaurants you should PM Panos Kakaviatos as he is from Strasbourg. You really should hit one of smaller villages like Ribeauville or Riquewihr since you will be there.

Is that possible without a car? My wife has expressly asked that we not rent a car.

I agree with Paul. I find that Colmar’s buzz exceeds its actual charm, at least relative to several other similar towns in the area.

I like both the Winstub and the starred restaurant at the Chambard in Kaysersberg, and I love that town—though it’s small and doesn’t offer the diversity of activities you will find in Strasburg or even Colmar.

Without a car, it’s Strasbourg for sure.

This is all extremely helpful. Thanks!

Strasbourg is larger and more interesting (and with better food and lodging). Colmar is interesting for a morning or afternoon, either starting or ending with a visit to the Underlinden museum to see the Isenheim Altarpiece and a lunch of tarte flambee and Riesling. You can easily train there from Strasbourg, but I like driving around Alsace as it is more efficient than taking trains and it an easy region to navigate.

Near Colmar, do not miss “la taverne alsacienne” in Ingersheim (food + unexpensive wine list).

The best part of this thread is that it has persuaded my wife to consider renting a car!

I found Colmar was not fun to drive in. Everywhere else is a breeze.

Unless you plan on not leaving Strasbourg, you really do need a car. And I didn’t think driving in Colmar was a problem, though if you’ve never driven in Europe, it is definitely different than driving anywhere in the US.

Put Eguisheim on your list of smaller towns to visit. And I’d second the recommendation for la Taverne Alsacienne, though a dinner in Ingersheim probably isn’t practical if you’re staying in Strasbourg.

Have to have a car to drive down the wine route from Strasbourg to, well, Colmar.

I agree that Colmar is pretty meh compared to other towns and with one day, staying in Strasbourg is better.

Riquewihr is a must for Alsace first-timer, imho.
Ribeauville is very pretty, too, and there’s a personal favorite restaurant in the town that’s excellent for lunch: L’Ami Fritz ( Caveau de l'Ami Fritz – Hôtel – Restaurant Alsacien et Gîtes de Charme à Ribeauvillé en Alsace ).

I strongly preferred Colmar to Strasbourg from a scenic standpoint, it was small, not at all built-up. I can’t compare the two because we only ate at a cafe across from the the Strasbourg train station. If you only have a day, you wouldn’t be able to see all of Colmar, anyway, so you might as well choose the restaurants you like and then go there. We ate at the * Jy’s and it was good but not spectacular.

We bicycled through Alsace this past fall staying in both Strasbourg and Colmar as well as Riquewihr, Savenne and Obernai. Riquewihr is charming and worth a visit but not a lot to do except the tourist stuff and of course wine tasting. Strasbourg is very charming and the boat ride alone was worth the trip. Do rent the car and travel it will not be a hard drive