We spent 4.5 wonderful days in the historic town of Colmar at the beginning of our 2 week France trip, with almost no expectations for what we would encounter. I had heard about this colorful town in the Alsace region, filled with half-timber houses, a ‘petite Venice’ canal, and it’s regional food, but had no idea what we would do once we were there. Colmar’s beauty lies in the fact that it came out of WWII relatively unscathed by the bombings and massive destruction in the region, making it truly a place where you can step back in time. We found it amazing that such a beautiful site had such a small tourist presence; although the weekends were busy with visitors making day trips from Strasbourg, at nights and on weekdays the town was clear to explore, gather pictures, and feel like a local, which is always my goal on long trips like these!
By the time we left, we had fallen in love with Colmar, completely in awe of the historic architecture and how walkable it was. While it took us a while to find our groove in the way of Alsatian cuisine, by the time we left we were saying that we can’t wait to come back and explore more tiny towns in this region.
Colmar Travel Guide
How to Get to Colmar
We flew into Paris CDG and landed around 10 am. We took a TGV from the airport train station around 11:40 headed for Strasbourg, which was an easy 2.5 hour ride. The TGV is an incredibly fast train that makes few stops, so it was a relaxing way to see the countryside or take a nap since we were exhausted from our overnight flight (with a 1 year old).
In Strasbourg we changed trains to a smaller commuter train that leaves roughly every hour, taking us to Colmar in 30 minutes. We then walked to our AirBnB from the train station, which was about 15 minutes, and was VERY easy to do for day trips with no luggage, but was a little tricky with a stroller and 2 large suitcases/diaper bag/car seat. However, our AirBnB was located just off of the ‘Petite Venice’ historic center which meant from that point on a walk into town was less than 5 minutes, making it all worth it!
Where to Eat in Colmar
Traditional Alsatian cuisine consists of a blend of heavy french and german fare (think sauerkraut, sausages and cream) which is fun to try but can be hard to eat day after day. In order to experience the cuisine but not go overboard we enjoyed traditional Alsatian tarte flambées and quiche lorraines for breakfast and lunch and tried to find a few restaurants with lighter or more ‘green’ options for dinner. Luckily, we found a few fantastic restaurants that are serious must-try’s when in Colmar, which resulted in some of the best meals we had on our entire 2 week trip.
JY’s
This is the first two Michelin star restaurant I’ve ever been to, and frankly, will be able to afford. At 75 Euro a person, we enjoyed a three course meal, plus an overwhelming amount of amuse bouches, and experienced the absolute best service we have had at a restaurant. There isn’t a thing I wouldn’t recommend on the menu, but the deconstructed raspberry tart desert was one of the most amazing things I will ever eat, so I would be remiss not to at least highlight that one dish! JY’s is so fantastic that even if you are staying in nearby Strasbourg, I would recommend making a trip into Colmar to experience! Reservations necessary.
Restaurant L’Epicurien
We found this small restaurant through a recommendation from our AirBnB host, and it did not disappoint. The mid sized menu had more traditional options like veal and lamb, but I thoroughly enjoyed my scallop and asparagus salad. It was the perfect counterpoint to the heavier items I ate during the day, but still filling, a great value, and fresh. We finished off our meal with a creme brulée because… France. We made reservations while we were in Colmar, but I also recommended making ahead of time.
Le Marche Couvert
This is a covered market in the Petite Venice area that was fantastic to pick up fresh milk, sweet potatoes and yogurt for Marina. However, since we stayed in Colmar through a Sunday where traditionally most of France is closed, we also picked up chicken and vegetables to enjoy a meal in our AirBnB. Although Chef Jeff cooked this meal from scratch for us, there were also plenty of ready made items to take home should you not have a functional kitchen at your disposal.
Boulangerie L’artisan
There are tons of boulangeries and patisseries in France, so I recommend getting your morning baguette or croissant at whichever one looks best to you. However, we tried a few afternoon pastries from this spot on Rue de Tanneurs in the Petite Venice area and fell in love with a raspberry tart that was so nice, we bought it twice!
Shopping in Colmar
Comptoir de Mathilde
This is a small French chain of delicious pantry staples- perfect to enjoy while you’re on vacation or take home as tasty souvenirs. In France you will notice a lot of ’Noix de Coco’ products which is Hazelnut, so understandably their Hazelnut spread (i.e. local Nutella) is the best in the world. I highly recommend taking home a few jars as gifts. If you are however in the eastern side of France, I also recommend trying and taking home a jar of their Speculoos spread as well. Speculoos is a ginger cookie spread with a similar use as Nutella and just as delicious, but more local to the this region. They also sell lots of Speculoos cookies, olive oils, vinegars, chocolate and cocktail mixers that are equality as tasty and liftable!
Datcha Store
I stumbled into this cute lifestyle store because Marina was eyeing the succulents they had placed outside. Inside the store is an eclectic home decorators dream- everything from decorative cow skulls to bone inlay trays to embroidered pillow to handmade jewelry. I could have spent hours in there and would have sent a few items home if I had had more time. Instead, I bought myself a handmade leather belt bag that I used for the duration of my trip that reminded me daily of what a good store I had found!
Des Petits Hauts
This is a small french chain with a few stores in Paris, but if you are in the mood to shop for good women’s clothing, there are not a ton of options in such a small town. Luckily I stumbled upon this store and found a cute two piece cotton jacket and short set that I wore wine tasting later on the trip. Even though it’s not a hyper-local store, I still love the fact that it’s a french brand not sold in the US, meaning it’s still authentic, local and well-priced, but feels luxurious and special enough to enjoy as a souvenir of your trip for years to come.
La Sommaliere
Pretty easy guess to identify this as a wine shop, and a good one too. The owner speaks very good english so was extremely helpful to aid us in picking out a few Rieslings and other wines local to the region to drink during our time in Colmar. Jeff absolutely loved this store and was upset that we didn’t have time to go back more than once!
Day Trips from Colmar
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is a 30 minute commuter train ride away from Colmar, and the trains leave almost every hour. It was extremely easy to do with Marina since we could take her in her stroller, and come and go at whatever time suited us best. Strasbourg is a small city but a bit of a mix between Paris and Colmar, architecturally. There are some traditional Haussman-type buildings reminiscent of Paris, but also an ‘old city’ section that looks like Colmar, but frankly not as good. Since we were staying in Colmar that part didn’t appeal to me much, so I wish I had explored the more current, downtown area of Strasbourg more. Would I visit Strasbourg again? Yes. But next time I would have a few destinations in mind to help maximize our time.
Wine Tasting in Alsace
We rented a car the last day we were in Colmar, so we made reservations at two Riesling wineries, Domaine Trimbach and Domaine Weinbach, which were both very different, but great experiences. Domaine Trimbach was located in the town of Ribeauvillé, which Jeff and I wish we had more time to explore. It was filled with cute shops and outdoor cafes, located at the very foot of the Trimbach vineyards, which shot up on the hill behind it. We had no idea there were as many cute towns in this region as there were, so it was great to explore.
Domaine Weinbach was more isolated but the quintessential ‘wine tasting in the home of the winemaker’ experience. The Domaine was a 16th century monastery, and we tasted in the winemaker’s dining room, with piles of toys in the corner for her grandkids. It was a bit of a haphazard visit, but we wouldn’t change it at all, because it was so lovely to have such a raw, un-touristy wine tasting experience.
