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Strasbourg, a city full of charm and charm, will certainly give you so many emotions. Beautiful historic buildings, the characteristic half-timbered houses is the frame of the Ill river. A city to live not only at Christmas, but … all year round. Here, of, the practical guide of Kanoa for a Weekend in Strasbourg.
1st DAY WEEKEND IN STRASBOURG
The Notre Dame Cathedral It is an absolute jewel of the city, a true masterpiece of Gothic art, and a Historic Monument of France from the 1862. Victor Hugo, not surprisingly, called it a “prodigy of grandeur and grace“. The splendid Cathedral is a majestic and imposing building that dominates the whole of Strasbourg; you will hardly remain impassive in front of its beauty and the splendid spire, more than 140 meters high. Until 800, it was the tallest Christian cult building! It’s really beautiful.
To date, with around 12 million visitors a year, it is the second most visited Cathedral in France, after Notre-Dame de Paris!
The Cathedral was completed in 1439, and was built on the foundations of a previous Romanesque construction. The exteriors are beautiful and evocative, with the splendid façade that, after sunset, is the setting for an incredible play of light and color. In the summer, magic is even more incredible. The facade is really a masterpiece, with all its beautiful sculptures. Inside, beautiful, and unmissable, the rose window, the windows made between the twelfth and fourteenth century, and the main organ.
Unmissable, the astronomic watch, which reproduces the precession of the equinoxes. Vero is a masterpiece of the Renaissance, this watch is the result of a close collaboration between artists, mathematicians, technicians, Swiss watchmakers, sculptors, painters and creators of automata. Every year attracts more than 3 millions of visitors. It offers astronomical indications and indicates the time, the civil calendar and the ecclesiastical calendar.
Every day, at the 12:30, you can watch the wonderful spectacle of the Astronomical Clock. At 12, on the other hand, a film that explains how it works is projected right next to the clock. This kind of film, which you can watch every day except Sundays and holidays, is only available in French, English and German.
The entrance to the Cathedral, takes place from the back side door, on Maison Kammerzell. Being a place of worship, you are invited to follow all the rules listed at the entrance.
PRACTICAL INFO: it is possible to visit the Cathedral every day, from Monday to Saturday, from 09:30 to 11:15 and from 14:00 to 18:00; Sunday, from 14:00 to 18:00. Free entry.
Astronomical clock: only show, every day, at 12:30 in point, with the film screening at 12:00. You enter from St Michel gate, on the south side of the square. Input from 11:45. You pay a €3,00 ticket to access; from 6 to 18 years, reduced rate equal to 2.00€. FREE ALL SUNDAYS AND HOLIDAYS, without film screening.
CLIMBING: you have to climb exactly for 332 steps to enjoy the beautiful view of Strasbourg from above. From 01 April to 30 September, every day from 09.30 to 20:00 (last ascent to 19:30). From the
01 October at 31 March, every day from 10:00 to 18:00 (last ascent to 17:30). To go up, you pay a ticket for 5,00€ for an adult, and 3.50€ for children. FREE on the first Sunday of each month. They can go up 50 maximum at a time. Obviously, the climb is quite tiring.
Near the Cathedral, the Petit Train, a tourist train that allows you to take a tour of the most beautiful areas of the city. The tour costs 7,00€ per person (5.00€ children). and it lasts around 40 ‘. Those interested, will find more info on the official website from this link.
From Place du Chateau, continuing for Rue de Rohan, we reach the Musée de l’Œuvre Notre-Dame / Arts of the Moyen Age. It is an interesting museum that covers seven centuries of art in Strasbourg and in all the territories of the Upper Rhine. The Museum was established in the 1931 and is housed in the historic building of the Fondation de l’Œuvre Notre-Dame; it is a complex of houses of different style, architecture and age. The oldest, in Gothic style, is from the fourteenth century.
Its medieval and renaissance collections are the mirror of the city’s glorious past. Inside, it is possible to admire extraordinary sculptures and paintings of 15th and 16th century Rhenish art by Nicolas Gerhaert Leiden Conrad Witz and Hans Baldung Grien; works and stained glass coming from the cathedral and from numerous churches of Alsace; and, again, altarpieces, crosses, statues, tapestries, vintage maps and much more. Do not miss the Medieval Garden, inspired by the tradition of 15th century painters and engravers.
it opens from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 18:00. Closed on Monday. The whole ticket costs 6,50€. Reduced (over 60 and students up to 25 years with valid student card), 3,50€. Alternatively, by purchasing the PASS MUSÉE DE LA VILLE DE STRASBOURG, enter this and all the museums of the city. You can choose between the 1 day pass to 12,00€ or the convenient 3 day pass for 18,00€. Free entry every first Sunday of the month.
Of the adjacent Palais Rohan, we recommend a visit for the following day. With the means, we advise you to reach the area where the European Parliament and all the buildings of the European institutions. We are still in the city, home of MEPs. From the stop European Parliament, a walk of about 15 minutes leads to the splendid Parc de l’Orangerie. Arm yourself, therefore, with a camera. The first building, is the European Parliament, with its elliptical shape in glass and metal that is mirrored on the banks of the river. Then, we review some buildings that are symbols of Europe: the European Court of Human Rights, the Agora Building and, finally, the Conseil d’Europe.
Parc de l’Orangerie is a beautiful public park, suitable for families and others. You can relax in this fantastic green lung between fountains, statues and paths. To the delight of children, there are also a bowling alley, a zoo, a mini-farm for about 50 animal species, and Mini-Ferme, a children’s car track; and, again, several play areas, and sports fields. It is also possible to rent a small sailboat on the lake.
We recommend a break in the hotel: a healthy shower is what it takes before the evening. We recommend to reach Place du Marché aux Cochons de Lait, right near the Palais de Rohan. From here, long Rue du Maroquin up to the Cathedral, it’s all a succession of bars, restaurants and wine cellars. It is a very lively area, with a beautiful atmosphere, particularly suggestive with the splendid houses of the 16th and 17th centuries. Very beautiful. No advice for dinner: you’ll be spoiled for choice.
During the Christmas season, you can let yourself be overwhelmed by the magic is the suggestion of the Christmas atmosphere.
2nd DAY WEEKEND IN STRASBOURG
A dark past envelops the Pont du Corbeau, in the center, from which the second day of the Weekend in Strasbourg begins. In ancient times, it was called Schindbrücke, or Bridge of Torture. Right here, in fact, the thieves and convicts of atrocious misdeeds were thrown into the river, tied to large sacks of earth. For the little scammers, instead, some metal cages were created at the ends of the bridge; the convicts were imprisoned in these cages and publicly exposed!
Il Musée Alsacien, near the bridge, it is an interesting museum of art and folk traditions, located in the old strasbourg mansions. Inside, it preserves important testimonies of traditional Alsatian life between the seventeenth and twentieth centuries. Furniture, objects of daily use, ceramics, costumes, religious objects and images, toys, handicrafts and much more. There are also exhibitions on viticulture and on the producers of Munster cheese.
It opens every day, from Wednesday to Monday, from 10:00 to 18:00; Closed on Tuesday. The whole ticket costs 6,50€. Reduced (over 60 and students up to 25 years with valid student card), 3,50€. Alternatively, by purchasing the PASS MUSÉE DE LA VILLE DE STRASBOURG, enter this and all the museums of the city. You can choose between the 1 day pass to 12,00€ or the convenient 3 day pass for 18,00€. Free entry every first Sunday of the month.
On the opposite side, after crossing the bridge, the Museum and historique de la ville de Strasbourg is a museum dedicated to the history of Strasbourg through three phases: the free city of the Holy Roman German Empire (1262-1681); the real and revolutionary city (1681-1800) and, starting from 2009, the development of a metropolis of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Museum is located in the former Grande Boucherie in Strasbourg and, among the many exhibits, a model of the city of 1727.
Open every day, from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 18:00; closed on Monday. The whole ticket costs 6,50€. Reduced (over 60 and students up to 25 years with valid student card), 3,50€. Alternatively, by purchasing the PASS MUSÉE DE LA VILLE DE STRASBOURG, enter this and all the museums of the city. You can choose between the 1 Day Pass to 12,00€ or the convenient 3 Day Pass at the cost of 18,00€. Free entry every first Sunday of the month.
A beautiful walk along Place de la Grande Boucherie, among small shops, cafes and beautiful half-timbered houses. A break is what it takes before reaching Palais Rohan. This beautiful building is one of the most unmissable monuments during your Strasbourg Weekend. Built between the 1732 and 1742, under the influences of the great Parisian residences, the complex remained virtually identical to that built in the 18th century. It is one of the most beautiful architectural complexes of the 700 in France.
It owes its name to the four bishops of the Rohan family, who succeeded one another in the diocese of Strasbourg in the eighteenth century. In addition to the splendid internet, the beauty of the whole complex is particularly striking. Today, it houses three different museums: the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg, the Musée Archéologique, and the Museum of Decorative Arts. Unable to visit everyone. Our advice is to opt for the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg. certainly the most interesting of the three.
The Museum of Fine Arts, located on the first floor of the Palais Rohan, presents an overview of the history of painting in Europe from the Middle Ages to the 1870. Important works of art of the most relevant names of European art are exhibited. Giotto’s works (Crucifixion of Strasbourg), Hans Memling, Carlo Crivelli (Adoration of the shepherds), Botticelli, Cima da Conegliano, Raphael (Portrait of a young woman), Correggio (Judith and his handmaiden with the head of Holofernes), Lorenzo Lotto, El Greco, Canaletto, Van Dyck, Rubens, Goya, Corot, and many others.
After the feast of museums and lunch, the rest of the day, we recommend spending it in Big Island and to the picturesque neighborhood of Petite France. Completely surrounded by the waters of the Ill, it is the central and picturesque island of Strasbourg, the historical center and the hub of the city. Petite France is one of its neighborhoods, really beautiful and full of atmosphere, especially at night. You can walk and admire the many half-timbered houses with their characteristic wooden frames. Among the most famous and important, the Maison des tanneurs and maison Haderer.
Another recommended stop is the Protestant church Saint-Pierre le Jeune. Not to be confused with the homonymous church of Catholic worship, it stands in Place Saint-Pierre le Jeune, in the Grande Île. To admire the beautiful Gothic interior with its magnificent arch, and medieval frescoes. Beautiful, moreover, the organ of the church.
For the evening, especially after dinner, do not miss a nice drink from Les Frères Berthom. The famous cocktail bar in Strasbourg is located on Rue des Sœurs 3, about 400 meters from Palais Rohan. It offers excellent cocktails.
3rd DAY WEEKEND IN STRASBOURG
Last day. Much depends on the time and the means to return home. You could dedicate the half day that you probably have available, to turn to the beautiful old town and resume what you were not able to see in the days before. It starts from Place Klèber, central square, as well as a symbol of the city. Right here, at Christmas time, the majestic and shimmering Christmas tree is installed. The wide square, has changed name several times, over the years, before being named after the brilliant Napoleonic military strategist, Jean-Baptiste Kléber.
Walking, you will find many shops and clubs. The Église du Temple Neuf, is a Protestant church a few hundred meters from here. Once, it contained one of the most precious libraries, before being destroyed. It was completely rebuilt in the nineteenth century. It follows, Place Gutenberg, with the statue of Gutenberg, and the beautiful Renaissance Palace of the Chamber of Commerce. Like Place Kléber, it hosts an important Christmas market in November and December. Rue des Arcades, not far away, is the place of the boutiques.
Good trip and good Weekend in Strasbourg.