Colmar France

Sights in Colmar

Colmar is our favorite of the larger cities in the Alsace Region. It can make a good base for exploring the wine route, though we prefer to stay in charming small towns. If you have limited time in the region and can visit only one city, we advise choosing Colmar rather than Strasbourg.

Colmar is the 3rd largest city in the Alsace Region, and offers a mix of large city and small town charm. In the 'Old Town' you will find a lively mix of Medieval and Renaissance buildings that were completely restored after the ravages of World War II. Of particular note are many half timbered buildings with gables and wood loggias.

The best part of the 'Old Town' is know as the Petite Venise. Buildings here look as though they came straight out of old world Germany, right down to the geranium filled window boxes, and since they are built along a canal there's the feel of Venice, Italy - hence the name "Little Venice". Streets meander through the neighborhood and before you know it you can find yourself walking in circles. Small boat rides are available on the canals during summer months.

Top Sights in Colmar

Musée Unterlinden (Museum Under the Linden trees)- This museum is located in a former convent established in 1232. The focus of the museum is the art and history of Alsace. The true treasure piece here is the Issenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald. This German born artist painted the altar piece for the Monastery of St. Anthony in nearby Issenheim in the year 1515. What is so impressive about this powerful piece (depicting scenes from the lives of Christ and Saint Anthony) is the evocative suffering of Christ. It is rare to find a painting of Christ that expresses so much pain and agony.

Eglise des Dominicains (Dominican Church)- This church contains one of the other treasures in Colmar, Martin Schongauer's Virgin at the Rosebush (1473).

Musée Bartholdi (Bartholdi Museum)- This museum is located in the birth home of Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi (1834), sculptor of the Statue of Liberty. The museum includs plans and models of the famous sculpture and a reconstruction of his 19th Century Parisian apartment. Throughout Colmar you can see several examples of Bartholdi's statues in parks and squares.

Other buildings that are noteworthy for their architecture include: Maison Pfister (1537), known for its wooden balconies, The Koïfhus (1480-1575), a series of 3 customs buildings that were used to levy tax on all goods coming through Colmar, and the Gothic Church of Saint Martin, with its beautiful buttresses and steeple rising 232 feet above the city.