Strasbourg to Nancy takes about an hour fifteen by train, and Strasbourg to Metz around an hour twenty-five — both easy day trips or one-way legs of a longer stay.
Discover Local Alsace-Lorraine: What to Do Around Mercure Alsace-Lorraine
At Mercure, we believe you shouldn't need a guidebook to feel like you belong somewhere. That's the idea behind Discover Local: since 1973, every Mercure hotel has been built around its neighbourhood, not just dropped into it — from the décor on the walls to the flavours on the menu. Step into any Mercure and our teams are on hand with the kind of tips you won't find in a guidebook: the market stall locals queue for, the bar where nobody speaks English, the walk that skips the crowds. They live here. They know. Discover Local isn't a generic city guide — it's a short, honest list of the restaurants, markets and neighbourhoods our own hotel teams actually recommend to guests, updated as the city changes around us. Below, you'll find our picks for Alsace-Lorraine, an interactive map to help you find your way, and answers to the questions travellers ask us most. So — where will Discover Local take you?
Alsace-Lorraine in 5 picks
Strasbourg
The Petite France district's half-timbered houses sit along canals that once housed tanners and millers. Notre-Dame Cathedral's astronomical clock still draws a crowd at noon, and the city's Christmas market, running since 1570, is one of the oldest in France.
Colmar
Canals nicknamed 'Little Venice' run past more half-timbered façades, in even brighter colours than Strasbourg's. It's compact enough to see on foot in a day, but worth a slower pace.
Eguisheim
Built in concentric circles around its medieval core, this village was voted France's favourite in a national poll in 2013. Come for the wine, stay for the fact that you'll get genuinely lost in a village barely a few streets wide.
Nancy
Place Stanislas, a UNESCO-listed 18th-century square framed by gilded ironwork gates, anchors a city that later became the birthplace of the Art Nouveau École de Nancy movement.
Metz
The Gothic cathedral of Saint-Étienne holds some of the largest stained-glass window surfaces in France, including panels designed by Marc Chagall. The Centre Pompidou-Metz, a satellite of the Paris museum, adds a contemporary counterpoint.
FAQ
Yes — the wine route villages and cities like Nancy and Metz have plenty to see year-round, and summer means vineyard visits without the winter crowds.
It's harder — many of the smaller villages along the 170km route have limited public transport, so a car gives the most flexibility for stopping where you like.
Where to sleep
See our Mercure hotels across Alsace-Lorraine, ideally placed to explore these picks.