Things to Do in Alsace: Our Highlights from the Gîte

The cities: Strasbourg, Colmar and towns of character

Two capitals frame the gîte, with Dambach roughly halfway between them. Strasbourg, seat of the European Parliament, draws you in with its pink-sandstone cathedral, the canal-laced Petite France quarter and a walkable old town made for wandering on foot. Colmar, more intimate, unfolds its Little Venice canals, its painted timbered façades and the Unterlinden Museum, home to the celebrated Isenheim Altarpiece.

Between the two, smaller towns reward a stop. Sélestat keeps its Humanist Library, which preserves the oldest known written mention of the Christmas tree (1521); Obernai bustles at the foot of Mont Sainte-Odile; and Barr nestles among the vines. All are an easy drive away, and several are reachable by regional train from Dambach-la-Ville's own station — handy if you'd rather skip city parking.

• Strasbourg

  ~40 min

  Cathedral, Petite France, European capital: the great city you visit on foot. Full details on our dedicated Strasbourg page.

• Colmar

  ~30 min

  Little Venice, colourful façades and the Unterlinden Museum (Isenheim Altarpiece). A human-scale museum-city, covered on our Colmar page.

• Sélestat

  ~15 min

  Humanist Library, old town and markets: a cultural stop just fifteen minutes from the gîte.

• Obernai

  ~20 min

  Lively medieval town below Mont Sainte-Odile, rich in Alsatian food and craft.

Castles and the villages of the Wine Route

Alsace is also its hilltop castles and storybook villages. The most famous, Haut-Koenigsbourg, commands the plain from a rocky spur at 757 metres (about 2,480 ft): a fortress restored between 1900 and 1908 under Kaiser Wilhelm II, with sweeping views over the Vosges mountains and, on a clear day, Germany's Black Forest. Nearby, the Ottrott castles and Mont Sainte-Odile round out this string of ruins and sites of memory.

At the foot of the mountains runs the Alsace Wine Route, which passes through Dambach-la-Ville itself. To the south, in the Haut-Rhin, Riquewihr, Kaysersberg and Eguisheim rank among the loveliest villages in France — ramparts, half-timbered houses and welcoming cellars. Kaysersberg was voted France's Favourite Village in 2017. Dambach, with its fortified gate and Frankstein Grand Cru, makes an ideal base for exploring this ribbon of stone and vines — more on our Wine Route and Haut-Koenigsbourg pages.

• Haut-Koenigsbourg Castle

  ~25 min

  Alsace's iconic fortress, restored and perched 17 km from the gîte at 757 m. Exceptional panorama, detailed on our dedicated page.

• Ottrott castles and Mont Sainte-Odile

  ~30 min

  Medieval ruins and a hilltop pilgrimage site overlooking the plain: a fine escape into the Vosges.

• Riquewihr and Kaysersberg

  ~30 min

  Two postcard villages of the Haut-Rhin: Riquewihr, among France's loveliest, and Kaysersberg, voted France's Favourite Village in 2017. Medieval lanes, ramparts and wine cellars.

• Eguisheim

  ~40 min

  Village of concentric lanes, cradle of Alsatian wine and a delicious stop on the Wine Route.

For families: wildlife parks and Europa-Park

The area right around the gîte is full of things to do with children. At Kintzheim, just fifteen minutes away, Monkey Mountain (Montagne des Singes) lets more than 200 Barbary macaques roam free across a large forest — you watch them up close along the paths and at keeper-led feeding times. Right beside it, the Volerie des Aigles stages flying displays of eagles and other birds of prey within the walls of a medieval castle.

For a day of thrills, Europa-Park, just across the Rhine in Rust, Germany, is one of the largest theme parks in Europe: rollercoasters, themed areas and shows that delight every generation. Forty minutes from the gîte, it works beautifully as a day trip — we devote a whole page to it. The house sleeps up to 15 across three apartments, which makes it a perfect base for a family trip or group getaway, as our family and group page explains.

• Monkey Mountain (Kintzheim)

  ~15 min

  More than 200 Barbary macaques roaming free in a forest: an unforgettable encounter, fifteen minutes from the gîte.

• Volerie des Aigles

  ~15 min

  Flying displays of birds of prey in a medieval castle, right next to Monkey Mountain.

• Europa-Park (Rust, Germany)

  ~40 min

  One of the largest theme parks in Europe, easily done in a day. All our tips on the Europa-Park page.

Hiking and the great outdoors

For outdoor lovers, Alsace offers two playgrounds. Closest to home, the vineyard trails wind between the rows of vines: from the gîte, the Dambach-la-Ville wine trail climbs towards the Frankstein Grand Cru and the Saint-Sébastien chapel, with an open view over the plain. It's the perfect late-afternoon walk before a glass in the village.

Higher up, the Vosges mountains unfold forests, lakes and ridgelines, with ruined castles, mountain farm-inns and waymarked paths for every level. Whether you want an hour among the vines or a full day at altitude, the trailheads are never far — and the calm of the village is always waiting on your return.

Alsatian food and wine

Visiting Alsace without sitting down to eat would be a shame. The winstub — the cosy, checked-tablecloth Alsatian bistro — serves the regional classics: choucroute garnie (sauerkraut with cured meats and sausages), baeckeoffe hotpot, tarte flambée and, for something sweet, the unmistakable kougelhopf cake. In Dambach-la-Ville, three restaurants sit about 200 metres from the gîte, and the bakery is right across the street for morning croissants.

Wine, of course, accompanies all of it: riesling, gewurztraminer, pinot gris and crémant take centre stage at tastings all along the Wine Route. Dambach produces its own Grand Cru, the Frankstein, which you can sample with the village's winemakers. With a fully equipped kitchen in each apartment, you're free to cook your market finds or book a table just steps away — after a full day out, evenings back at the gîte feel all the sweeter.