Found good prices for flights into LUX and out of Geneva for late April and early May. Going to do NE France mostly. Any favorite towns or stops? Thinking of a home base in Troyes for a few days and then Colmar. Any others to consider?

How is the champagne region? Any good chateaux or estates or routes to drive? We'd like to avoid the spots with too many tourists day tripping from Paris.

(Just me and Mrs. Juice, 33-34, we like food, wine, driving the countryside, small towns, etc. Loved Normandy and Burgundy, now time to explore a new region.)

This post was edited on 12/4/17 at 10:33 am

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Posted by hungryone

river parishes

Member since Sep 2010

11987 posts

Posted on 12/4/17 at 8:11 pm to LSUJuice

Colmar! Lovely...Condor flies nonstop direct from MSY to Frankfort, so Alsace is in my future. Maybe next Thanksgiving, for the Christmas market in Strasbourg.

This post was edited on 12/4/17 at 8:14 pm

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Posted by BlackenedOut

The Big Sleazy

Member since Feb 2011

5803 posts

Posted on 12/5/17 at 8:30 am to LSUJuice

quote:
We'd like to avoid the spots with too many tourists day tripping from Paris

I resemble this comment. We hired a guide to take us to some smaller Grower champagne houses and then ended the trip with lunch in Reims and a visit to Tattinger - which has a nice tour and some beautiful caves, including some dug out originally by the Romans.

Would definitely be worth your while to find a good guide (wish I had kept our guide's info) who can get you into places off limits for most.

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Posted by Jackalope

Paris. (Austin Native)

Member since Apr 2009

2252 posts

Posted on 12/5/17 at 10:56 am to LSUJuice

My girlfriend is from Colmar. It's a great small town, and has access to the mountains, to Germany, and to Switzerland. It's fun to see the mix of German and French cultures fused into one.

The food is uniquely Alsatian. German foundation with French fused in.

I enjoy hopping over to Freiburg which is only a 35 minute drive from Colmar.

There are wineries up and down the area. You can use the Route des Vins as your guide, which makes it nice and easy. Riesling is the most popular grape.

The small towns in the area are amazing. Some of my gf's family lives in Ribeauville, which is a nice standout of a typical quaint/picturesque town in the region.

Many castles nearby, as well as chateaus.

Epernay is the birthplace of Champagne wine.

Many battles fought in the area, but Verdun is a big one.

Joan of Arc was born nearby in a small town west of Colmar.

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Posted by Fat Harry

70115

Member since Mar 2005

2212 posts

Posted on 12/5/17 at 2:55 pm to hungryone

quote:
Colmar! Lovely...Condor flies nonstop direct from MSY to Frankfort, so Alsace is in my future. Maybe next Thanksgiving, for the Christmas market in Strasbourg.

Unless something has changed, Condor's service from MSY is seasonal and ends in September. Their service is clearly geared to the German market unfortunately. No Oktoberfest flights!

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Posted by LSUJuice

Back in Houston

Member since Apr 2004

17667 posts

Posted on 12/5/17 at 3:53 pm to Jackalope

Ribeauville looks neat. And the
Route du vins outside of Bergheim looks like a good start. Definitely looking forward to the Alsacian food. Any castles or chateaux that stand out?

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Posted by hungryone

river parishes

Member since Sep 2010

11987 posts

Posted on 12/5/17 at 6:34 pm to Fat Harry

Aw, shucks. I didn’t realize the Frankfort route was seasonal. Thanks for the info.