Strasbourg, Its Suburbs and Local Transport

[Masbroughlad]

Strasbourg!

Any of you know the city and its suburbs well?

We are starting our festive jaunt in France this year. Due to personal circumstances, we're booking much later than hoped. The prices of city centre hotels, where they are available is rather high! Lol.

Do any of you know which suburbs of Strasbourg are safe and have amenities - small shops or supermarkets, cafés and bars etc.

The key thing is that there is a good tram (bus or local train) that gets you into the city in 20-25 mins or so. A line with reasonable frequency and trains into the late evening.

For example, I've seen the district of Illkirch-Grafenstaden and it says it has a tram on line A, taking about 25 mins to the city. Is that a decent area? Is it accessible to the city?

We did similar in Munich and got a great hotel, half of the price in the city and with a tram stop a minute away.

Bit off thread, but not sure where to put it apart from here. If in addition to the above, any hotels can be recommended - clean, comfortable and if possible with breakfast room and bar. (Although, if the area has them, that's fine). Hotels of mid-quality are fine.

Any help on this will be great. Thank you in advance. And if it belongs in DMs rather than a live thread - fine.

 

[DeverseSam]

There are no particularly bad areas. The Christmas markets are popular, so expensive to stay

 

[nwales58]

For cheap, you might want to look outside Strasbourg and travel in.

There is a clutch of cheaper hotels, the usual chains, around Graffenstaden station, TER half-hourly most of the day. Though that's an industrial estate hence cheaper.

Offenburg, about 30' by train, doesn't suffer from Strasbourg's 'parliament in town' price surge either.

 

[jamesontheroad]

The Strasbourg tram system is great. I was an exchange student there in the late-2000s and used it a lot. It has since expanded and as @nwales58 suggests, is complimented by good high-speed TER towards Mulhouse and diesel railcars into the pretty Alsatian hillside villages.

Just overlay the tram map with Airbnb or hotels and follow your instinct. The only area I never liked (but sadly where I had a girlfriend) was the bleak modernist estate of apartment blocks in Esplanade, s-e of town. There are far prettier neighbourhoods.

 

[Gloster]

There are rough areas of Strasbourg, or were when I lived in Alsace, but I can’t remember which ones. I would be just a little wary about wandering aimlessly out of the centre, particularly after dark.

 

[StephenHunter]

The Strasbourg tram system is great. I was an exchange student there in the late-2000s and used it a lot. It has since expanded and as @nwales58 suggests, is complimented by good high-speed TER towards Mulhouse and diesel railcars into the pretty Alsatian hillside villages.

Just overlay the tram map with Airbnb or hotels and follow your instinct. The only area I never liked (but sadly where I had a girlfriend) was the bleak modernist estate of apartment blocks in Esplanade, s-e of town. There are far prettier neighbourhoods.

You can get the tram across to the German town of Kehl now.

 

[30907]

Colmar is a lovely, fairly touristy, town 30min away though the evening service is only hourly. It serves Selestat en route but I've not been there.

 

[riceuten]

I HAVE been to Selestat and it's lovely and quiet. Not overprovided for in hotel space, but plenty of private rooms in the area on booking.com and Skyscanner. Apropos Strasbourg - some areas in the south (especially the Neuhof neighbourhood) and west (Hautepierre, Cronenbourg) of the city might be iffy, especially at night, but they have little tourist appeal, and I don't know of any hotels there). I've been to "Strossburi" many times, the Xmas market can get way too crowded, but there's plenty else to see.

 

[Masbroughlad]

Colmar is a lovely, fairly touristy, town 30min away though the evening service is only hourly. It serves Selestat en route but I've not been there.

Is Colmar worth a full day visit or half day, if staying in Strasbourg?

Guess it depends what we want to see. Mainly the Christmas market for us.

 

[riceuten]

Is Colmar worth a full day visit or half day, if staying in Strasbourg?

Guess it depends what we want to see. Mainly the Christmas market for us.

You can do it in half a day, or have something to eat and make a day of it. The Xmas market there is slightly less manic. Colmar station is about 15 minutes walk from the centre. Strasbourg is slightly closer (and can be done on the tram). There's nothing wrong with Illkirch if you want to - or have found a place to stay. We used to stay at the Best Western near the Gare, but we stayed at the Hotel Origami last time - lovely, great breakfast and 2 mins walk from the tram.

 

[Gloster]

Beware…I visited Colmar and stayed for over three years. I never did the touristy bits though.

 

[riceuten]

Beware…I visited Colmar and stayed for over three years. I never did the touristy bits though.

What amused me about Colmar was the touristy high street and the non-touristy one ran almost parallel. There seem to be less German day trippers than Strasbourg.

 

[dutchflyer]

Would also rec Kehl=just across the Rhine brdige, small size town in Germany/Baden-Wŕttemberg-both the Stras tram+ hourly-and often horribly overcrowded small train, even faster as that Illich.
I often stay in Hotel BB-check their own site, they are both big in DE and FR-in Kehl a fairly new one very close by station. Comparable standard as f.e Ibis (they have taken over may former Ibis-HTLs in DE)
Confirm above: there is no part. unsafe area and it works just as in UK: suburbia will have at some places also the usual local centres/shops etc-google maps can be made to show them, or openstreetmap.org

 

[30907]

Is Colmar worth a full day visit or half day, if staying in Strasbourg?

Guess it depends what we want to see. Mainly the Christmas market for us.

I'd give it a day, and eat out.

Flammkueche is pizza-like street food BTW.

 

[ThirteenArches]

Strasbourg's a lovely place, though not sure about in winter. We stayed a few nights back in May, stayed at a fairly basic hotel, but comfortable enough, City Residence Strasbourg, https://www.cityresidence.fr/residence/strasbourg-centre. Close to the station. Downside: it backs onto the railway. Upside: it backs onto the railway. They do breakfast, seems a bit expensive to me but great if you eat a lot, it's fixed price eat as much as you can. Remember to boil the eggs. Funny little stubby trams in long trains, comprehensive transport, lots of decent restaurants, caffs and takeaways.

 

[Masbroughlad]

Thank you for all of this information everyone. You all never fail to amaze me in getting info and advice on new stuff to me.

Thank you - our trip is taking shape!

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Thank you for all of this information everyone. You all never fail to amaze me in getting info and advice on new stuff to me.
Thank you - our trip is taking shape!

It may be a bit far out for you (30-45 mins) but I found Saverne (on the old main line to Paris) a very nice town to stay in while visiting the region.