Colmar and the Alsace Wine Route

Just outside Freiburg the fog thins over the Tuniberg slopes, and forty-five minutes later you’re drifting through Colmar’s Little Venice in a flat-bottomed boat. Timbered facades line Rue des Tanneurs, then the Unterlinden Museum’s Isenheim Altarpiece (1512–1516) shows off panels carefully restored in 2015. A still-warm kugelhopf from Gilg sets the pace before the ramparts: Riquewihr keeps its 13th‑century Thieves’ Tower, while circular Eguisheim wraps its former farming courtyards around Place du Château Saint‑Léon.

Your day is structured yet flexible: collected from your Freiburg hotel, you ride in a roomy Mercedes while the driver handles the 15–25‑minute hops between villages. You taste while they drive, with cellar appointments secured in advance and your bottles kept cool. Expect granite‑driven Riesling in Niedermorschwihr, marl‑rich Pinot Gris in Turckheim, and a winstub lunch when it fits; weather permitting, detours to medieval Kaysersberg or even the Schlucht Pass (1,139 m) can slot neatly into the route.