Travel thoughtfully · drink responsibly · 18+

FR France

Alsace

A single road down the Vosges foothills, linking villages that have been making white wine for a very long time.

Plan an independent Alsace wine trip around May — Jun · Sep — Oct; allow 3–5 days, and start from Strasbourg.

No-car easeLong lunchesA long weekendOne slow week

The village of Hunawihr surrounded by Alsace vineyards

Photograph Einaz80 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Best windowMay — Jun · Sep — Oct

Trip length3–5 days

RouteStrasbourg → Colmar

Go forRiesling · Gewurztraminer · Pinot Gris

Context51 grands crus along a 170 km wine route

— The place itself

The Route des Vins, created in 1953, is the oldest wine route in France: 170 kilometres from Marlenheim down to Thann, through some seventy villages and past 51 classified grand cru sites.

01 When to go

May — Jun · Sep — Oct

The window we would aim for is May — Jun · Sep — Oct. Across the year this region reads best in Apr–Jun and Sep–Oct.

See Alsace’s 1991–2020 historical weather by month →

Foire aux Vins d'Alsace, Colmar — Ten days across late July and early August, since 1947. Over a thousand Alsatian wines under one roof with an open-air concert festival attached — less vineyard, more the region gathered in one place. Foire aux Vins d'Alsace ↗

An editorial guide, not a weather or availability guarantee — recheck before booking. Festival timings are the recurring pattern; check the organiser for this year.

02 Getting around

Strasbourg → Colmar

Rail runs the length of the plain; local buses and bikes cover the villages above it.

03 Book first

What will not wait.

Grand cru producer visits and, in autumn, anywhere at all.

04 Shaping the days

The rhythm that works.

Base in Colmar and work outward in short arcs rather than driving the whole route.

05 Getting there

From Colmar.

Airports

BSLEuroAirport Basel–Mulhouse58 km · 42 min
SXBStrasbourg70 km · 55 min
ZRHZurich167 km · 2 hr 16 min

Nearest towns that matter

16kmRiquewihr22 min
25kmSélestat28 min
16kmKaysersberg29 min
42kmMulhouse34 min
64kmBasel50 min

Driving distance and time by road from Colmar, computed from OpenStreetMap data. Not live traffic, and not a substitute for checking the route on the day.

06 How long to give it

3–5 days, or as long as you have.

3 days

Colmar and the villages within twenty minutes of it. Riquewihr, Hunawihr, one grand cru slope.

5 days

Colmar as the base for the southern half, then two nights further north for the Strasbourg end.

7 days

The whole route at walking-and-cycling pace, which is the only pace that suits it.

Editorial judgement, not a fixed plan. Longer trips generally mean more than one region.

— This is also a

One base, no moving Walking between the wine Riesling journey

Sources

Checkable claims and all distances come from these. Timing, rhythm and what to book first are our judgement.

— Region evidence passport

What is observed, and what is ours.

Permanent IDftv:region:alsace

Regional evidence: 2 named sources behind the checkable context above.
Route evidence: OpenStreetMap coordinates and OSRM road routes, computed once—not live traffic.
Editorial layer: Best window, trip length, transport fit, booking priority and daily rhythm are Follow The Vines judgement.
Freshness: Editorially reviewed 22 August 2026. Recheck live services before booking.

This passport does not claim live opening, price, accommodation or forecast data. Historical weather has a separate station-evidence passport; the editorial record is also available through the regions JSON endpoint.