Only 20minutes drive from Château d'Isenbourg

 

For Georges Duhamel (as he wrote in 1931), Colmar was the "most beautiful town in the world". It has also often been said that it is the most Alsatian town in Alsace! Without going over the top with superlatives, Colmar undoubtedly remains an exceptional town due to the wealth and variety of its historical and architectural heritage.

The capital of central Alsace, situated near Germany and Switzerland between the Vosges and the Rhine, Strasbourg and Mulhouse, the town offers visitors an exciting glimpse of 1000 years of European history.

What's more, Colmar, with its 67,000 inhabitants, retains a 'country town' atmosphere which contributes so much to its charm. Wonderfully preserved from the ravages of time, its homogenous historical centre is classed as a 'protected area' and has benefited from careful restoration and ongoing improvements for more than 20 years. The pedestrian area in historical Colmar, lets visitors admire the unquantifiable wealth of the town's heritage, which is remarkable in every way.

The Middle Ages left the old town with superb examples of Gothic architecture, such as the Saint Martin Collegiate church and the Dominican Church , which bear witness to a simplified form of art which is both pure and austere. Originally Romanesque in style, the enlargement of Saint Martin Collegiate church began in 1235 and continued for more than a century. The church's choir, made by Wilhelm von Marburg, was completed in the mid 14th century.The religious architecture of the mendicant orders belongs to a separate category: present in Colmar as from the 13th century, the Dominicans and the Franciscans have left us with remarkable examples of architecture: vast churches like those of the Dominicans (completed in 1346 and which currently hosts the masterpiece made by Martin Schongauer, 'Virgin in the Garden of Roses') or that of the Franciscans, the church of Saint Matthew , where numerous events and classical music concerts are now held, such as the symphonic concerts of the International Festival of Colmar.quai-de-la-poissonnerie colmar A number of civic buildings bear witness to Colmar's architectural splendour in the Middle Ages, for example, Maison Adolph which dates from the second half of the 14th century and also, 'Huselin zum Swan' in rue Schongauer.