Castle Haut-Koenigsbourg and other places of interest

Places to visit less than 1 hour away from our vacation rentals in La Vancelle, Alsace.

Our House of The 4 Travelers in La Vancelle, Alsace will be your comfortable and convenient headquarters for visiting Alsace and the Vosges mountains.
And why not take the opportunity to make some excursions towards Germany and Switzerland all close?
Your holiday apartment in the village of La Vancelle offers high quality environment, nature, calmness and rest. But at the same time, you will be very close to many major sites and places to visit, well known or off the beaten track.
Here is a short overview ...

The Silver Valley (Val d'Argent) is located in the heart Alsace between Strasbourg and Colmar just abeam Selestat. The castles guarding the Silver Valley show that the area has been strategic for a long time! The village of La Vancelle where our apartment is located is just 8 kilometers from the valley entrance and the Alsace Wine Route.

Haut Koenigsbourg, a fantastic and romantic medieval castle - 15 minutes away only

The famous medieval castle of Haut Koenigsbourg is nestled at a strategic location on a high hill overlooking the Alsatian plain; as a result it was used by successive powers from the Middle Ages until the Thirty Years' War (17th Century) when it was abandoned. For a few hundred years the castle of Haut Koenigsbourg was left unused and became overgrown by the forest. Various romantic poets and artists were inspired by the castle during this time. In 1900 it was restored under the direction of Emperor Wilhelm II. Today it is a major tourist attraction, located on the Alsace wine route.

The famous castle Haut Koenigsbourg is the most visited attraction and monument in Alsace and one of the first in France.

The castle Haut Koenigsbourg seen from the window of our apartment The Mountain Hiker in La Vancelle

Do not miss a visit to the Haut Koenigsbourg castle.
The famous castle of Haut Koenigsbourg, the most visited site of Alsace and one of the first of France (1 million visitors / year), is only fifteen minutes away from our House of the 4 Travelers in La Vancelle. Castle of Haut Koenigsbourg, a landmark of heritage and cultural tourism in Alsace, is one of the finest examples of a mountain fortress in the late fifteenth century. It overlooks the village of Orschwiller in the Bas-Rhin county in Alsace, at an altitude of 757 meters.

With your access ticket you can join a free guided tour of the castle Haut Koenigsbourg

A guided tour is the best way to an attractive and interesting visit of the castle.

Our Mountain Hiker holiday apartment is the smart base for all your discoveries

You will see the castle from your apartment by simply looking out of the window. Reaching the castle of Haut Koenigsbourg is simple: drive down to Liepvre and up to the castle on the opposite side. It will take only 15 minutes ...

Stay in our wonderful Mountain Hiker gite in Alsace. It will be your comfortable and convenient headquarters for visiting Alsace and the Vosges mountains.

The secluded terrace of the Mountain Hiker apartment: a little corner in the garden to enjoy sitting or eating outside …

Alsace Wine Route, 10 minutes

From your apartment in La Vancelle, it is a short 10 minutes drive to reach the Alsace Wine route in Chatenois. The Alsace Wine Route is one of the most spectacular wine route in France. The Alsace Wine Route is famous all over the world for the exceptional natural beauty of its scenery (mountains, vineyards and old traditional colourful villages) and the high quality of the Alsace wines.
Visitors can easily explore the vineyards, along numerous vineyard paths where signs explain the work of the winegrower and the diversity of the grape varieties.
Winstubs and tasting cellars offer an unforgettable experience. And from April to October, a succession of wine festivals and wine fairs will highlight your trip.

The castle Haut Koenigsbourg overlooking the Alsace wine route

Wine learning path in Mittelbergheim on the Alsace wine route. Castle of Andlau in the background.

The delightful Alsace wine route runs across a succession of undulating hills, through pretty villages with narrow streets of colourful half-timbered houses. You will need at least 2 days to see the wine route. It is not far but there is a lot to see :-)

One day to explore the vineyards to the north. Scherrwiller, Chatenois, Dambach la Ville are only minutes away. The road leads then further north to Andlau, Mittelbergheim, Obernai and the Mount Sainte Odile (see further down).
Another day to the south: Less than half a hour south you will reach some of them which still keep their medieval ramparts and atmosphere: Riquewihr (where we have several other holiday apartments in the historical medieval city), Bergheim, Ribeauvillé and Kaysersberg (in the Colmar area) are among the most beautiful alsatian towns and villages.

Old medieval church overlooking the vineyards in Hunawihr

Riquewihr is one of the prettiest villages in France and is just a 30 minutes drive away from La Vancelle

Sélestat, a largely unknown treasure - 15 minutes

Sélestat is the nearest important commercial city to La Vancelle. It is merely a 15 minutes easy drive. The city of Sélestat (20 000 inhabitants) is one of the richest among the cities of Alsace in terms of architecture. Most remarkable are the Romanesque St. Faith's Church and the Gothic St. George's Church, the Baroque clock tower (1618) … There are also many Renaissance and Baroque civil houses that give to the city centre a very picturesque atmosphere.
The Humanist Library displays one of the oldest and most homogeneous collections of medieval manuscripts and Renaissance books in Europe. Its core is the still almost intact library of Beatus Rhenanus. It is in a manuscript – dating back to 1521 – of the town of Sélestat that the oldest currently known reference to the Christmas tree can be found. Every year in December that manuscript is displayed and accessible by the public. It is a pity that the visitors to Alsace are rushing from Strasbourg to Colmar without taking the time to stop at Sélestat.

In the historical city center of Sélestat.

Every Tuesday, in Sélestat, there is a beautiful weekly open air market.

Colmar, beautiful Alsatian city, only 20 minutes away

Colmar is the second largest city in Alsace considering its rich historical heritage behind Strasbourg and before to Sélestat. The city has an old collegiate church, several convents and many houses of the Middle Ages. The city center of Colmar is absolutely picturesque and is a must visit. Colmar earned the nickname of "capital of Alsace wines" in view of its location in the center of the Alsatian vineyards, close to the Vosges foothills, and its particular climate for growing vines. Colmar is also a city of culture, home of the Unterlinden museum housing the Issenheim Altarpiece. The Unterlinden museum is a must visit place, especially with the new improvement just made and its re-opening scheduled for mid-December 2015. Colmar is also the birthplace of the creator of the Statue of Liberty in New York, Auguste Bartholdi (the Bartholdi museum is worth a visit).

Medieval painting in the world famous museum Unterlinden in Colmar

In the Little Venice (Petite Venise) historical quarter of Colmar.

Mount and monastry of Sainte Odile, 35 minutes

People come to this monastic setting to meditate or to pray, as pilgrims or tourists.
The Mount Sainte Odile is without any doubt one of the most visited places in Alsace. The site, the panorama, the sanctuaries, everything helps attracting tourists and pilgrims.
The Mount Sainte Odile has seen along the centuries famous visitors, princes and prelates, scientits and poets. Many of them dedicated beautiful pages singing its treasures and its charms.

The site of the mount Sainte Odile monastry is spectacular. The church of the Sainte Odile monastry is dating back to the middle ages and is built on an impressive and massive rock.

A visit to the mount Saint Odile is a moment of emotion in any season, even in winter.

Old city of Strasbourg, 45 minutes

It is very easy to reach the famous city of Strasbourg from our house in La Vancelle.
With your car, drive down to the motorway which will lead you to the center of Strasbourg within 45 minutes.
But you do not need any car actually. Catch the minibus in front of the house. It will take you to the train station of Sélestat. There a frequent train service (TER) will drop you in Strasbourg in less than 20 minutes!

The medieval heart of Strasbourg with the impressive cathedral during the December and the Christmas market time.

Medieval Inn Kammerzell in the historical city center of Strasbourg (World Heritage)

La Vancelle is a lovely mountain village easily accessible, a very smart base to visit all Alsace, the Vosges mountains and even nearby Germany and Switzerland.

In 2010 the Lonely Planet guides voted Alsace first among the top ten regions to be discovered in the world. Alsace is unquestionably spectacularly beautiful. A very special combination of history, culture, scenery, and especially food and wine makes it one of the most delightful places to visit in all of Europe.

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One the picturesque farms in the Silver Valley (Val d'Argent)

Hiking and picnicking in the vineyards of Scherwiller, a neighbour village to La Vancelle