Nestled on the Rhine across the border from Germany, Strasbourg offers your best chance to experience the urban side of France’s Alsace region. Each time I walk its people-friendly streets, I’m struck by how progressive and livable the city feels, with generous space devoted to pedestrians and bikes, sleek trams, and meandering waterways. With delightful big-city energy and a name that means “city of streets,” Strasbourg is the ultimate crossroads.
While the city dodged serious damage in both world wars, Strasbourg has a dizzying history. It was hit hard during the Franco-Prussian War, becoming part of Germany in 1870. After that, there was a period of harsh Germanization, followed by extreme Frenchification after World War I, a brutal period under Nazi rule during World War II, and then the strong need to purge all things German after 1945. Now, while probably more definitively French than it’s ever been, the city exudes a bicultural gentleness: Street signs are commonly bilingual—in the Alsatian dialect as well as French—and you’ll find unique blends of Franco-Germanic culture, architecture, and ambience all over.
