Colmar and riding through the French countryside. Mais Oui! - 30th April 2026
- Brett Sedgwick
- May 11
- 3 min read
Bonjour de Colmar, en France.
We left Luxembourg, headed for the town of Colmar in France. Why?
Ask the boss!!
No, we had heard that Colmar and the surrounding villages were beautifully preserved and being near the German border, they were a unique mix of architectural styles.
Before we left the 'Bourg, we had one more stop off; the spa town of Mondorf-Les-Bains. We parked Delph in the massive car park and then went into the resort that is Mondorf Domaine Thermal.
Basically, this joint is a resort/health club/spa/sauna complex that is fed by the natural thermal heated springs. We paid 32 euros each for two hours, which involved 45 minutes in a heated pool where you move from jet to jet, and end up with all your sore bits feeling better. Bliss. We also sat in an extreme steam room for about 3 minutes, a 20-minute infrared treatment, a cold plunge and a mild sauna. Added bonus, some of the rooms had optional clothing, so we saw a few old Luxembourgish choads. Brilliant! (no pics or video available, unfortunately...)
After the viewing of the slugs, we needed to hit the choad, I mean road, and we decided to stop off at the border town of Obernai, and let me tell you, the architecture was incredible. German style, exposed wood buildings with flower pots, wrought iron and cobblestone laneways. There wasn’t enough CH’s in enCHanting (or CHoad) to describe it. We are near the Alsace River, and this style is called Alsation. Have a look at the video and gallery below to get it.
We then went to our cool campground right on the edge of the old town of Colmar. I had picked a green pitch, and it was right down the back next to the old Alsace River itself. An easy 15-minute bike ride into town and we were amongst the architecture, the cobblestones, the canals (of Petite Venice), the churches and the thrum of French life. Magnifique! Jen-Jen reckons it was her favourite place so far. Again, a gallery below should show some of the splendour.
She had also heard of a ride throughout the countryside - still part of the old Euro Velo - that she wanted us to do. We grabbed another new travel app - we have about 5 now - called Kamoot, clipped my phone into the phone holder and away we went.
All up, we did a 29 km loop with the highlight being the beautiful village of Eguisheim. This village is a series of concentric circles with the church/castle in the centre. The Alsation architecture is still prevalent, and the charm of the city was CHarming with a capital CH! We also had incredible coffee and apple pie at a cafe, before heading back.
That night, we got the bus into town for a wine tasting sesh at a wine bar that promised over 200 varieties. The wine was OK, but mostly white - Moselle grapes are big here - and the one red, a pinot noir, was good. The platter was outstanding with cheese, fruits, nuts, foie gras (our first this trip) cured meats and bread. Not a bad way to spend an evening in a beautiful village.
That’s about it. I still LOVE French Supermarkets and spend a lot of my time in them buying delicacies to cook, eat and quaff, and our long breakfasts set us up well for a day of exploring and learning.
We are off to Lichtenstein tomorrow - again, a joint I know nothing about. I know that's near Switzerland, also known as the Confederacy of Helvetica or CH...
CHeers - resonance
Au Revoir.
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