France's Most Preferred Village in 2013

Today we visited Eguisheim which was voted France's most preferred (or favourite) in 2013.  It is not difficult to figure out why.  This is one of those places which looks too pretty to be real, more like a fantasy.  The town has three concentric walls which form the village's fortifications.  It can be seen more or less in this photo from the Internet:

The following is from the Office of Tourism website:

Eguisheim, the birthplace of winegrowing in Alsace, has 1850 inhabitants and nestles between gentle hillsides covered with 339 hectares of vines.  In the heart of the Alsace wine region, at an altitude of 210m, it is only 5 kilometres from Colmar and close to the European capital of Strasbourg, Freiburg and to Basel.  Some of its vineyards have been officially been designated as "Alsace Grand Cru".  Pope St Leo IX was born here, and Eguisheim enjoys an international reputation.  [The sign outside the chapel reads:  He was a mighty traveller, diplomat and conciliator crossing the length and breadth of Europe in his quest for peace among Christians.  He was committed to reforming the church notably positioning himself ageing the marriage of priests.] 

Fortified in 1257, Eguisheim is proud of its picturesque and concentric narrow streets lined with half-timbered houses and rich floral decoration (French "4-flower" rating and National Grand Prix award holder since 1989 and European "Entente Florale" gold medal winner in 2006). Its 16 tithe courts, fountains and a church (containing a Callinet organ) all contribute to the historic personality of the village.

The parish church is dedicated to Saint Peter and Saint Paul.  Rebuilt in gothic style in 1220, the only surviving part of the original Roman Church is the belfry.  The lower castle of Eguisheim, on the Saint-Leon square, is built against the distinctive 13th century octogonal ramparts of bossed stone.

I think the first time I came here was about 20 years ago and not many tourists knew about it.  Over the years, its popularity, not to mention fame, have grown and it is easy to see why.  We had considered visiting here on Sunday but that would have been nuts.  It was Mother's Day in France plus it was a 4 day weekend in Germany.  I am sure the place would have been over-crowded.  Today (Tuesday), it was close to empty which made photo-ops perfect.  This village is so photogenic that to get a great shot all you have to do is point and shoot!

 

The above shots are from our walk between the outer wall and second walls.  What can I say?  It is just too damn pretty and charming for words!
 

Eguisheim's village square

The Chateau and the chapel

One of my favourite wine tasting places in Alsace (maybe in France); oh yes, for buying wine too!

Em having a drink with a wooden man at Freudenreich!

One thing I have never done during the large number of times I have come here is the little "train touristique" which takes you around the village and up through some of the vineyards.  The narrative along with it is very informative giving the history of the town and a lot of information about the vineyards on the hill above it.  The "train" took us up into the vineyards where the views across the plain, the lowlands between the Vosges and the Black Forest with the Rhine flowing through it, were fabulous.

 



 And did I mention the temperature?

Thankfully, or not, on the drive back we encountered a thunder and lightning storm and the heavy rain made driving close to impossible.  However, we got home safely.  The air seemed less muggy after the storm.  A good thing!  We were so pleased to have visited this almost perfect Alsatian (and French) village.  What's not to love?