5 TIPS FOR YOUR VISIT TO FAIRYTALE COLMAR

Colmar is the prettiest town in France, there, I've said it. Colmar is a very small and beautiful town in the Alsace region of Eastern France which has been cropping up quite a lot recently with travel bloggers. It's no surprise really, considering how Instagrammable it is - I wanted to take photos of everything.

I visited Colmar whilst on a city break to Strasbourg a few weeks ago. Colmar is only 25 minutes away on the train from Strasbourg, making it a perfect location for an afternoon day out. I went without any real itinerary, it was nice to go and just explore. I hadn't looked anything up, I had planned to go and see what I would discover! Keep reading to hear my tips!

How to make the most of your day in Colmar!

1. When you get to Strasbourg train station (or any French station, for that matter), using a ticket machine to buy your train tickets can be a bit complicated. This is because you have to select the time of your return to be able to buy a return ticket. I would recommend buying two singles to be used immediately rather than trying to guess if you'll be returning between 4-6pm or 8-10pm. It may cost a little more in the long run, but at least you wont be stressed about the time. 

A canal ride in Petite Venise

2. Take a canal river boat in Petite Venise! This is a must!! It was so cute and exciting to see the little town from the waterways, and even though the route is short, it is so relaxing. It's definitely what I needed - and really made me think about how busy Paris is by comparison. You can take a boat from the dock outside a café/bar called La Krutenau. The tickets were around €6 per person, and the ride is half an hour. You can buy a ticket inside the bar, and they will give you a time to return for the journey (or you will depart immediately if it's not busy) - but you can always do what we did and wait in the bar with a drink before your ride.

3. Stay near Petite Venise if you want to take pretty pictures! There was an evident divide between the newer and more functional part of town and the old pretty waterways. While the shops and high street of sorts were beautiful and fun to look around, the old part of town stole my heart. This is the really pretty part in all the photos, and it's what sets this town apart from just being a pretty town with a pretty high street.

4. Visit the Marché Couvert de Colmar for a taste of history. The indoor market was built in 1865 and restored in 2010. The permanent indoor market is also supplemented by outdoor stalls on a Thursday! In here you can find all manor of tasty delights, but look for anything Alsacien or from Alsace to sample products from the region. My friend was also delighted to discover a vegan bakery stand, so if you feel you're being deprived of real French croissants which aren't vegan, come to the Marché Couvert! 

5. We did a little shopping whilst we were here and there are a few shops I would definitely recommend checking out. There is a gorgeous home-ware shop called Maisons du Monde. I honestly could have bought everything in that shop, it was heartbreaking to leave. This is a chain of shops, and they have them all over France, so don't worry too much if you don't make it there. But you need to make it to Le Comptoir du Fruit, a really affordable and delicious dried fruit and nougat shop which I don't think exists anywhere else. Their dried fruit is addictive. Honestly wish I bought about a kilogram of dried mango - and you'd never get as cheap prices in Paris, it was under €1,60 per 100g.I have looked online but I think this shop is unique to Colmar, so don't miss it!

This stunning town will take you away from modern life and transport you into a story book. The only thing you can compare it to are the perfect buildings of Fantasyland and Main Street in Disneyland, honestly it's that pretty. I hope that it stays that was for more people to appreciate its beauty.