The day after we got to Colmar we took the Navettes de Nöel (https://noel-colmar.com/en/christmas-shuttles) – basically a Christmas Market shuttle from Colmar with unlimited travel for the day for €17 per person. We visited Riquewihr and Ribeauvillé on one line during the day then switched to a different line to visit Equishem at night. The buses leave directly form the train station in Colmar so it was very convenient (about a 15 min walk from our Airbnb). This was a much easier way to see these villages than taking our rental car. For one, they are popular (as you’ll see in the photos) so parking would be a pain. And then one of us would have to drive (thereby limiting the vin chaud and beer we could partake of!). The tickets for the shuttle went on sale mid-November for the season. Some of the lines only run in the weekends – and some of the markets (Ribeauvillé in particular) are only open on select weekends. Ribeauvillé was actually only open for 2 weekends and the day after our arrival was our only chance to see it. So it does take a bit of advance planning. I follow a couple of European Christmas Market Facebook groups so I had a good read of what we needed to look for and someone in one of the groups was kind enough to remind everyone when the shuttle tickets opened up.
I did have to chuckle at the warning signs near the bus – don’t get too close to the turning angle of the bus or you might die (European warnings are not subtle!) “Angles mort” translates to “blind spot” per google translate but angles = angles and mort = dead so translate that as you wish!
The 3 villages we went to all had their own unique charm – and several of these villages are said to be the inspiration for the French villages where Belle in Beauty and the Beast is from.
Riquewihr is designates as one of “Les Plus Beaux Villages de France” – one the MOST beautiful villages in France (Equishem also has this designation).
As you can see, Riquewihr was pretty crowded but still a really neat village to see. You may have notices storks in some of the photos (below and in the Colmar post). White storks migrate from Africa to the Alsace region in spring/summer. (https://thegoodlifefrance.com/the-storks-of-alsace/)
Next up was Ribeauvillé – this particular village has a medieval Christmas market that is only open for 2 weekends each year. We happened to catch it on its last day. It was also pretty crowded but was a very unique market. They even had an apple press and made fresh cider from it. And when we wandered off the main drag (to explore the town away from the market), it was much quieter.
After visiting Ribeauvillé, we hopped on the bus back to Colmar then switched to a different line for Equishem. We got to Equishem after dark and it was so pretty and magical all lit up. Equishem is really neat to see – the layout of the town forms concentric rings and they have plaques along the way to explain the history. https://www.visit.alsace/en/253001191-come-on-into-eguisheims-round/
The yellow house/building below was first mentioned in the 1200s and the yellow color was added in the 16th-17th century.
While it was a long day, we really enjoyed all of the different Alsatian markets and towns.
