10 Iconic Buildings and Places in Strasbourg

Strasbourg Cathedral is a great landmark that underwent a construction phase spanning 4 centuries. The Romanesque structure was begun in 1015 and the final flourish, a Gothic spire, was added in 1439. It’s a magnificent work of art. Hundreds of sculptures adorn the front facade, while inside, its stained-glass windows have a transcendent beauty.

Visitors to Strasbourg Cathedral gather each weekday to watch as the astronomical clock springs into life. On it, the apostles parade before Christ and below them, men at different ages stand in front of a figure that represents Death.

Barrage Vauban is a beautifully engineered dam in Strasbourg and is one of the city’s most iconic landmarks. It was built in the 17^th century from pink sandstone and was originally called the Great Lock. Even so, it’s designed to be a defensive structure rather than a lock. When closed, the land to the south would have flooded, making an attack impossible.

Today, art is displayed inside. There is a viewing terrace on the roof, which offers a panorama of the Ponts Couverts and the half-timbered buildings of Strasbourg’s old town beyond them.

La Petite France is a charming neighbourhood that forms part of the Grande Île. Its name refers to a hospice that once housed patients afflicted with syphilis, then popularly known as “the French disease”. The area is also called the Quartier des Tanneurs, as tanning leather was its main function in the Middle Ages.

Tanners, millers and fishermen made the most of this section of the River Ill, which split into 4 separate channels. Downstream is a maze of tiny lanes crammed with buildings whose open lofts would once have been used for drying hides.

Place Kléber is the largest of Strasbourg’s squares. Its name commemorates the French revolutionary general Jean-Baptiste Kléber, who was born in the city in 1753. The centrepiece of this old town square is a statue of him. Beneath it, you’ll find the tomb where he is interred.

During the festive season, this is where you’ll find Strasbourg’s Christmas market and also a giant tree. Among the historic buildings that line the square is the Aubette, an 18^th-century building that was transformed in the 1920s into a work of art. Nicknamed the Sistine Chapel of Abstract Art, it contains a cinema and dance hall.

The Historical Museum of the City of Strasbourg sits on the banks of the River Ill. The building was originally a slaughterhouse, constructed in 1587 to replace an older one that had stood on the site since the 13^th century. It is likely that the architect was a man called Hans Schoch.

Whoever designed the building intended the ground floor to house butcher’s stalls and cold storage. Upstairs was additional space that was occasionally required during trade fairs, but at other times was used for theatre productions. Today, its exhibits tell the story of Strasbourg’s political, social, economic, and cultural history.

Grande Île is the UNESCO-listed historic heart of Strasbourg. Shaped a bit like a speech bubble, it’s enclosed by the River Ill and the Canal du Faux-Rempart. More than 20 bridges, some pedestrianised, connect it to the rest of the city.

Among the many highlights is the Ancienne Douane, the city’s 14^th-century customs house, the Maison Kammerzell with its sumptuous frescoes, and the Palais Rohan, known for its splendid Baroque architecture. Among Grande Île’s numerous squares, Place du Marché au Cochons de Lait with its half-timbered houses and wrought iron replica well is a standout.

The Alsatian Museum (Musée Alsacien) is located right on the Quai Saint-Nicolas and houses a collection of artefacts covering all aspects of life in the Alsace region. The building itself is as interesting as its contents, formed of 3 houses that are linked by a rabbit warren of staircases and passages.

The mansions were built in the 16^th and 17^th centuries and feature original wood detailing plus balconies that overlook a cobbled interior courtyard. Various rooms contain reconstructions of workshops and homes, offering an insight into the region’s past.

The Strasbourg Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art was designed by Parisian architect Adrien Fainsilber. The structure stands on the bank of the River Ill and is centred on a fully-glazed inner street measuring an impressive 104 metres long. Its glass roof floods the space with light, the perfect environment for displaying its contemporary and modern art collection.

Visitors also appreciate a spacious terrace overlooking the river. Three oversized ventilation ducts stand beside the terrace, proving that in the right hands, even the most mundane elements of a building can be turned into something beautiful.

The Cave des Hospices Strasbourg (Historic Wine Cellar of Strasbourg Hospital) has a 600-year-old tradition of winemaking – it opened in 1395. Some of its patients paid for their treatment not in cash, but with land, some of which was turned into vineyards.

The cellar is lined with barrels of wine, most of which date from the 18^th and 19^th centuries. But one is thought to be the oldest wine barrel in the world, a vintage white that was laid down in 1472. The place was renovated in the 1990s and now houses a wine museum.

The Maison des Tanneurs dates from 1572 and was once the Tanner’s Guildhall. The clues to this waterfront property’s former life are in its architecture. Water would have been taken from the river and used in the dyeing process. The wet hides would then have been spread across its pitched roof to dry in the sun.

Listed as a national monument in the early 20^th century, in 1949 it became a restaurant. The restaurant is renowned for its Alsace cuisine, particularly its choucroute (Alsatian sauerkraut) and charming decor centred on exposed beams and antique furniture.