Located between mountains and the vineyards of the Alsatian wine route, is the small town of Ribeauville France.
The town is very small, housing only 5000 residents, but what is lacks in size it certainly makes up for in character and charm.
Like many small towns in the Alsace region of France, the crooked half-timber homes and buildings are painted in a variety of bright colors.
"Blue, yellow, orange, pink and green oh my!"
The Grand-Rue, or main street, is located in the center of the village town. Its lined with 15th to 18th century buildings that house artisinal shops, restaurants and wine caves.
"Touristy but still charming."
I saw this cool little library located in the main square near the town hall building. I just liked the image out front.
We didn't go inside the town hall but apparently there is a large collection of silver drinking goblets and antiquities inside that can be viewed by the public.
The town hall building is quite old, dating back to 1775. The fountain in front of it dates back to 1536.
The old clock tower, which is known as the Butchers Gate, is from the 13th century.
"Medeival times!"
The town is separated by four gates which creates four distinct distincts along the street. Each has its own distinct sort of character.
The city has a linear layout and the main street is quite long, so the multiple districts make the town feel much larger than it actually is.
I was actually a bit surprised by it. It sort of felt like it went on forever.
"In a good way of course."
One thing that is mildly annoying about Ribeauville though is that the main street is not pedestrianized, meaning that cars can drive down it at any time of day.
It's a bit surprising given how beautiful the town is and how many tourists visit it each year.
It's not a huge deal or anything but it did detract from the experience a bit.
The street is very narrow and I felt like we were constantly looking over our shoulder and moving out of the way of cars trying to get by.
On a more positive note, the town is filled with flowers and flowered window boxes that add a lot of additional color and beauty.
This spot in particular was very pretty.
Below is a 16th-17th century house that has been converted into a wine shop.
We stopped for a light lunch in the afternoon during our visit.
I don't remember the name of the restaurant but it's the yellow building on the corner.
I found the food in the Alsace to be similar to its wine, it's not fancy or pretentious at all, it's a bit modest, but it certainly tastes good and gets the job done.
"It's like comfort food."
I took the photo above because of the castle ruins on the hill in the distance.
Along with the surrounding vineyards there are three castle ruins over looking and close by the village. Ribeauville is also only a short 12 minute drive from Chateau de Haut Koenigsbourg.
The Alsace was a region of many lords back in its day and their remnants are scattered around the surrounding area.
Overall we really enjoyed Ribeauville and were glad we stopped there in the afternoon. The towns of the Alsace are quite close together and there are many to see in the region. Ribeauville is worth checking out but maybe not worth spending an entire day of a trip. I would recommend seeing it along with another spot like Riquewihr or Chateau de Haut Koenigsbourg.
