A quick guide to Nancy, France
During the time I lived in France for five months, I visited the city Nancy one time. There were two cities close to the place I lived, namely Strasbourg and Nancy. Although I did like Strasbourg better than Nancy, the city is still worth the visit!
General information
Nancy is one of the most well-known cities in the French region Lorraine. This city features not only places from the UNESCO World Heritage list, but is also well-known as the city of the Art Nouveau. Nancy came up in the 11th Century and is the capital of the French department Meurthe-et-Moselle. The city is located at the river the Meurthe.
Below you can find the places you should definitely pay a visit to when travelling to Nancy.
Place Stanislas
I think this is one of the most famous places in the city. Place Stanislas is a beautiful square which belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage list. The square is named as the most beautiful royal square in Europe and high point of Nancy’s outstanding collection of 18th century monuments. Especially the ‘golden’ gates are very beautiful.
Other squares
There are two other squares in Nancy which are also part of the UNESCO World Heritage list, namely Place d’Alliance and Place de la Carrière. Both worth a visit!
Rue des Maréchaux
In an alley, close to Place Stanislas, you can find lots of cozy restaurants with terraces. Here you can sit down in a nice atmosphere and enjoy a dinner.
Nancy Cathedral
The Nancy Cathedral, also called the Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-l’Annonciation et Saint-Sigisbert is an 18th Century Roman Catholic cathedral and a national monument. At the moment, it is the seat of the Bishop of Nancy. The cathedral is really worth a visit and beautiful from the in- and outside.
Shopping mall and market hall
At the Place Mengin, you can find a big and cozy market with all kinds of stands for textile and leather. In the big market hall nearby, you can find many food stands where you can buy many local and regional products. Close to the Place Mengin, you can find a big shopping mall with a large amount of shops, called the Centre Commercial.
Museums
Are you a museum lover? Then you should definitely pay a visit to the museums ‘Musée de l’École de Nancy’ and ‘Musée des Beaux-Arts’. In the first museum you can marvel at art nouveau, the whole place features art in this style. Musée des Beaux-Arts features art pieces of, among others, Rubens and Picasso. This museum is located at Place Stanislas.
City park
The city park of Nancy is called Parc de la Pépinière. It is a nice place for people to go walking, sporting or just relaxing. There is even a mini-zoo and a museum (Musée Lorrain) about the history of the city.
Event: Rendez-vous Nancy
Every year and every night from half June till half September you can find a light show at Place Stanislas. This show features lasers, lamps and music. For the exact times you can go to the tourist office (office de tourisme), which is located on the square.
I read that Nancy is on the route of ‘Route du Soleil’ and therefore maybe an ideal layover city to visit when you are planning a trip to the South of France. If you do not go via the Route de Soleil, you can also plan a city trip to Nancy. However, in my experience, you can experience the city very well in one day, so it is nice to combine this city trip with other cities nearby, like Metz and Strasbourg.
Have you ever been to Nancy? What did you think of the city?
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