Nancy France
Frequently Asked Questions
At the marina on the Marne–Rhine canal, about ten minutes' walk from Place Stanislas. Few river calls offer such a short cut between the gangway and a UNESCO World Heritage masterpiece.
It is one of the finest royal squares in Europe, completed in 1755. Stanislas Leszczynski, the dethroned king of Poland who became duke of Lorraine, gave it to his adopted capital. It is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Its proportions and its gates. Classical pavilions with balustraded roofs frame the fountains of Neptune and Amphitrite, and Jean Lamour's gates, wrought-iron lacework picked out in gold, close the corners.
Place Stanislas, La Carrière up to the Porte de la Craffe, then the old town. Adding the École de Nancy museum means sacrificing something else: one call is barely enough here.
It is the former tournament ground, turned into a promenade lined with mansions, on the axis of the triumphal arch. It leads to the Governor's Palace and then, through the Porte de la Craffe with its 14th-century round towers, to the old town.
The tight lanes around the Cordeliers church and the palace of the dukes of Lorraine, home to the Musée Lorrain. They tell the story of the city before Stanislas: the dukes and the battles against Charles the Bold.
It is the global Art Nouveau movement that Gallé, Daum, Majorelle and their circle created around 1900. Their glass, furniture and stained windows are shown at the École de Nancy museum, set in a period house with its garden.
On the façades of rue Félix-Faure and at the Villa Majorelle. The Daum works still sells its pâte de verre a short walk from the Place Stanislas gates.
The macaron des Sœurs, made here since the 18th century, the bergamote de Nancy, a golden citrus-scented sweet with protected geographical status, and Lorraine mirabelle plum as tart, jam or eau-de-vie.
Yes. The whole centre fits within a kilometre and a half of the royal ensemble. The Parc de la Pépinière extends La Carrière with its rose garden and Rodin's statue of Claude Gellée; for views, climb to the basilica of Saint-Epvre.
