Petite France

Petite France is the picturesque quarter at the western end of Strasbourg's Grande Île, where the Ill river splits into several channels before it flows around the old town. The island's historic centre was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1988, and Petite France is the corner that most people picture when they think of Alsace: half-timbered houses leaning over the water, flower-filled window boxes, locks and narrow lanes.

The district was historically home to tanners, millers and fishermen, which explains the layout. The tall houses with deep sloping roofs and open upper floors were built so hides could be dried in the airy attics, and the channels powered mills and provided the water the tanners needed. The name itself is said to come from a hospital in the sixteenth century that treated patients with a disease then called the French disease. Today the old workshops are restaurants, winstubs and small shops, and the streets are cobbled and best explored on foot.

Start around the Maison des Tanneurs, a famous half-timbered building on the water, then wander the Rue du Bain-aux-Plantes and the small squares along the canals. The quarter is crossed by footbridges and swing bridges, and the Ponts Couverts, a trio of bridges linked to towers that once guarded the town, mark the edge of the medieval defences. Just beside them the Barrage Vauban, a long covered dam built in the seventeenth century, has a terrace with a wide view over the roofs of Petite France and the river.

Boat tours leave from the Ill nearby and run through the locks, giving a different view of the facades and a guided commentary on the city's history. Walking is more flexible, and the best light for photography is early morning or evening, when day trippers have thinned out. Streets are public and open at all hours, so there is no fixed visiting time, although the cafés keep their own hours.

The quarter suits couples, photographers and anyone who wants to understand how Strasbourg lived on its rivers. It sits only a short walk from the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, so many visitors combine the two in one morning, then continue to the Musée Alsacien or the Palais Rohan. Allow one to three hours, more if you stop to eat.