Festivals near Colmar

Colmar wears a deceptive calm: behind its half-timbered houses, the canals of La Petite Venise and its vaulted wine cellars, the capital of the Alsace Wine Route also knows how to throw a party. Its flagship event fits the city perfectly — warm and convivial: every summer the Foire aux Vins d'Alsace turns the exhibition park into one of France's oldest festivals, where national headliners share the bill with tastings under the marquees. Twenty kilometres north, in Sélestat, ZONE 51 takes the opposite tack with a sharp programme of electronic music and urban beats at Les Tanzmatten.

But Colmar's real strength is its border setting: poised between Strasbourg and Basel, a stone's throw from the Rhine, the town looks toward Germany as much as toward Paris. Just across the river, Freiburg im Breisgau opens up a whole second scene: the Sea You Festival sets up its techno decks beside a lake, while Skullcrusher Fest Freiburg treats fans of metal to a weekend in the clubs of Baden. FestT calculates your FestiScore — how closely a lineup matches your favourite artists — and keeps dates, headliners and ticketing up to date on both sides of the border.