The Northeast: Champagne, Lorraine, Alsace

Three areas with strong identities comprise the region officially called Grand Est: Champagne, Lorraine and Alsace. Champagne, with Reims as its major city, has lent its name to the world’s most evocative sparkling wine, though there area points of interest beyond the bubble, e.g. the town of Troyes. Lorraine, with Nancy and Metz as its main cities, still bears the scars of — and the notable sights resulting from — the First World War (Verdun, American cemeteries and monuments, etc.). Alsace is bordered by the Vosges Mountains to one side and the Rhine River to the other. Strasbourg, Colmar and Mulhouse are its main cities. The Alsace Wine Route runs north-south through the heart of the province. To these three areas might be added a fourth, the French Ardennes, with Charleville-Mézières as its urban center.