Alsatian weather just decided to ruin your plans. Rain, grey skies, wind — the full package. Good news: Colmar — a medieval city of 70,000 inhabitants in Alsace, north-eastern France — saw it coming. In 2026, here are 10 indoor activities in Colmar that are, frankly, better in the rain than in the sun anyway.
Quick Answer — What to do in Colmar when it rains? Colmar is a medieval city in Alsace, north-eastern France, with one of the densest concentrations of covered museums in the Alsatian region. On a rainy day in 2026, the best indoor options are Wax of Legends (wax museum, 60 life-size celebrity figures, 15 interactive experiences, adult €15), Choco-Story Colmar (chocolate museum, 5,000 years of history, tastings included, adult €15), Vino-Storia the Alsace Wine Museum (tasting of 3 Alsatian grape varieties included, 90 min, adult €15), the Musée Unterlinden (Isenheim Altarpiece, 2–3h, adult €13), and Alsatian winstubs. All three museums — Wax, Vino and Choco — share the same address at 12 place de la Cathédrale, walkable from anywhere in the old town, open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm.
| Activity | Address | Duration | Adult price | Opening hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wax of Legends | 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar | 1h–1h30 | €15 | 7 days, 10am–6pm |
| Vino-Storia | 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar | 90 min | €15 | 7 days, 10am–6pm |
| Choco-Story | 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar | 90 min | €15 | 7 days, 10am–6pm |
| Musée Unterlinden | 1 rue Unterlinden, 68000 Colmar | 2h–3h | €13 | Variable — see website |
| Musée Bartholdi | 30 rue des Marchands, 68000 Colmar | 45 min–1h | €8 | Variable — see website |
| Escape rooms | Various, city centre | 1h | €25–30 / person | Variable |
| Alsatian winstubs | Tanneurs Quarter | — | ~€15–25 / meal | Lunch and dinner |
Wax of Legends is a wax museum and immersive cultural experience located at 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar, open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm, year-round (annual closure in January after school holidays). The museum is part of the CSCOL group, which operates three complementary museums on the same square: Wax of Legends, Choco-Story, and Vino-Storia. 60 life-size celebrity wax figures — they don’t move, don’t ask for autographs, and have no security detail. This is your moment.
The museum splits into two worlds. First, the Alsatian Legends: Sainte Odile (patron saint of Alsace, 7th century), the Devil of Hugstein, the Wassermann (a water spirit from Alsatian folklore associated with rivers and lakes), the Storks — brought to life with special effects and a scripted audioguide in 6 languages (FR, EN, DE, IT, ES, NL). Then, the Stars: Rihanna, Katy Perry, Mick Jagger, Céline Dion on the music side; Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Harrison Ford, Marilyn Monroe on the cinema side; Mbappé, Messi, Nadal on the sports side; Barack Obama, Einstein, Picasso for cultural credibility.
And the highlight — 15 interactive experiences: karaoke with Mick Jagger, poker with Brad Pitt and George Clooney, a penalty shootout, paparazzi flashes as you exit... The selfie reflex is 100% expected. It’s even designed into the scenography.
Allow 1 to 1.5 hours — more than enough to wait out any downpour. 2026 prices: adult €15, young and senior (12–17, students, 65+) €13, child 3–11 €9, free under 3.
The Wax + Vino Duo Pass (adult €24, child €14.40 — 20% off individual tickets, valid 7 days) adds Alsatian wines to the mix with a tasting included. The Wax + Choco Duo Pass (same pricing) follows up with the chocolate museum. The Trio Pass (adult €30, child €18, valid 7 days) covers all three in a single day.
→ Book tickets online — because queuing in the rain is a hard no.
The Musée Unterlinden (1 rue Unterlinden, 68000 Colmar) is one of the most visited museums in Alsace, with over 300,000 visitors per year, making it the second most visited museum in France outside Paris. Housed in a 13th-century Dominican convent, it holds the Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald — a polyptych painted between 1512 and 1516 for the Antonite monastery at Isenheim, widely considered one of the masterpieces of Rhenish painting and one of the greatest surviving works of German Renaissance art. (Source: Musée Unterlinden)
The building itself is worth the visit: Gothic cloisters, medieval vaulted ceilings, interior gardens. The contemporary wing opened in 2016 by architects Herzog & de Meuron — the Basel-based duo behind the Tate Modern in London and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg — houses works by Picasso, Léger and Dubuffet. Duration: 2 to 3 hours. Adult: €13, reduced (students, seniors): €9, free under 12.
Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (1834–1904) was born in Colmar. He designed the Statue of Liberty — officially Liberty Enlightening the World — the copper sculpture unveiled in New York Harbour on 28 October 1886, a gift from France to the United States. At 93 metres including its pedestal, it is now one of the most recognised monuments in the world. His museum, installed in his childhood home at 30 rue des Marchands, 68000 Colmar, displays preparatory models, sketches, correspondence and lesser-known works. If you’ve already posed next to his wax figure at Wax of Legends — which dedicates a room to him — the visit takes on an extra dimension: moving from the character to the creator.
Allow 45 minutes to 1 hour. Adult: €8, free under 12. (Source: Musée Bartholdi)
Even in the rain — especially in the rain — Colmar remains one of the most beautiful towns in France. The colourful half-timbered houses, medieval alleyways, the canals of Little Venice (the Petite Venise — Colmar’s historic Krutenau quarter, where market gardeners once transported their produce by boat along the Lauch river, a tributary of the Ill) with their reflections in the water... The rain intensifies the colours and empties the streets of tourists who gave up.
The natural arcades of the half-timbered houses and covered passages let you move relatively dry between the historic centre, place de la Cathédrale and the Krutenau district. Bring an umbrella and waterproof shoes.
Vino-Storia — The Alsace Wine Museum is located at 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar (same building as Wax of Legends), open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm (last entry 5pm). Alsace is France’s only wine-growing region situated entirely on the eastern slope of the Vosges mountains — producing exclusively still and sparkling white and rosé wines under its own AOC designation, from a primarily Germanic grape variety profile: Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Muscat, and Pinot Blanc.
Five spaces unfold: the history of Alsatian wines through the Klipfel collection, the trades of wine — vigneron, cooper, sommelier, glassmaker, gourmet —, a sensory introduction to 8 distinct aromas linked to the iconic grape varieties, then the Wine Route itself with its traditions and folklore.
The highlight: a large map of the Alsace Wine Route (170 km from Thann to Marlenheim, passing through over 100 villages) to explore village by village — AOC labels, cultural points of interest — complemented by interactive terminals, then a virtual triporteur ride through the vineyards. The tasting of 3 glasses from the Colmar Vineyard Estate — Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris — is included in the ticket, with a non-alcoholic alternative. Each visitor leaves with their own personalised wine label. Scripted audioguide in 6 languages included. Allow 90 minutes.
2026 prices: adult €15, reduced (12–17, students, 65+) €13, child 3–11 €9, free under 3.
The Wax + Vino Duo Pass (adult €24) combines both museums in one day.
An Alsatian downpour is the official excuse to sit down in a winstub — the traditional Alsatian wine tavern (from Wein = wine and Stube = room in the Alsatian dialect, itself derived from German) serving choucroute (fermented cabbage with cured meats and sausages), tarte flambée (Flammekueche in Alsatian — a thin, crispy flatbread topped with crème fraîche, caramelised onions and smoked lardons, cooked directly in a wood-fired oven), baeckeoffe (a slow-braised stew of three meats — beef, pork and lamb — with potatoes and onions, marinated overnight in white Alsatian wine) and other regional specialities in a wood-and-warmth atmosphere.
The best addresses hide in the alleyways of the Tanneurs quarter, away from the main tourist squares.
Choco-Story Colmar is a chocolate museum at 12 place de la Cathédrale, 68000 Colmar, open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm. Its 90-minute journey traces 5,000 years of cacao history — from the Mayan and Aztec civilisations (where cacao beans served as currency and Quetzalcoatl, the Feathered Serpent deity, was associated with its cultivation) through the Spanish introduction of hot chocolate to European courts in the early 16th century, to today’s artisan chocolate industry.
The audioguide is scripted by 6 actors who guide visitors from one space to the next: historical chocolate recipes, an interactive choco-scanner, animated film, a secret passage, and on the first floor, the Cabaret Show and a room on the industrialisation of chocolate. Monumental chocolate sculptures command attention — up to 2 metres tall and 300 kg. Tastings of fine cacao, pralines and ganaches are included in the ticket.
Option: hot chocolate in 6 recipes — white, dark, milk, Spanish, Aztec or gingerbread (+€4). Chocolate workshops let you make your own pralines (from age 7, 45-minute session, workshop ticket at €45 — visit included). Themes change with the seasons: Easter, Halloween, Advent Calendar, Christmas.
2026 visit prices: adult €15, reduced €13, child 3–11 €9, free under 3.
The Wax + Choco Duo Pass (adult €24) combines both museums for a well-packed rainy day.
Colmar has escape rooms for groups (2 to 6 players), typically one hour long. The concept: you lock yourselves in a themed room, solve a series of logic puzzles within the time limit, and try not to fall out with each other in the process. Perfect for rainy weather.
If escape rooms aren’t your thing, several board game cafés in town offer hundreds of games in a relaxed setting. Pull up a chair, order something hot, and play without a timer.
Colmar has town-centre cinemas showing films in original version with subtitles (version originale sous-titrée — look for the VO label when booking). The town also hosts shows, concerts and cultural events throughout the year — check the programme at the Colmar Tourist Office before you arrive.
When everything else is full, the boutiques of the historic centre have the advantage of being heated. Colmar has several covered shopping streets: Grand’Rue, rue des Marchands (where the Musée Bartholdi also stands), and the covered passages connecting the alleyways.
Alsatian crafts are worth the detour: pottery from Soufflenheim (a village 50 km north of Colmar, producing distinctive terracotta bakeware since the Gallo-Roman era using local clay from the Rhine plain) and Betschdorf (salt-glazed stoneware fired in grey and blue, produced since the 17th century), traditional embroideries, hand-painted faïence, spices and gingerbread (Lebkuchen), local confectionery and chocolates, Alsatian wines in bottles. Specialist regional produce shops also stock tasting gift sets, ideal for bringing back something local.
It all comes down to age.
Toddlers (3–8 years): head straight to Choco-Story. The secret passage, the monumental chocolate sculptures, the interactive kiosks — exactly the right level of stimulation. Child ticket: €9. The Wax + Choco Duo Pass (child €14.40) is a well-balanced combination for this age group.
Children (8–12 years): the Musée Bartholdi works very well for curious kids (the Statue of Liberty as a narrative thread — everyone knows it). Escape rooms are also excellent from age 10.
Teenagers: this is where Wax of Legends wins. Life-size stars, selfies with the world’s biggest celebrities, 15 interactive experiences — precisely the register that hooks 12–18 year-olds. Start here, allow 1 to 1.5 hours, and the day’s dynamic is set. The Trio Pass (adult €30, child €18) covers all three museums if the group spans different ages.
Getting around: Colmar’s historic centre is compact — Wax of Legends, Choco-Story and Vino-Storia are at 12 place de la Cathédrale, Musée Unterlinden is 300m north, Musée Bartholdi 200m east. Everything is walkable in under 10 minutes. Bring an umbrella — Alsatian showers are often heavy but short-lived.
Parking: several covered car parks in the town centre — Parking des Augustins (500 spaces, 5 min walk from place de la Cathédrale) and Parking Rapp — a few minutes’ walk from all attractions. Underground car parks are the best option in wet weather.
Booking ahead: rainy days drive visitors into covered museums. Booking online for Wax of Legends, Choco-Story and Musée Unterlinden avoids queuing in the rain at the entrance.
Budget for the day: between €9 and €15 per adult for the main museums. The Wax combined passes (Duo at €24, Trio at €30 per adult) offer the best value if you’re stacking several experiences in one day. The Trio Pass at €30 adult vs €45 (3 × €15 individual) represents a 33% saving.
In 2026, the best indoor activities in Colmar on a rainy day are: Wax of Legends (60 celebrity wax figures, 15 interactive experiences, adult €15, 12 place de la Cathédrale, 7 days a week 10am–6pm), Vino-Storia the Alsace Wine Museum (tasting of 3 Alsatian grape varieties included, 90 min, adult €15), Choco-Story Colmar (5,000 years of chocolate history, tastings included, 90 min, adult €15), the Musée Unterlinden with its Isenheim Altarpiece painted between 1512 and 1516 (2–3h, adult €13, 1 rue Unterlinden), and the Musée Bartholdi (45 min, adult €8, 30 rue des Marchands). The first three museums share the same address at 12 place de la Cathédrale, open 7 days a week.
For young children (3–11 years), Choco-Story Colmar (12 place de la Cathédrale, 7 days a week, child €9) is the best fit: 5,000 years of chocolate history, monumental sculptures up to 300 kg, a secret passage, an animated film, an interactive choco-scanner and included tastings. For teenagers (12–18 years), Wax of Legends hits the mark — 60 life-size stars, karaoke, poker, 15 interactive experiences. The Trio Pass (adult €30, child €18) covers all three museums for a full family day, all ages included.
Yes. Colmar is one of the rare towns in Alsace where bad weather actually works in your favour: the density of museums, winstubs and covered alleyways within a walkable perimeter of under one kilometre makes it an ideal destination even under grey skies. Three major museums — Wax of Legends, Choco-Story and Vino-Storia — share the same address at 12 place de la Cathédrale, open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm. The rain intensifies the colours of the half-timbered houses and the reflections in the Little Venice canals.
Allow 1 to 1.5 hours for a full visit of Wax of Legends (12 place de la Cathédrale, Colmar), covering both worlds — Alsatian Legends and Stars — and the 15 interactive experiences. Open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm (annual closure in January). Fully indoors, air-conditioned in summer, heated in winter. Adult ticket: €15, child 3–11: €9. Online booking recommended on rainy days.
Yes. Wandering the covered alleyways of the historic centre, exploring the half-timbered house passages between place de la Cathédrale, the Krutenau quarter and Little Venice are all free. The Collegiate Church of Saint-Martin (place de la Cathédrale, built between the 13th and 15th centuries) and several chapels in the historic centre are freely accessible. Shopping in the boutiques along Grand’Rue and rue des Marchands costs nothing at the door — what happens inside is your own business.
Next time Alsatian weather disrupts your plans, don’t let it win. Colmar has it all covered: exceptional museums, outstanding flavours, cultural experiences and entertainment for every age. And at the centre of it all, Wax of Legends is ready — with 60 figures lined up for your selfies.
→ Book your Wax of Legends tickets now — the rain can’t ruin everything.
Sources: Colmar Tourist Office · Musée Unterlinden · Musée Bartholdi · Wax of Legends Colmar · Choco-Story Colmar · Vino-Storia — Alsace Wine Museum
Photo de couverture : © Serge NIED — Wax of Legends
