Why you should visit Nancy, the stunning French town of golden architecture

09.09.2019.

Nancy is a beauty frozen in time, its golden square around the large zoological park has to be melted in your eyes. With the medieval gates, castles and polish influence, Nancy is more than the elegant French town. Taking place between Metz and Dijon at the North-East, Nancy is a wonderful and underrated surprise.

Visiting Nancy is a fantastic stop on the French road trip from Paris to Lyon.

Place Stanislas- the golden architecture of Nancy

Place Stanislas is what makes the UNESCO heritage thanks to Stanislas Leszczyński, the last Duke of Lorraine from the 18th century. French-Polish alliance makes this town more brilliant than all the golden sculptures. During my visit on Sunday it was even more brilliant with flower decorations and the additional visual imaginery. The view from the palace balcony took me into the story where culture blends with time. With lots of windows and painted glory, the palace is the world for itself.

Every corner of the square shines with the story to tell being taken away by magnifiscient sculptures. The statue of Stanislas right in the centre with its height of 4 metres makes the memory alive.

Parc de la Pepiniere

Just next to two UNESCO sites, Place Stanislas and Place de la Carriere, lies this large parc and follows Place Stanislas. It was founded by Stanislas himself, once hosting the Duke’s gardens.

Pepiniere means nursery in French and originates in the need to plant the trees in Lorraine. The long alleys of park stretch up between the rose garden and animal shelter. It holds deers, rabbits, peacocks and other wild animals, while in the past was inhabited by the lions, monkeys and bears.

The Mozart bandstand decorates the sweet little arbor, the stage for the musical events and concerts.

Porte de la Craffe- the historical castle in Nancy

Porte de la Craffe is a castle that’s blending with the historical gate. It’s hiding along the peaceful tunnel of streets in the labyrinth between church and Museum of Lorraine. Lovely little shops and caffe bars enrich the charming ambience.

Art Nouveau- amazing museum of Nancy

Art Nouveau rules this town right in the centre with its fantastic architecture. You can also marvel the Fine Arts Museum, 30 minutes walk from the centre, next to the train station. One large parc- Parc Sainte-Marie shines with the tranquil ambience inside.

Museum offers more than paintings, but fascinates with engravings and crystals. The Daum collection brings focus with more than 600 articles of crystals. It all started with Auguste Daum in 1892. and his family, that built this manufacture.

Nancy dedicated one street to the legendary heroine of France Jeanne d’Arc. Being from the region of Lorraine she has the honour to take the name of one high school.

Aquarium of Nancy

Aquarium of Nancy is the first place where my couchsurfing hosts took me. Seeing so many colourful fishes with the whole family was such a lovely experience. The number of aquariums amazes, even 57.

Arc Here

Arc Here, magnifiscient arc illuminates this town of Lorraine, especially at night. It also serves as the guiding point that leads to one other pivotal square- Place de la Carriere. The gate represents a UNESCO World Heritage site and the construction took 2 years giving importance to the King Louise XV.

Botanical Garden of Nancy

Botanic garden of Nancy shares the beauty of the town with the large collection plants selected by themes.

Final thoughts

Nancy deserves more attention than Place Stanislas and just roaming represent the two worlds. Amazing fact that it’s part of UNESCO is what overwhelmes us, not knowing about that at first.