5 Terres Hotel and Spa Review

It’s officially February, and something about the weather today reminded me of our first true off-season trip to Paris in 2019. We went to Paris for Valentine’s Day felt like we had discovered the best kept secret. February in France is BEAUTIFUL. In February 2020, we booked the same trip over President’s Day weekend, but with a twist. We flew into Paris and took the train directly to Strasbourg. At the Strasbourg train station, we picked up a car and headed to the 5 Terres Hotel and Spa in Barr, France. And, again, I felt like I had discovered the best-kept secret in travel. The Alsace in February was magical. We divided our time between staying in Barr and staying in Kaysersberg, and Barr was, without a doubt, my favorite between the two. Subsequent trips have taken us to hotels in Strasbourg, Colmar, and Eguisheim… but there’s a soft spot in my heart for Barr.

Last summer, we made the impulsive decision to go to the Alsace for Bastille Day. Romanticizing our first trip to the Alsace, I booked the 5 Terres Hotel in Barr. I wanted to know if it was as good as I remembered or if I was romanticizing it because it was our last trip for more than a year. And, as it turns out, I LOVE this hotel. And, we really love Barr. We love it so much that it’s already booked for this upcoming summer. Let’s talk about it, but if you’re looking for a fantastic hotel in off-the-beaten path in Alsace, it doesn’t get better than this. This is one of the hotel reviews that I’ve been most excited to write, but I worry I can’t do it justice. It’s one of those places where everything feels right. (I usually put off writing a hotel review when it’s hard to find the words to capture the feeling!)

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Getting to the Alsace and Barr

One of the things that we love about France is how easy it can be to get around. There are a handful of trains that run directly from CDG to Strasbourg. If you can time your arrival in Paris well, you can save a lot of time by going directly to Strasbourg. We’ve done this quite a few times, and it’s always nice to be able to save the time (and hotel cost) by going directly to the Alsace. We’ve done this for long weekends, and it’s super effective. If you are spending more time in France, there are direct trains from Paris to Colmar and Strasbourg.

Regardless of whether you take the train from Paris to Strasbourg or Colmar, it’s about a 30 minute drive to Barr. It’s a pretty easy drive, too. We find that driving in France is a lot easier than driving in Italy. The roads are very well maintained, even between the small towns of the Alsace. Drivers are courteous. And, there’s not a lot of traffic. If you want to learn more about driving in France, I love the DK France Road Trips and the Lonely Planet Best Road Trips in France books. We’ve used both of these to plan our adventures.

I’ve found that it’s generally less expensive to pick up a rental car in Strasbourg. I always use Kayak to check and price out rental cars and decide who to book through. Our best experiences have been through Hertz and Sixt. (I refuse to use Europacar. We had a terrible experience with them, and I won’t get over it.)

There is a train station in Barr, but it is outside of the old city center. This is one of those places where it’s better to have a car. There is a free parking lot in Barr or you can pay the hotel for a secure lot. We’ve always used the free parking without any issue.

Who Will Love Staying in Barr?

One of the things that Tom loves most about Barr is that it is truly nestled in the vineyards of the Alsace. Similar to Eguisheim, you can walk less than 5 minutes from the city center and be in the vineyards. In fact, the 5 Terres Hotel and Spa is named for the 5 soil types (shale, limestone, clay, sandstone, granite) that allow the grapes to grow! It’s always one of the more quiet villages in the Alsace. The restaurants are filled with locals and it feels lived in, even in the winter. I think it’s probably one of the more authentic Alsatian villages because it doesn’t have a huge tourist attraction. It’s absolutely beautiful, too.

If you’re looking for a dining experience, Barr might be the place for you. One thing that is particularly special about Barr (and the 5 Terres Hotel) is that the restaurant, la Table du 5, has a Michelin starred chef on staff, Thierry Schwartz. It offers an incredible gastronomic experience in a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Hotel de Ville of Barr. It has a fantastic wine list (and there is a wine bar in the hotel, too)!

If you’re worried about the location, don’t be. It’s a short drive to the famous villages in Alsace. My best advice is to spend a couple of nights in Barr and a couple nights in one of the more popular villages. (In addition to our 2 nights in Barr, we stayed 2 nights in Kaysersberg on our first trip.) I think you’ll quickly see why we love Barr so much. It provides a great contrast and prevents from doing the day trip dance. If you’re worried about running out of things to do, spend a few nights in Strasbourg and a few nights in Barr. You’ll get the best of both worlds.

About the 5 Terres Hotel and Spa

The more I’ve traveled around France, the more I’ve realized that French design can be pretty flawless. You’ll stumble upon ancient buildings with fabulously modern interiors. The 5 Terres Hotel is one of those places. With 27 rooms, it’s actually pretty large for a hotel in the old city center in one of France’s small towns. It’s perfectly half-timbered on the outside with a completely modern vibe that offers a nod to the original structure. The 5 Terres is understated luxury and doesn’t feel stuffy or old. It’s cozy and romantic – the perfect place to spend a romantic weekend in France, to be quite honest. (We went for Valentine’s Day the first time!)

The 5 Terre Hotel and Spa is part of the Accor MGallery hotel collection. MGallery hotels are generally unique, luxury, boutique hotels, very similar to the Unbound Collection with Hyatt, the Tapestry Collection of Hilton, and the Autograph Hotels by Marriott. I wasn’t as familiar with Accor Hotels before traveling to France. However, they are a ubiquitous brand with a large footprint in many of the smaller towns of France. They offer a loyalty program, which I have found to be a good value. You can use your points towards the cash rate of your stay, so even if you don’t stay at a lot of Accor hotels, I would sign up!

Room 110 – Deluxe Room at 5 Terres Hotel

We’ve stayed in this room twice. It was deja vu to be sure, but even FOUR YEARS LATER, everything in the room was absolutely perfect. Tom and I both love everything about this room. It has plenty of natural light, it’s large enough, and it’s quiet.

I love the hardwood floors and the streamlined, modern decor in the rooms. The light wood echos the timbered ceilings, and the uses of velvet and leather accents elevate the feel of the room. We liked having two nightstands, which isn’t always a given! The closet had plenty of storage space, and we were able to store out suitcases in the wardrobe. There are robes and slippers available for the spa, which is really nice.

There is a small desk in the deluxe rooms. It’s not enough room for both of us to be able to work at the same time, but it works for zoom meetings. (There’s a lot space in the lobby if you need a bit more room to work.) Given our propensity to enjoy an aperitif in our room, we love the small sitting area, too. (It’s nice that there is a mini fridge in the room, too.)

Separated by a pocket door, the bathroom is very large by European standards. Our room had a large walk-in shower with good water pressure and plenty of hot water. We had a dual vanity with plenty of room for getting ready. I LOVED the heated towel rack, especially in the winter. The bath amenities are Gemology, which is a French brand that is also co-branded with the spa.

The Spa at 5 Terres

If I’ve being completely honest, the spa at this hotel is what pushes it over the edge for me. I absolutely love Maison des Tetes in Colmar, but I wish it had a spa. Hotel 5 Terres houses its spa in the lower level of the hotel, and it’s like swimming in a cave. (It’s equally as cool as the spa at Palazzo Bontadosi in Montefalco or the spa at the Monastero di Cortona.) There is a plunge pool with hydrotherapy, a hamman, and a large sauna available for guests. They also offer a variety of treatments that are very fairly priced for the area.

I find the spa to be incredibly relaxing, though it can get busy in the evenings. (I guess we aren’t the only ones that love a hotel spa when we travel!) We like to start and end our days there for the ultimate relaxing experience. They do not require reservations, which is really nice.

Fete Nationale in Barr

One of the things that made the 5 Terres Hotel even better was the access we had during Fete Nationale (more commonly known at Bastille Day to these Americans). We were able to easily come and go from the festivities at l’Hôtel de Ville throughout the evening, which was REALLY nice. (I love those long summer nights in France, but sometimes it’s hard to stay out until sunset!) We loved being able to walk right out of our hotel and experience the torchlight procession and the fireworks. There were booths making fresh flammekueche and selling wine, and we definitely enjoyed the concerts throughout the town. (It also happened to overlap with the festival for independent wine growers, so they were exhibiting their wines, too!)

Everything felt very local. It didn’t feel like they were doing anything for the benefit of tourism. It was just a small town in France going about another celebration. Summer festivals and celebrations in France are truly an incredible experience. Don’t ever skip out on them. We went to a medieval festival in Bayeux that is still one of the coolest things we’ve ever just come across. I’ve never been to the Christmas markets in Barr, but I expect it would feel the same, especially since they only host them for a short time, comparatively.

Where to Eat in Barr

Overall, most of my favorite restaurants in the Alsace have been in Barr. The service is always exceptional, and though you’ll need a little bit of French (or a translation app), I find the people to be very warm and engaging. One of our favorite things last summer was stopping at whichever boulangerie was open and buying a baguette and a pastry. We didn’t have a bad boulangerie experience in Barr. One evening, we did drive to Obernai for happy hour, and (in retrospect), we should have stayed there for dinner. When we go back to Barr this summer, I want to focus on Obernai, Selestat, and the lesser known places on the route du vin.

Viande & Passion (Steakhouse)

I am THRILLED that it looks like Viande & Passion may have reopened. They were so kind to us on our first trip to Alsace, and I was so sad to miss them last summer! A short walk outside the old town, Viande & Passion is a small butchery and grocery store with a meat-focused menu.  I think we found this on our first night in Barr. We were cold, wet, jetlagged, and with a little (slow, deliberate!) bit of French, we had an absolutely memorable meal. They offered us an aperitif, and we enjoyed our entrecote and frites very much. It’s definitely a core Alsace memory for me because they were so kind to us.

Winstub du Manoir (Alsatian)

Winstub du Manoir is a traditional Alsatian restaurant in the heart of Barr. This family-run restaurant is a great place to try Alsatian choucroute or tartee flambee. We had our Valentine’s Day dinner here, and they were so very kind to us. (It does help to know a little French. We got by with a little help from some people sitting around us.  Everything was very reasonably priced, and we loved being able to try a few of the traditional Alsatian wines with our meal. You should really take advantage of trying several varietals of Alsatian wine while you are in the area. The food and wine pairings in Alsace are truly unique and not something you will be able to do elsewhere.

La Romanella (Italian)

We’ve had a lot of meals at Romanella, both because they are so good AND because they are one of the few places that are open for dinner on Sunday evenings. We’ve never had a bad meal here, though. And, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, THEY ARE SO KIND.  We love to split a pizza as a first course and order two pastas.  If you want something unique and very tasty, I love the pasta with pesto cream and prosciutto. We generally ask them to make recommendations on the wine based on what we order, and they have never steered us wrong.

And, it’s all of these small kindnesses that add up to why we go back to some of the same places over and over again.