Palais Rohan (Rohan Palace), Strasbourg (must see)

Rohan Palace was built between 1732 and 1742 and was commissioned by Cardinal Gaston de Rohan, prince-bishop of Strasbourg, as a prestigious residence reflecting his close ties to the French royal court. The palace was conceived in an elegant French Baroque style, deliberately echoing the grandeur of Parisian aristocratic residences. Its location beside the River Ill, adjacent to Strasbourg Cathedral, placed it at the symbolic heart of the city.

Over time, the palace hosted a remarkable list of historical figures. King Louis XV, Marie Antoinette, and Napoleon Bonaparte all stayed here, reinforcing its status as a setting for high diplomacy and ceremonial life. Following the French Revolution, the building was gradually repurposed for civic and cultural use.

Today, the Rohan Palace is especially appealing because it houses three major museums under one roof. As you step onto the palace’s grounds and face it, you will see the entrance to the museums on the far left side of the palace’s main courtyard. The entrance is easy to recognise, as it is framed by beige Ionic columns and preceded by a small staircase. The Museum of Decorative Arts occupies the palace’s former state apartments on the ground floor, allowing visitors to experience furnished interiors that evoke aristocratic life in the 18th century. Porcelain, furniture, clocks, and silverware are displayed in richly decorated rooms.

The upper two floors of the palace host the Museum of Fine Arts, which presents a strong collection of European paintings from the Renaissance to the 19th century. Highlights of the gallery include works by artists such as Giotto, Botticelli, Rubens, and Goya. The collection is arranged roughly chronologically; early Renaissance works appear at the beginning of the route, followed by late Renaissance and Baroque paintings in the central galleries, and later periods toward the end.

Last but not least, the Archaeological Museum traces human settlement in Alsace from prehistory through the early Middle Ages, with a special focus on Argentoratum, the Roman name for Strasbourg. It is located at basement level.

Beyond the collections themselves, the palace’s formal façades, inner courtyard, and riverside terraces add to its charm. So notable is its setting, in fact, that it has been chosen for multiple diplomatic meetings. Among them, U.S. President Ronald Reagan dined here in 1985, while President Barack Obama met French President Nicolas Sarkozy on the palace grounds in 2009.