A week in Strasbourg with teen partly for French language

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Does anyone know Strasbourg and have any ideas or suggestions for a week there, intended mainly to expose teenager who is struggling with school French (especially speaking) to some French language?

Teen is fairly outgoing and happy enough with the idea of the trip but opposed to actual lessons in Strasbourg (and most courses are longer than a week and have unsuitable start dates anyway).

For various reasons we're limited to Strasbourg or somewhere close by, and to one specific week (though qe could leave earlier) as it's an add on to a trip to family in Germany which is already booked (and annual leave is also booked for me and can't be changed easily).

Or is it largely pointless?

Why not go anyway and experience it? Coffee, patisserie, good food, Euro Parliament. UNESCO site. Probably much more.

I haven’t been to Strasbourg but I wonder if it might be a tricky place to practice French. Lots of people will speak German and English and hospitality is likely to cater to an international market. You’ll probably need to be prepared to push back when they inevitably reply in English. Is there anywhere nearby that’s more ‘local French people’? Somewhere less touristy and international?

But yes, agreed, I’m sure it’d be a fun and interesting place to visit.

Is Annecy too far? Currently here with a 12 and 15 year old, they are taking French lessons in residential with IFALPES and I’m in the city doing an adult course with the same org. Mine is just 4 hours a day, very conversational, not hard core grammar and good mix of ages. ‘Adult’ starts at 16, so depending on age you could do it together.

Yes this is a concern. Teen speaks German and Strasbourg might be too German to be useful for the French language.

I'm sure it will be interesting though yes. I am quite keen to try to do a bit to encourage him to at least order food in French (taking French has been a bit of a disaster - he started enthusiastic but he's really struggled, which we didn't expect because he's bilingual, and now he's really demotivated but it's only a year to go now...).

I'm thinking perhaps Strasbourg won't help much with the French, and if so a week is probably too long...

Annecy looks nice but it is a really long way added on to the travel we're already doing.
I did originally think of a set-up like that with lessons but he is really not keen and I'm already studying atm and although I initially thought I'd learn too (my French is so rusty it is essentially just rust) I'm not sure I have the mental capacity on top of my own study and work to get my money's worth from a language course for a language I'd only be refreshing as moral support. I wouldn't learn enough in a week to actually be able to help DC with homework/ not understanding school French.

He's 15.

I went to Paris with dc1 at the same age but the difference was she absolutely loved French (and it was just a trip to Paris not an add on to another trip).

At least in the Alsace, the French is usually slower and more punctate than in much of France. Many people will speak dialect (which is a dialect of German!) but will speak French as well.

Tgv to Colmar…buying tickets in French etc…?

We went to Strasbourg recently and I would say it is ok for 3 nights or so. It's about an hour on the train from Europapark if you wanted to break it up with a theme park visit. TGV into Paris by Deutsche Bahn is less than a couple of hours.

We liked it and it definitely felt French to us!

Strasbourg gets stiflingly hot in the summer, so the first consideration
is if you can handle that.

It's a nice place, but not very trad French. The cuisine is very regional rather than trad French bistro. I'd say the accent is equiv of going to Austria to brush up your German. Prpbs more different than if you went to Belgium.

Yes, there is a local dialect but a lot of people will speak French as well. What are his hobbies? If say he likes sport, you could take him to Decathlon and he could try speaking to staff at the till? Take him to FNAC if he likes music, films etc. Trying to do things he likes but with a bit of French might motivate him. More generally, tarte flambée is a great regional dish - it's like a pizza with onions and lardons.

Do some guided tours or experiences delivered in french
Cooking class.
Etc

Happy Strasbourg: Offers traditional guided city tours ("Original Tour") conducted in French, generally operating on weekends.
GuruWalk: Connects you directly with passionate local experts who provide themed walking routes (e.g., historical center, Petite France) in French. You can read reviews and book local guides directly on <a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=web&rct=j&url=www.guruwalk.com/strasbourg&ved=2ahUKEwjjivKdotiVAxXXVUEAHVdMO6sQy_kOegoIAggACAEIBxAF&opi=89978449&cd&psig=AOvVaw1BTrANXfttwF6lOnum_YX_&ust=1784328083465000" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">GuruWalk's Strasbourg Page. 1, 2, 3, 4]

When my DS was a bit younger than yours we enrolled him in a table tennis camp in the south of France, it was mostly in French so he learned a lot there and was forced to speak, and met French kids there - could you do something similar?

I think maybe the local accent may not help with his understanding or learning pronunciation of the language. A bit like somebody learning English going to Glasgow.

I had a very brief conversation with an elderly couple from Brittany whilst on holiday in Spain. They thought I was from Paris as my accent was so different from theirs.

Op def keep his spirits up with the day trip to Europa park!
And a visit to colmar

Thanks everyone.

I only visited for a day there when travelling back from Germany. I only heard French and English spoken.

However, the one person I have never been able to understand when speaking French comes from the area, Arsene Wenger.

Oops - thanks everyone.

It's not ideal by the sound of it, but I also don't want to add a massive extra amount of travel onto what we're already doing, and we don't have so much time, so I don't want whole days driving or to try to fly (as we'd have to fly back to get the car).

I've paid for accommodation in Strasbourg now, although with free cancellation...

I think there may be too many compromises to make this really that useful, and really I should have sent him off for at least two weeks without me, but I think I'm too soft (he doesn't want to do a residential French course, but then suggested he wouldn't mind if it were in Quebec 🤣 That's not an option I'm offering though.

Strasbourg is a lovely city and well worth visiting and definitely French-speaking though they also speak a dialect of German there too. I went for a couple of Christmas market visits and also went on day trips when I was staying in Freiburg.

Colmar is very pretty too and quite close.

As a German speaker it felt French to me! I was always relieved when the train crossed back into Germany at Kehl because my French is fairly rubbish.

Also I don't know if you've got a car or are reliant on trains but places like Belfort, Mulhouse and Nancy could be feasible for a day trip.

I agree that Strasbourg is lovely. It has a beautiful medieval centre, including Petit France, an area full of canals (you can hire little boats). There's a beautiful historic swimming pool- Les Bains Municipales- and you can take a tram across the Rhine into Germany should you wish. I particularly loved the voodoo museum housed in a 19th Century water tower.

I certainly didn't hear much English or German spoken on the streets when we were there last year.

French is the dominant language there, but it does have a distinctive accent - described by someone to me as the French equivalent of the Glaswegian accent. That might make it tricky if practice in speaking is the hope!

There is lots to do there though. Parliament is great, a riverboat trip, the cathedral (lots of steps to the top for a fit teen).