Other than a girl's name and a quiche, Lorraine is a large French North-East "région" often associated with Alsace because of their common fate in history, always mentionned in treaties, passed on to the winner of each war! "Vous n'aurez pas l'Alsace et la Lorraine!" -You will not get Alsace and Lorraine-is a popular military marching song....Consequently, both regions have areas with strong Germanic heritage (dialects, names of towns and villages, food, etc...).
Lorraine has never been a tourist destination, but a place people pass through on the way to somewhere else! En passant par la Lorraine,-Passing through Lorraine- (another popular military song) , travellers can make some very interesting stops which highlight its rich historical past and discover that there is more to it than expected.
In no particular order:
Tourisme Lorraine (click on English version if necessary)
Metz, the capital city of Lorraine
Nancy
Plan incliné d'Artzviller a unique vertical "lift" for boats
The Maginot Line in Lorraine
La Citadelle de Bitche : fortifications besieged in 1870 war against Prussia, impressive audio-visual tour (English available).
Les Enfants du Charbon Magnificent outdoor "Son et Lumières" performance by locals and volunteers to tell the story of "le bassin houiller" , the mining area, its golden age and decline.
Amnéville-les-Thermes A Spa town which reinvented itself to become a tourist destination.
Animal Park of Sainte Croix, a truly beautiful place called Parc animalier, not a zoo!
and there is plenty more...
