In Basel, all doors are open to various leisure activities. But not only the city itself has a lot to offer, but you can also take advantage of the cultural offerings of our two neighboring countries. Thanks to Carte Culture, the universities of Strasbourg and Haute-Alsace offer their students and those of their partner university in Basel the opportunity to use the entire cultural program of Alsace for a whole year at a price of 7 euros.
Your student ID also works as Carte Culture. All you have to do is stick on a small sticker, which you can get from the Service Universitaire de l’Action Culturelle of the Université de Haute-Alsace either on site or by post. Here on the website there is all the information about it. The card costs 7 euros and is valid until September 30, 2022. So there is plenty of time to take advantage of the extensive offers. Here you will also find an overview of all museums, performances, concerts or festivals that are included in Carte Culture on webside. The offers take place in 26 different locations, including Saint-Louis, Colmar, Strasbourg or Mulhouse – all within a stone’s throw of Basel.
A day in Colmar
I went to Colmar for the day to try Carte Culture. You can reach Colmar train station in just 45 minutes from Basel SBB and you can walk to the old town in 10 minutes. That alone makes it worth the visit. The beautiful old town invites you to take a leisurely stroll. You can enjoy the wonderful surroundings and watch the hustle and bustle of the small streets in the small cafes – or Maisons du Thé.
That was our first venture with Carte Culture Musee du Jouet on Rue Vauban, a small toy museum. You won’t be blown away by the exposure, but familiar games can be played in a large format or you can use an old slot machine. However, you saw the whole thing rather quickly.
After a hearty lunch, we went to Musée d’Histoire Naturelle et d’Ethnographie. Unfortunately, when we arrived, we found that the museum was closed. So it would be beneficial to check the opening hours before visiting. We chose this instead of the Natural History Museum Chocolate Museum decided However, this is not included in the Carte Culture, but offers a student discount and costs 8 euros. The consolation is the chocolate, which can be tasted again and again during the exhibition. Overall, the visit was worth it.
More offers with Carte Culture
With Carte Culture you can visit not only museums. For example, if you understand French very well, you can watch a movie at the cinema. The program also includes a number of concerts. Genres are diverse and range from symphony orchestra to rock, pop, jazz and opera. And finally, you can also visit various theater or comedy performances. To get free tickets with Carte Culture, you can show them directly at the ticket office of the venues or buy tickets in advance at some advance sales offices, such as 5 E Leu in Strasbourgrelate to.
