page_title: Les Plus Beaux Villages de France
section_title: Alsace
hierarchical_section_title: Les Plus Beaux Villages de France / List / Alsace
caption_attribution_description: English: Main street of Riquewir, Alsace Deutsch: Altstadt Riquewihr im Elsass
context_page_description: Les Plus Beaux Villages de France is an independent association created in 1982 for the promotion of the tourist appeal of small rural villages with a rich cultural heritage. As of September 2016, it numbers 156 member villages.
  Membership requires meeting certain selection criteria and offers a strategy for development and promotion to tourists. The three initial selection criteria are the rural nature of the village, the presence of at least two national heritage sites and local support in the form of a vote by the council. Each village must pay an annual fee to the association and the mayor must sign the association’s Quality Charter. If the village fails to meet the requirements of the charter it may be excluded.
  The association claims membership can bring a rise of between 10 and 50% in visitor numbers.
  The southern departments of the Dordogne and Aveyron have the most number of member villages, with ten in each. They are followed by Vaucluse, with seven, and Lot, with six.
  Following the success of the French certification, similar associations have been formed in Wallonia, Quebec, Italy, Spain and Japan.
context_section_description: Bas-Rhin
  Hunspach pop. 684
  Mittelbergheim pop. 605
  Haut-Rhin
  Eguisheim pop. 1572
  Hunawihr pop. 611
  Riquewihr pop. 1300
caption: Riquewihr in Alsace
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