Most of Strasbourg's museums are to be found to the south of the cathedral (the main exception being the Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain), between the tree-lined place du Château and the river. Check with the tourist office for museum passes/discounts if you are planning to visit them all.

Right next to the cathedral, place du Château is enclosed to the east and south by the Lycée Fustel and the Palais Rohan , both eighteenth-century buildings, the latter designed for the immensely powerful Rohan family, who, for several generations in a row, cornered the market in cardinals' hats. There are three museums in the Palais Rohan itself (Mon & Wed-Sat 10am-6pm; closed public hols; 20F/¬3.05 for each of the museums, or 40F/¬6.10 for all three): the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Musée des Beaux-Arts and Musée Archéologique . Of the three collections, only the Arts Décoratifs stands out - and that's of slightly specialist interest - with its eighteenth-century faïence tiles crafted in the city by Paul Hannong. The rooms of the palace are vast, opulent and ostentatious but not especially interesting.

Next door, in the mansion lived in by the cathedral architects, the Musée de l'Oeuvre Notre-Dame (Tues-Sun 10am-6pm; 20F/¬3.05) houses the original sculptures from the cathedral exterior, damaged in the Revolution and replaced today by copies; both sets are worth seeing. And there are other treasures here: glass from the city's original Romanesque cathedral; the eleventh-century Wissembourg Christ, said to be the oldest representation of a human figure in stained glass; and the architect's original parchment drawings for the statuary, done in fascinating detail down to the different expressions on each figure's face.

The Musée Historique (closed for renovation at time of writing), 3 place de la Grande Boucherie by place du Marché-aux-Cochons-de-Lait (Sucking-Pig Market), is mainly concerned with the city, though it also has an oddball collection of mechanical toys upstairs. On the other side of the river, in a typically Alsatian house on quai St-Nicolas across the Pont du Corbeau, is the Musée Alsacien , 23 quai St-Nicholas (daily except Tues 10am-6pm; 20F/¬3.05), which contains painted furniture and other local artefacts.

The latest addition to Strasbourg's museums is the Musée d'Art Moderne et Contemporain (Tues, Wed & Fri-Sun 11am-7pm, Thurs noon-10pm; 30F/¬4.57), housed in a purpose-built glass-fronted building overlooking the river and Vauban's dam. It's a light and airy space and its collection is well presented, acknowledging the importance of some lesser-known artists in the scheme of modern art. The ground floor confronts the themes, challenges and roots of modern European art from the late nineteenth century through to the 1950s, by way of the Impressionists, Symbolists, a good section on Surrealism, with plenty of folkloric, mystical paintings by Brauner, and of course a room devoted to the soft curves sculpted by Strasbourg's own Arp. The chronology continues upstairs with conceptual art and Arte Povera, and finishes up with stripy creations by Daniel Buren and video art by Bill Viola.

Another interesting museum, visitable by appointment only, is the Centre Tomi Ungerer , 4 rue de la Haute-Montée (Thurs 9am-noon, 2-6pm by appointment; tel 03.88.32.31.54; free), which houses the private collections and works of the Strasbourg-born artist.