Reims & Champagne

Reims Cathedral, where French kings were crowned, and the centuries-old underground cellars of Champagne, with Épernay's Avenue de Champagne an easy day trip away.

Reims lies about 140 km east of Paris in the Marne department of France's Grand Est region, and is the main city of the Champagne wine region; about 25 km to the south, Épernay is known as the “Capital of Champagne”. Reims Cathedral (Notre-Dame de Reims), where French kings were crowned for centuries, is a World Heritage Site together with the Palace of Tau and the Basilica of Saint-Remi. In 2015 the “Champagne Hillsides, Houses and Cellars” were also inscribed, covering the chalk-pit cellars of the Saint-Nicaise hill in Reims, Épernay's Avenue de Champagne and vineyard villages such as Hautvillers and Aÿ. Sightseeing falls into three areas: Reims old town (the cathedral, Palace of Tau, Porte de Mars and Place Drouet-d'Erlon); the cellar district in southern Reims (Veuve Clicquot, Taittinger, Pommery, Ruinart); and Épernay and the Montagne de Reims vineyards (Avenue de Champagne, Hautvillers, the Verzenay Lighthouse). The climate is mild to cool; May–Oct is best, with September's harvest the liveliest time. In December there are Christmas markets and Épernay's festival of lights. The cellars stay at around 10°C all year, so bring a jacket. Getting there: TGV from Paris Gare de l'Est to Reims in about 45 minutes, then TER from Reims to Épernay in about 30 minutes; public transport to the vineyard villages is sparse, so drive, hire a driver or join a winery day tour. Book visits to the major champagne houses in advance on their websites. Allow 2–3 days.

Top sights

• Reims Cathedral – The traditional coronation site of French kings, with more than 2,000 statues on its Gothic facade. Famous for the Smiling Angel and Chagal…
• Basilica of Saint-Remi – A Romanesque basilica housing the tomb of Bishop Saint Remigius, who baptized Clovis. Its 11th-century nave is deep and solemn. A UNESCO Wo…
• Pommery – A champagne estate with an English castle-style facade. Descend 116 steps to find 18 km of chalk galleries displaying contemporary art inst…
• Avenue de Champagne, Épernay – A one-kilometer avenue home to famous houses such as Moët & Chandon, Perrier-Jouët, and Pol Roger. Beneath it lie more than 100 km of cella…
• Moët & Chandon – The headquarters of Moët & Chandon, the world's largest champagne brand by volume. Its 28 km of chalk cellars once hosted Napoleon.
• Palace of Tau – The archbishop's palace beside the cathedral, displaying coronation treasures and original statues from the cathedral, part of the World He…
• Musée Saint-Remi – A former royal Abbey of Saint-Remi converted into an archaeology and history museum, whose 16th-century tapestries depicting the life of Sa…
• Veuve Clicquot – The estate of Madame Clicquot, the “Champagne Widow,” with Gallo-Roman chalk-pit cellars underground where you can learn how riddling was i…
• Taittinger – A Champagne cellar built beneath the ruins of the Saint-Nicaise Abbey, where a 13th-century underground chapel connects to Roman chalk pits.
• Ruinart – The first Champagne house, founded in 1729, with chalk-pit cellars listed as a historic monument and known for its Blanc de Blancs.
• G.H. Mumm – A Champagne house famous for its red “Cordon Rouge” sash, located north of the city center and within walking distance.
• Lanson – A long-established house founded in 1760, which owns Reims' only walled vineyard, the Clos Lanson.
• Museum of the Surrender – On May 7, 1945, Germany signed its unconditional surrender here, and Eisenhower's operations room has been preserved as it was.
• Place Drouet-d'Erlon – Reims' liveliest long pedestrian square, lined with cafés and Champagne bars, with the Subé Fountain as its landmark.
• Porte de Mars – A 3rd-century Roman triumphal arch about 32 meters long, one of the widest in the Roman world.
• Foujita Chapel – A small chapel where the Japanese-born painter Léonard Foujita painted all the murals in his later years, and where he is also buried.
• Cryptoportique – A semi-subterranean colonnade of a Gallo-Roman forum, with a well-preserved vaulted gallery that is a highlight of Reims' Roman heritage.
• Villa Demoiselle – A villa blending Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles, with exquisite stained glass and woodwork, and visits that include Champagne tasting.
• Halles du Boulingrin – A 1929 concrete-vaulted market, reopened after restoration, where you can buy local cheeses, deli items, and Champagne.
• Biscuits Fossier – A long-established Reims pink-biscuit shop founded in 1756, whose crisp biscuits for dipping in Champagne are an essential souvenir.
• Carnegie Library of Reims – A post-World War I Art Deco library funded by the Carnegie Foundation, admired for its entrance hall mosaics and stained glass.
• Fort de la Pompelle – A fort on the outskirts of Reims that was never captured during World War I, now a World War I museum with a large collection of German hel…
• Mercier – Take a small train through 18 km of underground cellars, with a giant cask built for the 1889 World's Fair displayed at the entrance.
• Museum of Champagne Wine and Regional Archaeology – A museum housed in the Château Perrier on Avenue de Champagne, systematically telling the history of Champagne making, with regional archae…
• Hautvillers Abbey – Where the “father of Champagne,” Dom Pérignon, worked and was laid to rest, in a village overlooking the Marne Valley vineyards.
• Aÿ-Champagne – A Pinot Noir Grand Cru village, home to houses such as Bollinger, Deutz, and Ayala, where small family growers offer tastings.
• Verzenay Lighthouse – A century-old lighthouse in the vineyards housing a vineyard museum, with 360-degree views of the Montagne de Reims from the top.
• Faux de Verzy – Over a thousand beech trees with contorted trunks and umbrella-shaped crowns in the Montagne de Reims Natural Park, a rare botanical wonder…

Where to eat

• Café du Palais – A family-run bistro open since 1930, under an Art Deco stained-glass ceiling by Jacques Simon, and a table that Reims l…
• L'Assiette Champenoise – Chef Arnaud Lallement's three-Michelin-star restaurant, which has held its stars since 2014. Known for its sauces and b…
• Brasserie Le Jardin (Domaine Les Crayères) – A contemporary brasserie in the garden of the Domaine Les Crayères. It is the only Michelin Bib Gourmand pick in the Re…
• Brasserie du Boulingrin – A long-established Reims brasserie, open since 1925 opposite the Boulingrin central market, known for its seafood platt…
• Racine – A small two-Michelin-star restaurant run by Japanese chef Kazuyuki Tanaka, cooking with herbs, vegetables and flowers…
• La Grillade Gourmande (Épernay) – One of Épernay's most highly regarded restaurants, listed in the Michelin Guide. Known for wood-fired meat and fish, wi…

Itineraries

• Reims & Épernay Champagne – A short Champagne route from the coronation cathedral in Reims to the cellars of Épernay, passing through mountain wine…
• Paris, Versailles, Giverny and Reims in – Four days on Paris's core landmarks, plus three day trips by train to Versailles, Monet's Gardens at Giverny, and Reims…
• Eastern France Rail Grand Route: Reims to Lyon – Connect the historic cities of Champagne, Lorraine, Alsace, and Burgundy by rail, from Paris to Lyon.