Owner of marketing company A to Z Marketing. The fall harvest begins in late September and that’s when the champagne houses are at their busiest, both on the production side and the tourism side. Getting there via train is actually very easy and quick. Their tour is one of the best organized and most insightful ones. Let's go ! Call ahead or book online. The imagination and the intellect are engaged as Champagne cellar visits … The interior is a rainbow of stained-glass windows; the finest are the western facade’s great rose window, the north transept's rose window and the vivid Marc Chagall creations (1974) in the central axial chapel. Fun things to do in Champagne Our theme websites. Tip: the champagne tours take you through the cellars, which are quite cool. if there is no legal age for consuming alcohol in your country, you must be an adult. To help out anyone else who might be keen to explore the area, here are our do-it-yourself suggestions for visiting the Champagne region of France. Among the highlights is a massive 16-tonne oak-beam grape press from 1630. It’s not the prettiest French city but it’s a convenient base and offers the most facilities. Paris, France. The Route du Champagne puts a world of champagne makers at your fingertips, one of which is right in the town: Joseph Perrier offers tours in its chalk caves and the chance to try and buy its distinguished cuvées. Champagne Tours from Paris can be booked in advance. My favorite family-run champagne producer is Bonnet-Ponson. More information # Have a great time in Champagne Whether you are a city dweller, a couple or friends, there is something for every taste in Champagne . Explore. It’s a great way to get away from it all, enjoying the beautiful sights this region has to offer. And then move on to some of the smaller champagne producers. Of course, visiting the famous brands might give you some bragging rights, but in the end, I enjoyed visiting the smaller producers more. This full-day tour includes a tour of the Veuve Clicquot Champagne estate, a visit to the UNESCO-listed Cathedral of Reims, a Champagne lunch, and Champagne tasting in the Montagne de Reims’ vineyards. Champagne prices are higher than at a simple vigneron, starting at €20.50 for the Brut Tradition. This makes combining a visit to the Champagne region with a few days in Paris a perfect option! Plus, they are quite unique in producing organic champagne! Taste Champagnes from different Maisons. I would recommend visiting Champagne between May to October. (In France, the legal age to drink wine and beer is 16, for spirits and liquor it's 18.) There's a lot packed into this country – artistic and architectural masterpieces,…. Teens and children can often tour for a reduced price. Champagne: 9 Reasons to Visit this Region in France This week, I had the unique opportunity to attend the Nuit de Champagne which took place at the Residence of France in Beverly Hills. Mercier takes you on a train through their cellars, which is a fun experience! I have been lucky once or twice, walking into a champagne house and being able to join a tour immediately, but generally that doesn’t happen. This 100km route, planted almost exclusively with white chardonnay grapes (the name means ‘hillside of the whites’), begins along Épernay’s majestic av de Champagne and then heads south to Sézanne and beyond. The haunted-looking Château Perrier, a red-brick mansion built in 1854 in neo–Louis XIII style, is aptly placed at number 13! And, if you book ahead you can book a champagne and chocolate pairing! Or base yourself in the fortified city of Langres and take a tour of different artisan makers and craftspeople , from basket makers to jam makers. The Romans planted vines in Champagne in 57BC but this was not initially an important wine area. More information. They offer a great tour showing you not only their cellars and vineyard but also all of the machinery they use. That’s something to keep in mind if you want to visit smaller champagne houses. Half-timbered houses – some with lurching walls and floors that aren’t quite level – line many streets in the old city, rebuilt after a devastating fire in 1524. It is easily accessible by car or train. Stops en route include Cramant (of giant Champagne bottle fame), Avize and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. After that, go to some of the smaller, often family-run, champagne houses to see the difference. Read the Fodor's reviews, or … The best way to understand the essence of this effervescent drink is by visiting houses and cellars of champagne producers in the region. Go ! Epernay is a cute French town. For a more high-end hotel option in Reims Les Berceaux de la Cathedrale is a gorgeous place right in the city center. Côte des … © 2021 Lonely Planet. City Guides | Travel the World | Living Abroad | Travel Guides | Adventure Travel | Digital Nomad Life | Valencia, Spain | California, USA | The Netherlands, I consent to the storage of my data according to the Privacy Policy, Contact: info@spendlifetraveling.com | Of special interest are (from southwest to northeast) rue de Vauluisant, rue de la Trinité, rue Champeaux and rue Paillot de Montabert. With this in mind, visiting Champagne France, for many, is like taking a pilgrimage to this unique place where dreams are made. Taxis are surprisingly expensive so I would advise against that unless money is no issue. I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links, at no additional cost to you. This is the beautiful street lined with some of the most famous champagne brands, or ‘champagne houses’ as they call them. The gently rolling landscape is at its most attractive in late summer and autumn. The impressive Mémorial Charles de Gaulle presents graphic, easily digestible exhibits, rich in photos, which form an admiring biography of France’s greatest modern statesman. You can find Maison Ruinart in Epernay on the Avenue de Champagne. It really is a beautiful part of France! It had a huge success during the universal exhibition in 1889. I want emails from Lonely Planet with travel and product information, promotions, advertisements, third-party offers, and surveys. Discover all the best the Champagne Region has to offer; the grapes, the soil, the winegrowers, wineries and ofcourse the best Champagne Houses to visit. If you choose to stay in Epernay, check out Au Moulin Champenois as a budget-friendly hotel option. Only sparkling wines that are from the region of Champagne are allowed to be called “Champagne AOC”. Épernay’s handsome av de Champagne fizzes with maisons de champagne (Champagne houses). Tips for Driving Abroad for the First Time. The town also makes an excellent base for exploring the Champagne Routes. Larger brands, by contrast, tend to welcome visitors solely to their cellars, where the bottles are stored. Fr En As mentioned, if you don’t have a car and want to visit some of the smaller champagne producers you can book an organized tour. Weekend in town . Defined by a law dating from 1927, the area eligible to produce origin-approved (AOC) authentic champagne covers 34,000 hectares. The Atelier Renoir has displays zooming in on the hallmarks of Renoir’s work (the female form, the vibrant use of colour and light), alongside original pieces such as his antiquated wheelchair and the box he used to carry his paintings to Paris. Prosperous Épernay, the self-proclaimed capitale du Champagne and home to many of the world’s most celebrated Champagne houses, is the best place for touring cellars and sampling bubbly. The Champagne region of France is less than 100 miles east of Paris and is made up of the Aube, Marne, Haute-Marne, and Ardennes departments. The tourist office rents out audio guides for self-paced tours. And if you have any questions, just leave a comment below. The museum can only be visited by tour; these are available in French and English. With the Pass'Alsace, get free admission and loads of benefits at more than 50 iconic sites and places to visit. One full day with Paris Champagne Tour to visit the Champagne countryside and vineyard. Epernay is where you go to visit the Avenue de Champagne. Meet a wine grower, visit the Cathedral of Reims and a prestigious champagne cellar. Author: Sanne WesselmanA traveler, wanderer, digital nomad, and entrepreneur. Perhaps loveliest of all is the studio garden, particularly in spring to early summer when it bursts forth with tulips, anemones and roses. Or for a high-end hotel check out La Villa Eugene, which is a beautiful 5-star hotel with a pool, set in a 19th-century mansion. Côte des Bar . Audioguides are available. The Alsatian Wine Route. I can unsubscribe any time using the unsubscribe link at the end of all emails. As you drive through France, I have been to many regions, you can noticeably see differences from weather to architecture. They are both part of LVMH group, the world leader in the luxury goods industry. Bring a sweater, and wear comfortable shoes because you’ll walk a lot and the floors can be uneven. Pin it! And lastly, Pierson-Cuvelier also comes highly recommended. If you choose to stay in Reims, Hotel Cecyl is a good budget hotel option with a very central location. Visit Champagne Region France . Stay in Reims to explore the Montagne de Reims, which focuses on pinot noir. Before you visit any champagne house, check their opening hours. This way you have one day to visit a couple of the main champagne houses and one day to either drive to or go on an organized tour to visit some of the smaller houses in the countryside. Visit the vineyards which produce the most prestigious wines in the world. Champagne has five main regions, or zones. The Champagne wine region is a wine region within the historical province of Champagne, located in the northeast of France. Then you’ll have the rest of the day to enjoy the bubbles at a few of the top Champagne houses in Reims – the center of the Champagne world in France. More. With the Reims City Pass, visit Reims and the Champagne vineyards in 24, 48 ou 72h and get free entries and discounts ! They offer well-organized tours of their cellars and tastings of several of their champagnes. The boulevard is lined with mansions and neoclassical villas, rebuilt after WWI. Some links on this website are affiliate links. No part of this site may be reproduced without our written permission. About Paris Champagne Tour. When is the best time to visit Champagne? Before visiting the Champagne Region, we advise you to book a Champagne Tour & Tasting in advance because availabilities are often limited. The imagination and the intellect are engaged as Champagne cellar visits reveal the magical processes – governed by the strictest of rules – that transform the world’s most pampered pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay grapes into this Unesco World Heritage–listed region’s most fabled wines. Wine tourism (sometimes oenotourism or vinitourism) is specifically designed for people who want to explore wine regions and get to know the local wines. A massive number of choices make this step easier said than done. I would recommend to start with visiting some of the main, world-famous Champagne houses. Come taste the king of wine and discover the gastronomy of the Champagne-Ardenne region . 2) Visit Champagne distilleries The big attraction in Champagne is of course the world-famous houses of champagne. The two most obvious places to stay when visiting Champagne are Reims and Epernay. The site affords breathtaking, sublime views of the Haute-Marne countryside. Hotel Dans Les Vignes is a good option, surrounded by vineyards and located right next to one of my favorite champagne houses, Bonnet-Ponson. Reims is the largest city in the region and Epernay is the town with the famous ‘Champagne Avenue’ (Avenue de Champagne). The other option for a two-day trip would be to split your time between Reims and the nearby village of Épernay. If you are looking to avoid the crowds, November can also be a good month to visit the champagne region. 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