French wine regions
Champagne: a visitor's guide to the vineyards
Cellars, chalk and bubbles, 45 minutes from Paris.
Champagne is the easiest wine day-trip in France: high-speed trains reach Reims in 45 minutes from Paris. But staying a night or two unlocks the real region: family growers in premier cru villages who pour their own champagne in the kitchen, at half the price of the grandes maisons' gift shops.
Best time to visit: May, June and September. Harvest (late August to mid-September) is spectacular but growers are busy; book visits first thing in the morning.
Where to stay: Reims for cathedral, big houses and restaurants; Épernay for the Avenue de Champagne and walking access to vineyards; Hautvillers for village charm (Dom Pérignon's abbey).
The areas worth your days
Reims & the big houses. Veuve Clicquot, Ruinart, Taittinger: cathedral-sized chalk cellars (crayères) dug by the Romans. Book online, English tours run daily.
Épernay & Avenue de Champagne. One street said to hold 200 million bottles beneath it. Moët and Perrier-Jouët for glamour; small bars along the avenue for grower tastings.
Montagne de Reims. Premier and grand cru Pinot Noir villages (Verzenay, Bouzy) with its lighthouse-in-the-vines and family growers who welcome visitors by appointment.
Côte des Blancs. Chardonnay's chalk heartland south of Épernay: Cramant, Avize, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger. Blanc de blancs tastings at the source.
Book your visit
Cellar tours, tastings and vineyard experiences in Champagnecan be booked through our partners. Partner links coming soon: for now, book directly with the estates listed by the local tourism office.
Practical tips
- Mix one grande maison (for the cellars) with two growers (for the wines and the welcome): the contrast is the whole point of visiting.
- Grower champagne bought at the door often costs 18 to 30 euros a bottle: bring a padded bottle bag, or buy a case and ship.
- The chalk cellars hold 10 to 12 °C all year: bring a layer, even in July.
Continue exploring
Bordeaux wine region guide · Burgundy wine region guide · Alsace wine region guide · Sleeping among the vines