Grand Houses vs Family Growers in Champagne France: Which Visit?
The short answer. A big house shows you kilometres of chalk cellars with its own guide and pours one or two glasses; you can book it yourself from EUR 25 to EUR 90. A family grower shows you a smaller cellar, pours about three glasses and sells you the bottles at the door, but you will almost always need a tour to reach one. On a first visit, do one of each.
The two visits side by side
| A big house | A family grower | |
|---|---|---|
| Label code | NM: buys grapes as well as growing them | RM: its own grapes only |
| Share of bottles shipped, 2025 | 191.9 million of 266.1 million | Growers and cooperatives: 74.2 million |
| Where it is | Reims and Épernay, by the station or the Avenue | The villages |
| A visit lasts | 1 to 2 hours | About 1 to 1.5 hours |
| Glasses | One or two on the cheapest visit | About three |
| How to book | Direct, by the slot | Almost always on a tour |
What a house visit gives you
Scale. The houses sit on cellars that run for kilometres, and the visit is a walk through them with a house guide, then a tasting. Mumm's cellars run for almost 25 km under Reims; Moët & Chandon counts 28 km under Épernay. Ruinart's crayères, chalk pits about 40 m deep, are a sight of their own, and Taittinger's cellars sit 18 m down in Gallo-Roman quarries under the old Saint-Nicaise abbey.
You can book them yourself. Mercier starts at EUR 25, Mumm at EUR 30, Lanson at EUR 32, Veuve Clicquot at EUR 36, Pommery and Moët & Chandon at EUR 48, and Ruinart at EUR 90. Set those Champagne France ticket prices beside the tour fares and a house on its own is the cheaper way to see one cellar. Each house's calendar is on the champagne houses page.
What a grower visit gives you
People. On a grower tour you meet the family's cellar, often the equipment and the vines around it, and taste three or so of their wines. Travellers on the half day with two family growers describe tasting three bottlings at each stop and buying champagne to take home at both, and the operator can ship bottles to the US, Australia and Europe.
Keep your expectations right, though. On some visits your guide does most of the talking rather than the family. One traveller found "two cellars, not farms", and another found several places shut on a Monday. Neither is a reason not to go; both are reasons to go midweek with the right picture in mind.
The label tells you which is which
Turn any bottle round and look for two letters in the small print. RM, for récoltant-manipulant, is a grower making champagne only from its own grapes. NM, for négociant-manipulant, is a house that buys grapes, musts or wines as well. RC is a grower that takes its wine back from a cooperative. The Comité Champagne counts 16,460 growers, 120 cooperatives and 410 houses.
What each choice costs you in a day
Price the day, not the visit. If you book two Reims houses on your own, say Mumm at EUR 30 and Veuve Clicquot at EUR 36, you pay EUR 66 a head plus your train, and you see two cellars and no vines. A grower half day from the Reims station square costs $140 to $152 a person and gives you two families and six glasses. A shared full day that mixes the two costs $228 to $386, usually with lunch in the fare.
| Your day | Cost a person | Houses | Growers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Two houses on your own | About EUR 66 | 2 | 0 |
| A grower half day | $140 to $152 | 0 | 2 |
| A mixed full day | $228 to $386 | 1 | 1 or 2 |
Check the house calendars before you choose
A house visit depends on the house being open, and you will find the calendars vary. Veuve Clicquot closed from 28 December 2025 to 6 April 2026 and opens Wednesday to Sunday from 4 November 2026. Mumm opens every day only from May to October. Mercier drops to Wednesday to Sunday from 18 November. Moët & Chandon's own page lists visits every day. The growers on a tour are chosen by the operator for the date you book, so a grower day is the safer bet in a quiet month.
The case for a house
- You want the famous name. Veuve Clicquot, Mumm, Pommery, Ruinart and Taittinger are all in Reims.
- You have no car and one day. The Reims houses are in the city, and Moët & Chandon and Mercier are on the Avenue in Épernay.
- You want the cellars themselves. Kilometres of chalk are the house's strength.
The case for a grower
- You want to talk to the maker. A small cellar and a small group.
- You want to buy at the source. You taste in the cellar and buy at the door.
- You want the vines. The villages are where the grapes grow.
Do both in one day
This is what the most-booked full days do. The day trip from Paris with lunch pairs a big house with a family producer and adds Reims Cathedral. From Reims, À La Française's days put Mumm or Veuve Clicquot first and family producers, with lunch, after it. If you would rather ride between them, the e-bike day from Épernay ends at a family domaine. On a private day, the Veuve Clicquot day with a boutique producer does the same with your own car.
Verdict by traveller
- First visit, one day: one of each, on a mixed full day.
- Short on money: a house on your own and the cathedral, which is free.
- Already seen a house: a grower half day from the station square.
- Buying to take home: the growers, and ask about shipping.
- Travelling with children: a house, since the grower half days from the station square take adults only.
Whichever you pick, book the fixed part first. A house slot or a tour seat is the thing that sells out; your train and your lunch can be fitted around it.
The villages the growers farm are explained in the four growing areas. The months when each house opens are on when to visit, and the tours that start in each town are on Reims champagne tours and Épernay champagne tours.
Tours built around the houses or the growers
Veuve Clicquot Tasting and Fun Private Tour in Champagne
A private day from Reims: Veuve Clicquot's cellars, Reims Cathedral and a boutique producer at Rilly-la-Montagne.
From $525 per person
Check Availability
Private Full Day Tour - Visit of 3 Champagne Growers from Reims.
Your own minivan to three family growers, ten champagnes and a three-course lunch, from Reims station or your hotel.
From $579 per person
Check AvailabilityNext: Budget the day with the house prices on the visitor guide. Every fare sits side by side on Champagne France Tours.