Champagne France in Winter: What Is Open, What Is Not

Champagne in winter is quieter, colder and, in places, closed. Some houses shut for weeks, the cathedral towers stop, and the vines are bare. But the cellars feel the same in January as in July, the Avenue lights up in December, and many tours still run. This guide shows what is open from November to February, so your Champagne France booking holds up.

Are champagne houses open in winter?

Most of them, on fewer days. The cellars stay at 10 to 12 °C in every season, champagne.fr says, so you feel no colder underground in winter than in summer. What changes is the calendar above ground: shorter weeks, holiday closures, and one or two long breaks.

Moët & Chandon lists visits every day from 9:30 to 17:00, and Nicolas Feuillatte every day by reservation. Taittinger welcomes visitors all year round. The others cut their days, and one closed for three months last winter.

Which houses close, and when?

Pommery, Ruinart and Lanson publish their winter days on their own booking pages; check them when you pick a date. Mercier's page opened its 2026 season on 6 April.

What runs in November and December?

More than you might think. Veuve Clicquot reopens Wednesday to Sunday from 4 November, Mumm keeps its Thursday-to-Monday weeks until 21 December, and Mercier opens Wednesday to Sunday from 18 November to 27 December. Moët & Chandon opens every day.

If you arrive by train, the Reims Christmas market is in the city centre, a minute from Reims-Centre station. In 2025 it ran from 26 November to 28 December; the 2026 dates are not yet published. Reims Tourisme calls it the third largest in France.

Habits de Lumière in Épernay

For three days each December, Épernay dresses the Avenue de Champagne in light. In 2026 the 26th edition runs on 11, 12 and 13 December. On the Friday and Saturday evenings the Avenue has video mapping, live shows, champagne bars, music and fireworks.

On the Saturday, starred chefs cook with the Avenue's houses and growers in a morning demonstration and tasting, and there are cellar visits. On the Sunday, a parade of more than 500 vintage vehicles drives through town. Book a room in Épernay early if you want to stay for the evenings.

January and February: the quiet months

This is the low point, and you need to plan around it. In 2026 Veuve Clicquot stayed shut until April, Mumm opened only Thursday to Saturday from 15 January, and Mercier began its annual closure on the evening of 30 December. The cathedral towers are closed until 14 February.

What stays open still gives you a good day. Moët & Chandon opens every day, Taittinger all year, and Nicolas Feuillatte by booking. Reims Cathedral opens every day from 8:00, free. The Château Perrier museum opens afternoons in the week and all day at weekends, closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Christmas and New Year

The holidays close the most doors, so plan your dates around them. Veuve Clicquot shuts on 25 December and 1 January. Mercier closes on 25 and 31 December, opens specially on 28 and 29 December, and starts its annual closure on the evening of 30 December. Mumm lists no visits between 22 December and 14 January.

The wine museum at Château Perrier closes on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Moët & Chandon prints no holiday closures on its visit page, so check your date when you book.

A winter day in Reims

Start at Reims Cathedral, open from 8:00 and free. Book a house for late morning: Taittinger welcomes visitors all year, and Veuve Clicquot opens Wednesday to Sunday from 4 November to 3 January. The Basilica of Saint-Remi is free, and buses 4, 6, 11 and 40 stop there.

For an indoor hour in the centre, the city tasting at 25 rue Henri IV pours three glasses with a sommelier, from $51. In late November and December, the Christmas market fills the city centre by the station.

A winter day in Épernay

Moët & Chandon opens every day from 9:30 to 17:00, and you need a coat in its cellars in August as much as in January. Mercier opens Wednesday to Sunday until 27 December. The wine museum opens from 13:30 on weekdays and from 10:00 at weekends, closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Nicolas Feuillatte, in Chouilly, opens every day by reservation. The Esprit de Champagne shuttles do not run after October, so reach Chouilly by Mouvéo bus or the house's own taxi package from Épernay station.

The cathedral and its towers in winter

You can visit Reims Cathedral in any season. It opens every day from 8:00, free, and closes at 19:30, or 19:15 on Sundays. Only the towers stop: the guided climbs close from 16 November to 14 February and reopen on 15 February.

The Basilica of Saint-Remi is free to visit too. The Palais du Tau is closed for works until 2027, whatever the season.

What do the vines look like?

Bare. The harvest is long over: in 2026 it opened between 8 and 22 August. The first task in the vineyard after it, champagne.fr says, is winter pruning, mostly by hand, and the quality of the next harvest depends on it.

So a winter drive through the Montagne de Reims or the Côte des Blancs shows you the bones of the vineyard: the rows, the slopes and the villages, without leaves. It is a good time to see how steep the hillsides are.

How cold does it get?

At the Mailly-CIVC weather station in the Montagne de Reims, the average high is 5.8 °C in January and 6.4 °C in December, and the average low 1.2 °C and 2.0 °C. December is the wettest month of the year, with 86.4 mm over about 13 days. November to February bring about 37 frosty nights between them.

Dress for the walk between cellars, not for the cellars. Bring a warm coat, gloves, a scarf and shoes with grip, as À La Française advises its riders, and our month-by-month weather has every month's figures.

Planning a winter visit

• Choose your house before your date. If you want Veuve Clicquot, you need a Wednesday to Sunday between 4 November and 3 January, outside the holidays. If you want Mumm in January, you need a Thursday, Friday or Saturday from the 15th.
• Decide about the towers. If your visit falls between 16 November and 14 February, you cannot climb them; the cathedral itself is yours from 8:00 every day.
• Stay for Habits de Lumière if you can. If you are in Épernay on 11, 12 or 13 December 2026, you get the Avenue's evening shows, the Saturday tastings and the Sunday parade.
• Keep a wet-day plan. December brings rain on about 13 days. You lose nothing in a cellar, so put your house visits on your wettest day and the villages on your driest.
• Ask about your tour's house. If a day names Veuve Clicquot or Mercier, ask the operator which house you will visit on your date before you pay.

Do the tours still run?

Many do. Blue Fox Travel's day from Paris runs every day of the year. The e-bike days run in the cold, with gloves and scarves advised, and switch to a minibus in rain or black ice.

What changes is the house. À La Française's Veuve Clicquot day names a similar house when Veuve Clicquot is unavailable, and private days book the famous houses by their free slots. If one house matters to you, check its winter calendar before you book the tour. The Reims champagne tours show every start that runs from the station.

Frequently asked questions

Champagne tastings to book for the colder months

Reims City Center: Champagne Tasting

An hour at a tasting table in central Reims: three glasses with a sommelier, and how champagne is made.

From $51 per person

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From Paris: Small-Group Champagne Day Trip with Six Tastings

A 7:00 am minibus from Paris to Reims Cathedral, a family winery and Nicolas Feuillatte, six glasses, eight people at most.

From $263 per person

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Reims afternoon tour Champagne and family growers

Two family wineries, six glasses and Hautvillers village, 2:00 pm to 6:30 pm from the Reims station square.

From $152 per person

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