★★★★★
Day from Paris with Reims Cathedral and lunch
From hotel pickup to drop-off eleven hours later: large and small houses, half an hour in Reims Cathedral, and a better lunch than we expected.
Dean · United States · August 2026
Champagne France Day Trip from Paris with Reims Cathedral and Lunch
Paris hotel pickupA house and growersLunch included
The day to book if you are staying in Paris and want the whole region without a train. A minibus collects you from your hotel. You tour a big house's cellars, meet a family producer, stand inside Reims Cathedral and sit down to three courses in Épernay. You are back at your door about eleven hours later.
Paris to Reims and Épernay in eleven hours
Collected at your hotel
Pickup and drop-off at your Paris hotel, so you never touch a train timetable.
A big house's cellars
A guided cellar tour and tasting at a major house, named on the day.
A family producer
A second visit and tasting at a small family-run winery, for the contrast.
Reims Cathedral
Twenty minutes inside the church where French kings were crowned.
Lunch in the fare
A three-course French lunch in Épernay, which the lowest Paris fare leaves you to buy.
4.8 from 703 reviews
Travellers single out the guides and the mix of big and small producers.
A big house, a family winery and Reims Cathedral
The point of this day is the contrast between two kinds of champagne maker. In the morning you go down into a big house's cellars with a house guide, then taste. The house is confirmed on the day: the operator names Moët & Chandon, Mercier, Nicolas Feuillatte, Veuve Clicquot and Taittinger as the candidates, subject to availability. Travellers this summer toured Taittinger's cellars, so expect a famous name, but not a promised one.
Later you visit a small family-run winery, where the people who grow the grapes also make the wine. Why does that matter? The Comité Champagne counts 16,460 growers and 410 houses, yet the houses shipped 191.9 million of the 266.1 million bottles sold in 2025. Tasting both in one day shows you what those numbers mean in the glass.
In between, you spend twenty minutes in Reims Cathedral. Entry is free and the doors open every day from 8:00. The cathedral parish lists 33 kings crowned at Reims, from Louis the Pious in 816 to Charles X in 1825, and UNESCO listed it in 1991 as one of the masterpieces of Gothic art. Weighing up a Champagne France tour? Every fare from Paris, Reims and Épernay sits side by side.
The three-course lunch in Épernay
Lunch is where this day parts company with the cheaper ones. You sit down for an hour and a half to three courses at a local restaurant in Épernay, and the meal is in your fare. Your guide then walks you along the Avenue de Champagne for twenty minutes. It runs for about 1.5 km, and some 110 km of cellars lie beneath it, according to the Comité Champagne.
The last stop is one the operator calls a secret stop: a 70-minute tasting out in the vines, run blind, so you learn to tell styles apart by taste alone. Then the minibus heads back to Paris, about two hours away. One traveller put the day at about ten glasses; pace yourself and drink water in between.
How the eleven hours run
- Morning, your Paris hotel. The minibus collects you; the time is on your booking.
- About 2 hours on the road. Your guide starts on the history of the region on the way.
- A big house, 1.5 hours. The cellar tour and a tasting.
- Reims Cathedral, 20 minutes. Inside the coronation church, with your guide.
- Lunch in Épernay, 1.5 hours. Three courses at a local restaurant.
- A second producer, 1.5 hours. A family winery's cellar and tasting.
- The Avenue de Champagne, 20 minutes. A walk past the houses' front doors.
- A tasting in the vines, 70 minutes. A blind tasting out among the rows.
- About 2 hours back to Paris. Drop-off where you were collected.
Who this suits: Paris visitors who want it all arranged
Book this if
You are based in Paris, you have one day, and you want a big house, a family producer, the cathedral and lunch without planning a single train. It suits couples, honeymooners and friends who would rather pay once and have the whole day handled from the hotel door.
Book something else if
You want a lower fare and do not mind a 7:00 am start at a Paris café: the small-group day with six tastings costs $263 and leaves lunch to you. For lunch at a winemaker's table rather than a restaurant, look at the day with eight tastings and lunch. For a car of your own, the private day from Paris collects you too. With a night in the region, the half day with two growers from Reims station costs far less. Every Paris option sits on champagne tours from Paris.
What the fare covers and what it doesn't
In the fare
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in Paris
- Air-conditioned minibus
- Professional English-speaking guide
- Guided cellar tour and tasting at a major Champagne house (e.g. Moët & Chandon or similar, subject to availability)
- Visit and tasting at a small family-run Champagne winery
- 3-course traditional French lunch at a local restaurant
- Avenue de Champagne in Épernay
- Reims Cathedral (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Not in the fare
- Personal expenses and souvenirs
- Additional food and drinks not in the itinerary
- Tips for the guide or driver (optional)
- Hotel accommodation
- Extra tastings or purchases not in the programme
The pickup at your Paris hotel
There is no kerb to find: the minibus collects you from your hotel or accommodation in Paris, and you give the address when you book. The pickup time is on your confirmation, so check it the evening before and be in the lobby a few minutes early. The day ends where it began, about eleven hours later.
The operator warns that the drive times and the order of the stops can change with traffic, weather and the houses' schedules. In rare cases the vineyard stop is dropped for weather. Neither changes what is in your fare: the house, the family producer, the cathedral and lunch.
Know before you go
- Bring a warm layer. The cellars stay at 10 to 12 °C in every season, even in August.
- Wear comfortable shoes. The operator asks for them: cellar stairs, cobbles and a vineyard.
- Expect four hours on the road. It is about two hours each way; bring something to read.
- The house is named on the day. Ask the operator if one house matters to you; it cannot be guaranteed.
- No children under 16. The day is not suitable for them; any guest under 18 is poured grape juice instead.
- Tips are optional. They are not in the fare; nor are drinks beyond the programme.
What travellers say about the day from Paris
★★★★★
Day from Paris with Reims Cathedral and lunch
The best guide of our honeymoon in France, patient and knowledgeable from start to finish. We came home with a day in Champagne we will not forget.
Cara · Couple · United States · September 2026
★★★★★
Day from Paris with Reims Cathedral and lunch
About ten glasses across the day and a guide who sorted out every problem. The food could have been better.
Ines · Bolivia · August 2026
Frequently asked questions
Which champagne house do we visit?
It depends on the date. The operator lists Moët & Chandon, Mercier, Nicolas Feuillatte, Veuve Clicquot and Taittinger as candidates, subject to availability, and cannot guarantee a request.
Is lunch included in the fare?
Yes. A three-course French lunch at a local restaurant in Épernay is in the fare. Extra food and drinks beyond the programme are not.
Can I do this from Reims instead of Paris?
Yes, and it costs much less. From the Reims station square, the half day with two family growers takes four hours and suits a train from Paris the same morning.
How long do we spend in Reims Cathedral?
About twenty minutes, with your guide. Entry is free, and the cathedral opens every day from 8:00.
Can teenagers come?
The listing marks the day unsuitable for children under 16. Guests under 18 who do join are offered grape juice instead of champagne.
What if I cancel?
You get a full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours before the start. Inside those 24 hours the fare is not refunded.
Other ways into the Champagne vineyards
Ready for a day in Champagne from your Paris hotel?
Check dates for the day with lunch in the fare, with free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead.
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