Spending a weekend in Champagne, France has been on my list for a while. I’ve heard such great things about visiting the region. When my friend and I started planning a trip to Paris, we took a look at the distance to Champagne and were surprised at how close it was. As two total wine lovers, we knew we had to spend a day or two visiting champagne houses. We ended up booking a day and a half in Champagne and the same amount of time in Paris to round things out.
A weekend in Champagne ended up being the most fun trip. We visited a range of champagne houses and hit up multiple villages in the area. It was a bit of a whirlwind, but also so magical. We drank ourselves silly, ate amazing food and took lots of photos, of course.
Below you’ll find everything you need to know for the perfect weekend in Champagne, France. We did this as a girls’ trip, but it would be just as fun (and very romantic) to do the same things with a significant other.
And of course, if you’re looking for Paris tips for a girls’ weekend, check out this post. I’ve updated it with some of my favorite things from this weekend.
Xx, Kelsey
WHEN WE WENT
We took a four-day weekend in mid-July and spent half in Champagne. If we hadn’t also wanted to squeeze in Paris, I would have done 2-3 full days in Champagne and paced ourselves. The towns are tiny, so other than champagne tastings, there’s not going to be a ton to do for a longer stay.
WHERE WE STAYED
Champagne isn’t full of big cities, so you’re better off booking an Airbnb or bed & breakfast. We stayed in Reims, but after this trip, I would also recommend Épernay as a place to stay. Both have many champagne houses within walking distance, and it’s easy to get between the towns via train or car.
We stayed in this Airbnb, which was pretty basic but has a gorgeous terrace overlooking the cathedral. It also has two bedrooms so we didn’t have to share a bed. The location is very central, so it’s super easy to get around Reims or get to the train station.
HOW WE GOT AROUND
I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to get around during our weekend in Champagne. The main cities you’ll want to visit are Reims, Épernay, and Aÿ. They’re all connected by train, which means you could probably do most of the trip on foot if you’d like. The large champagne houses are usually located in the centers of the towns because their vineyards are spread out across the region unlike in Bordeaux. This means you can definitely walk between each of them. It’ll still be a decent amount of walking, so keep that in mind when you pack!
We really wanted to see more of the vineyards, so we did the typical Dutch thing and booked bike rentals. We used BimBim Bikes. For €36 each, we rented two bikes for the full day. They met us at the Épernay train station (and can meet you wherever you request) to drop off the bikes. We ended up biking between Épernay and Aÿ (about 15 mins) and then biked through the vineyards in Aÿ.
One thing to note is the vineyards are very hilly in this region. If you’re looking to see the vineyards extensively, I’d recommend a car so you don’t show up to tastings a sweaty mess.
That being said, a weekend in champagne is absolutely doable without a car. We had an amazing time walking and biking and didn’t feel like we missed out on anything.
WHICH HOUSES WE VISITED
Ok, this is the fun part – tastings and tours! We booked our own visits to the champagne houses because we knew where we wanted to go. You can absolutely book a tour where a guide will take you to all these places. Just depends on how much research and booking you want to do yourself.
You can also just pop into some of the houses, just be prepared that they may or may not have tours and tastings available at that moment. My recommendation (and what we did) is to book two houses per full day and then wing the rest of the day. That way you don’t feel super stressed about making your appointments since often the tours run overtime. For example, our 30 min Veuve tasting ended up being 1.5 hours between the tour, the tasting, taking photos, and shopping for bottles.
Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin – Did you know Veuve is the French word for widow? Madame Veuve Clicquot was the widow of Clicquot who took the business and turned it into what it is today. #girlpower. This was definitely the most well-rounded tour and great bang for your buck. We did the Discover the Bubbles, which included a 30 min tour of the cellars in Reims, plus a tasting of two full glasses of Veuve Clicquot champagnes. The tasting took place on the terrace and came with a lovely plate of bread, cheese, and charcuterie. If you’re looking for photo opportunities, Veuve is absolutely set up for it, as you’ll see in my photos!
Pommery – Pommery in Reims wins the award for the best cellar. We booked this one at the very end of the day on Friday since it was about a 14-minute walk from Veuve. Our Veuve tasting went longer than we expected, so we just ended up doing Pommery. You can also visit the Damouiselle house across the street if you have more time. Pommery is self-guided, and the cellars are full of contemporary art exhibits. So it’s half champagne visit, half museum visit.
Since we arrived at the very end of the day, we ended up being the only two people in the cellars. I’ll admit at times it was a bit creepy, but it was also the most incredible experience. We wandered through the cellars seeing the contemporary art alongside the relief sculptures on the walls from the 1800s.
The champagne tasting here was probably the least exciting, as it was just one glass in the lobby after touring the cellars. But because the cellars were so cool, we didn’t mind! Plus the drink was needed after wandering the cellars alone.
Ayala – This is the one champagne house that we biked to Aÿ for. We originally wanted to do the full tour that goes to the cellars and the rooftop terrace, but it conflicted with one of our other tours. Instead, we signed up for the 30 min tasting (which lasted more like an hour). In the end, we didn’t feel as much like we missed out on the full tour since we spent an hour or two biking through the vineyards in the surrounding area before our tasting.
Ayala was my favorite during our weekend in Champagne because of the tasting. It’s a smaller house that was recently acquired by Bollinger. The tasting was originally just us until a Swedish couple showed up about 15 mins in. The guide was incredibly knowledgeable and generous with the glasses. We tried four different champagnes, one of which was the first bottle of 2015 Blanc de blanc to be opened.
This champagne was also some of my favorite because it’s very crisp and mineral. Ayala uses mostly Chardonnay grapes instead of mostly pinot noir, like the other houses we visited. The taste was very different but suited my tastes since I prefer less sugar. Needless to say, this is the house where I bought the most bottles to take home.
Moët & Chandon – After our visit to Ayala and lunch in Aÿ, we biked back to Épernay for our tour of Moët & Chandon. This tour takes place in the champagne house right in the middle of the town. Since Moët is one of the most known and widely distributed champagnes in the world, this tour was much more commercial.
We did the 1.5 hour tour and were in our largest group tour of the weekend (about 10 people including us). The Moët & Chandon cellars are incredibly huge, and it was very cool to learn about the production. Vintage bottles of 12+ years still have to be turned by hand every day!
This tasting was very elegant and chic, taking place in a room off the cellars. Like many of the other houses, we were given two glasses (one regular and one rosé) but no food. The champagne of course was amazing, and it’s definitely worth seeing such a big house to compare it to the smaller ones.
Perrier Jouët – We ended up just stopping at the champagne bar here because the tasting room was closed. The bar was absolutely stunning. We had champagne cocktails, which were so good and felt like the perfect end to our champagne house visits. If you’re in Champagne and have the opportunity to do a tasting and cellar visit at this house, I would. It’s such a beautiful place and the champagne is delicious.
WHERE WE ATE
Not going to lie a lot of our meals on this trip were croissants and coffee on the way to the train or dinners cooked in our Airbnb. We did have a few fabulous meals out though.
Le Crypto – We had dinner here our first night, and it was so good. They let you pick your side with your main, and my fish and risotto were delicious. We also received the best wine recommendation and ended up drinking an amazing French Chardonnay. This restaurant is packed with French people, so it was a great opportunity to use my French. Plus you know if all the locals are there, it’s truly good.
Café le Progrès – We were in a bit of a hurry to grab lunch before our 1 pm tour at Moët in Épernay, so we popped into this busy cafe for a quick bite down the street. The terrace was bustling, and the food was great. I had an omelette du fromage and a glass of wine which only ended up running like €12. A total steal. Plus the omelet was so so good.
Les Crayères – We stopped in here for a drink prior to our dinner reservation the first night in Reims. It’s the chicest French chateau hotel (pictured above) and totally worth popping in for an expensive glass of champagne and a peek around the gardens.
OUTFIT DETAILS:
Outfit 1: Chicwish dress | Similar shoes here & here
Outfit 2: Gap skirt | Top is very old H&M | Hermes sandals
Outfit 3: Chicwish dress
Outfit 4: Sézane dress (EU) | Sézane belt (EU) | Sézane espadrilles (EU)
Ughhhh reading this makes me want to go back. Great travel guide