Best Tours and Day Trips from Reims

Most of the best things to do in the city of Reims have to do with exploring the surrounding wine country. This town is an important tourist destination because it is considered the cultural capital of the Champagne region, where the world famous sparkling wine is produced.

So in this post I will briefly explain you how some of the best excursions departing from the city centre work. That while I also present you the main alternatives so that you have the possibility to choose one of them understanding their benefits and conditions.

One of the most recommended excursions for tourists arriving in the city of Reims is to take part in a tour that leads to the headquarters where the main cellars of Moët & Chandon are located. If you haven't heard of this name, you should know that it is a world reference when it comes to quality champagne. For this reason, this type of tourist experience is aimed at learning about the history of this company as well as the process behind the production of this alcoholic beverage.

The excursion as such is usually reserved for a limited group of people, usually no more than 10 participants. From the outset, it is also a guided event because a specialist in the history of champagne as a beverage is always on hand. As well as the history of the companies that made this type of wine a world reference of quality.

It is definitely an exclusive experience in which the comfort of the participants is always taken care of and you should also know that the tourist service includes the tasting of about 10 different types of champagne that belong to the Moët & Chandon cellar.

In addition, it is also common to include a traditional lunch of typical gastronomy of the region. For these reasons it is a highly recommended plan for those who are having a three-day visit to the city of Reims.

Interesting details

• Price: these excursions usually cost around 250 euros per person, which is an understandable amount knowing that it is a luxury experience.
• Duration: The approximate duration of such a tour is about nine hours in total.
• Means of transport: it is almost always a minivan that includes all the comforts such as air conditioning, Wi-Fi on board and reclining seats.
• Advantages of this option: this alternative is highly recommended for true lovers of this brand of champagne and especially for those who wish to explore other corners of this wine region.
• Disadvantages of this option: It is definitely not a very economical experience and, as such, may be unaffordable for some travellers' budgets.

If the idea of seeing the headquarters of Moët & Chandon doesn't appeal to you simply because it's not your favourite champagne brand, then you should know that Veuve Clicquot is the final destination of other highly recommended tours departing from the city of Reims. The itinerary of these tours is a little different, as it is usual that a tour through the cathedral of Notre Dame de Reims is also included. As well as a tour of some other village close to this city.

The visit to the Veuve Clicquot cellar is definitely the highlight of the itinerary, but that doesn't mean that the lunch that is accompanied by a wine tasting class is not a good entertainment. The visit to the company's underground cellar also includes a tasting of other types of champagne.

So this itinerary is much more appropriate for those who don't consider themselves lovers of a specific champagne brand and prefer to learn a little more about another company that is also world famous. This while still having the chance to visit other family-owned wineries and enjoy the tour of a beautiful rural location.

You should also know that this type of tour is one of the best things to do in Reims during the Christmas season. This is because the tour service dinner or lunch is usually geared towards enjoying a themed event inspired by Christmas traditions.

Interesting details

• Price: these types of excursions usually cost around 280 euros per person.
• Duration: the approximate duration is about eight hours in total or a little more, depending on the season and the weather.
• Means of transport: it is usually a minivan, as they are reserved for very limited groups of people.
• Advantages of this option: Definitely a more favourable option for those who want the tour to focus a little more on the beauty of the region rather than revolving around the champagne company to be visited.
• Disadvantages of this option: It is still an expensive experience that is not within the financial means of all tourists.

If you are interested in touring the countryside around the city of Reims in a slightly less conventional way then you should opt for a guided tour on an electric bike.

Clearly this is a favourable alternative for those who are used to cycling quite a few kilometres, but it is without doubt a highly recommended way to get in direct contact with nature as well as to entertain yourself during a visit to the Champagne region, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The meeting point is always somewhere in the city centre of Reims and from there you start a bus ride through the woods near the city to reach the village of Epernay. This is where the bike tour begins, as the small group of participants head to one of the villages to get a close-up view of the vineyards where champagne is produced.

The electric bike tour also includes a visit to some family-run wineries and a stop for lunch at a traditional French restaurant. The church where Dom Pérignon is buried is also part of the tour itinerary. So all in all it is a much more diverse and interesting tour. Especially for those who prefer to enjoy the scenery while being in direct contact with it.

Both wine tastings and lunch are usually included in the price of the experience along with the accompaniment of the local guide who usually speaks English. Just like the rest of the excursions. Therefore, this is an excellent way to accelerate your sightseeing exploration on a two-day visit to Reims where it is essential to experience first-hand the beauty that characterises this rural part of the country.

Details of interest

• Price: an electric bike ride with the above-mentioned characteristics usually costs around 175 euros per person.
• Duration: the approximate duration of this type of excursion is seven or eight hours in total, and you should bear in mind that you will be pedalling for approximately 3 hours during this period.
• Means of transport: the transfer from Reims to Épernay is usually by minibus and the rest of the experience is on a state-of-the-art electric bicycle.
• Advantages of this option: it is definitely the best alternative for those who are looking to incorporate a bit of fun exercise to the experience of touring the countryside of the Champagne region.
• Disadvantages of this option: This is an experience that is only available to people who are able to cycle for 3 hours.

One of the longest and deadliest battles in modern history took place near Reims. It is the Battle of Verdun and was an uninterrupted conflict between France and Germany that took place over 303 days during the First World War.

Today the field where the trenches were located has become a tourist destination so that people can understand how these battles were fought. There are also different monuments commemorating this event in which so many people died.

So this site is undoubtedly one of the best things to do in the city of Reims and forms part of its main historical attractions. The price of the excursion includes private transport as well as entrance to the camp and the two existing memorials. There is also the payment of the guide who is available so that the group does not miss any important detail about the history of this event.

Anyway, this is an excursion that does not take up your whole day and, therefore, you can complement it if you are interested in visiting the cathedral of Notre Dame de Reims, which is a very important church that is known for having been the coronation centre of the French Kings for several centuries. So if you complement these two activities in the same day you will be getting a lot of information about one of the most important regions in the North East of France.

Interesting details

• Price: these types of excursions usually cost around 380 euros per person, although young people under 17 years of age pay more favourable rates.
• Duration: a tour of this kind usually lasts six hours in total, a good part of which is spent travelling from Reims to the battlefield.
• Means of transport: most often it is a minibus because it is an excursion reserved for a limited group of people from the same family group.
• Advantages of this option: this activity is one of the most interesting for those who are interested in the history of the First World War as well as for those who want to see an attraction that is a little different from the world of champagne production.
• Disadvantages of this option: this is the most expensive tour of all, even without lunch and wine tasting.

There are several options available to you if you want to book any of these Reims tours. The best of them all is through an online purchase of the service. This is because this way you can pay by credit card and you may have the option of cancelling the experience for free if you give sufficient notice. In addition, you can also find out what other people who have been on the tour have to say about it.

You could also access this type of tour by visiting one of the tourist agencies located in the city centre of Reims. The problem with this idea is that there is no guarantee that you will find the possibility of joining these experiences at the exact time of your visit. Especially if your trip occurs during the peak tourist season.

The average duration of all excursions from Reims usually varies between six and eight hours. This is logical given that many of the wine-growing areas are not so close to the city centre.

That's while at the same time wine tastings and lunches are included in the itinerary, which are events that take quite a long time, plus the time it takes to get from one place to another.

Anyway, you should know that these durations are extremely favourable within the logistics of most trips. Especially since the city of Reims itself does not have as many tourist attractions outside of the sites visited on these tours. So it is logical and advisable to focus a large part of the trip on visiting the natural region within which Reims is located.

There are several tips I can give you to enjoy your excursions from Rains, but the best of them all has to do with your clothing. It is essential that you wear clothes that are appropriate for the weather at the time of your trip. The truth is that during the summer the humidity is significantly high while the rest of the year rain, wind and cold can be a daily reality.

These excursions are recommended because the wine cellars and wine fields are the real reason why the city of Reims is a major tourist destination.

The cathedral and two other buildings are Unesco World Heritage Sites, but the city itself stands out as the honorary capital of the Champagne region. It has an appellation of origin which means that this name can only be used for sparkling wine from this part of France.

So if you are spending 48 or 72 hours in the region it is important that you take advantage of your time to visit the places that have made it world famous, among which are the cellars of large companies and small families that are dedicated to producing champagne, which is of unquestionable quality.

The same goes for the excursion that takes you to the battlefield of Verdun. For many years, this site was one of the main centres of commemoration for the misfortunes of the First World War.

A guided tour is definitely a better option than touring the region on your own, as the price includes the transfer and access to the cellars you will visit. In addition, a guide accompaniment is included, so you won't go back home with important doubts about the places you have visited.

So, if you compare, the experience allows you to save money, because the truth is that between what it would cost to rent a car and what you would spend on fuel going from one place to another, a large part of the budget is already gone. In addition, you would have to pay additional entrance fees for the guided tour of the place.

Moreover, the simple fact that you only have to worry about enjoying yourself and not having to worry about any logistical details makes the price of a guided tour recommendable for those who want to enjoy their holiday break to the full.