my guide to reims, france
Reims holds a special place in my heart. I studied abroad in Reims for two years. It was my first time realllyyyy living on my own, and I thrived. I ate at the best restaurants, became an avid runner along the canal in town, made friendships I absolutely cherish, and most importantly, I drank my weight in champagne.
So if you don’t have two years to soak up everything Reims has to offer, here is my guide to get a taste of one of my favorite towns.
Now, Reims is perfectly located 45 minutes (by high-speed train) east of Paris. So yes, you can do Reims for a day trip, but I implore people to stay longer if possible.
lodging
I’ve stayed in a few Airbnbs in Reims. I’ll link them here.
Grande Apartment In The Heart of Reims (with balcony!)
As far as hotels go, here are some reasonable options. The first hotel I will suggest is the Holiday Inn, where my mom stayed when she visited me. It’s simple, budget-friendly, and mom-approved. You also can’t go wrong with the Best Western. They are both centrally located and make exploring the town easy.
Buttttt if money is no object, or you saved up and want to splurge, here are two places I have on my list. The first is La Caserne, which is ideally located right in front of the Reims Cathedral. This location is also steps away from the main shopping strip, tram, and one of my favorite restaurants (restaurant guide coming up soon!). If you are visiting Reims during the Christmas Market, all you have to do is step out of this hotel and explore.
My second dream hotel stay is the Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa. Now this is where you stay if you are exploring the Champagne region for a few days. It’s in the heart of the rolling hills of the region, so you must take a car to Reims, Epernay, and any other champagne houses. But if you can afford this hotel, then I am sure you have a driver to take you where you want to go! Here is a picture of the hotel lobby for reference. Yes, I have been to the hotel, but solely to drink this cappuccino.
champagne houses
If you are going to read any section of this guide, read this. If I could drink champagne every day, I would. The only downside of my time in Reims was that my first year was heavily impacted by COVID. So the number of champagne houses I visited was lower than I would have liked, but more for me to explore/drink next time! Here are my top champagne houses (that I have been to) and why.
This is my absolute favorite champagne. It’s definitely on the pricier end, but it’s so delicious. And unfortunately for me, they import very little of it into the States. It’s the only champagne house that I have visited twice. I did the standard cellar tour with my father, which is a great tour. It’s a small number of guests, so you can ask all the questions you want. Buttt, if you can splurge, I recommend doing their brunch. Now, when I say I had the best eggs Benedict at this brunch, I am still thinking of it. The spread of food they offer is incredible, and you, of course, get a few glasses of their champagne to accompany your meal. I was lucky enough to do this with my mom, and it is still an experience that we often talk about. (will be linking a TikTok of this experience here).
GH Mumm
This is just a classic. The tour was one of my absolute favorite tours, which I did when my mom visited. Honestly, walking in the caves and hearing each of the histories of the champagne houses is so interesting. But for me, the GH Mumm bottle is so iconic, and the taste is superb. It was also at this champagne house that I learned the proper way to open a champagne bottle!
one of my favorite pictures of my momma!
boizel
If you recently saw the movie “Champagne Problems” on Netflix, the Boizel Champagne house was featured in the movie. This champagne house is located in Épernay. If you are staying in Reims, a quick tram will take you right from the center to Épernay. This was the only maison I visited outside of Reims, so there’s plenty more to explore in Épernay. But I enjoyed the tour, as it was just Patrick, me, and another couple, so the experience was very personalized, and I enjoyed the champagne.
Veuve Cliquot
The Widow Cliquot! If you don’t know the history of this champagne, I highly recommend going on this tour. While I don’t personally love the taste of Veuve (I think it’s very over hyped, sorry Heather Dubrow!), learning about the history and visiting the cellars is a must. The caves were stunning, and I’ll always support an (originally) female-run empire!!!
My honorable mentions are Canard-Duchêne (outside in the hills of the region), Pommery, and Tattinger. But in all honesty, there are TONS of champagne houses, and you can really never go wrong with champagne!
other
There is so much to do in Reims. But I’ll list 4 of my favorite activities a tourist might be interested in, and again, if you need more recommendations, let me know.
parks
Reims has many nice parks to picnic in or just enjoy. Parc Léo Lagrange, Parc de Champagne, and the promenades near the Reims train station are lovely. I also highly recommend walking or running along the canal. It goes on forever if you are into long runs, but I found such peace going along the canal.
spa
If you are in the mood to relax, I recommend the Spa Aqua Attitude. You can take the tram from the center of town to the Jean Macé stop and walk about 4 blocks to reach it. I went a few times, and the spa is a perfect size and reasonably priced.
knowledge
My mom always said a vacation/trip should include some sort of education, so if you are looking for a museum. I highly recommend the Musée de la Reddition. This small museum, located in Reims, was actually where the surrender and the end of WW2 took place. It’s small in size, but the artifacts and their importance are worth a visit.
cathedral
The Cathedral of Reims also offers tours. If you walk the stairs, you get a beautiful view of the city and the sprawling hills of the region. The Notre-Dame Cathedral of Reims also holds lots of history, so it’s definitely worthwhile to check out during your visit.
Hopefully, this guide can inspire you to visit Reims. Even if it’s just for a day, hopefully you find something peaceful and special like I did when I lived there.
