If you read my last post about Paris, you’ll know that one of my top recommendations is to not try and do everything, rather, plan for 2-3 things and plan the rest as you go or have loose plans. This is something I’ve done on my last few trips to Paris and it has made the whole trip more enjoyable as we aren’t running from place to place.
For my trip to Paris in December, the only set plans we for sure had were to visit France’s Champagne region- Reims- for a day trip. This is something I’ve always wanted to do so I started researching the best ways to get there, the top champagne houses, etc. I knew I wanted to go to Veuve Clicquot since I drink it at home but admittedly know nothing about the brand, and David was on board so I started to plan and it turned out to be an amazing day filled with fun memories! Here’s the whole scoop on our trip to Reims and visiting Champagne region for a quick day trip! Getting there: If you google “Paris to Reims” you will get tons and tons of listings for day tours that will cost you upwards of $300-500 plus your entire day. Since I wanted to be able to do our own thing (I’m not really big on group tours), I searched other ways of getting there to find the train from Paris is only a 45min ride and much more affordable. Our first class train tickets for both of us, round trip, were $130 total. We took the earliest train there and booked an evening train back, although we ended up getting on a earlier train back since we finished touring Reims earlier than expected (If you're only visiting one Champagne house you only need a half day!). We were able to easily swap our train back to Paris onsite at the station at a kiosk with no charge. When we arrived in Reims, there were taxis outside of the train station and we took one straight to Veuve Clicquot- it was a 8 minute cab ride and cost €12. You can actually walk to some of the champagne houses from the station, but it’s about a 45 min walk which isn’t ideal if you are in a time crunch. We ended up walking back to the train station after our Veuve tour but we had loads of time to kill, wanted to see the town, and the weather was nice. Champagne Tours: I booked our tour for Veuve Clicquot online ahead of time which is a must to secure your spot. I recommend searching the champagne houses ahead of time and see which ones speak to you and see their tour times and how it fits into your schedule.
The Scoop on Veuve Clicquot: Since we went to Reims in December, there were not as many tours at Veuve but luckily we were able to go on one of the last tours before the house closes until March!! The tour was phenomenal! First of all, I had no idea that Veuve Clicquot was woman owned and Madame Cliquot was one of the FIRST women owned businesses in all of France! She was also responsible for redefining France’s champagne region. I don’t want to give too much away in case you take the tour, but trust me when I say it was so informative and fascinating and Madame Cliquot is serious badass woman GOALS! The tour was about 90 minutes and consisted of a tour in the champagne caves (they have 15miles of caves!!!!) complete with a full history on the Champagne house and a tasting. I highly, highly recommend visiting Veuve Cliquot on your trip to Reims- be prepared to be truly inspired and become a Veuve fan for life!
What to wear: COMFORTABLE SHOES!!!! There was a TON of walking on the tour and I image every tour of a champagne house will have its fair amount of walking. Also dress warmly - the champagne cellars were cool (it was also December so it was cold anyways), and be prepared for rain or gloomy weather in Reims. Think fashionable yet functional! You of course still want to look your best for all the fun photos you’ll take with champagne!
XOXO Blonde in the District