Epernay or Reims: Where Should Your Champagne Trip Start?

Epernay and Reims are the two champagne towns, 27 km apart. Both have houses, both have tours, and a first-time visitor usually has time for one base. The real question is where your day starts, because that decides which houses you can walk to and how far you are from the vines. Here is the comparison, measured against the tours and the houses themselves.

Epernay and Reims side by side

The case for Epernay

Epernay puts everything within walking distance. You step off the train, cross the Hôtel de Ville garden and reach the tourist office in under 500 m. Moët & Chandon, Perrier-Jouët, de Castellane and Mercier all sit on the same avenue, and each sells its own visit. In one morning you can tour two houses on foot.

The vines are close too. Hautvillers is 6 km away and Aÿ is one stop on the train. That is why most local tours are short: two hours in the vintage van, three and a half on the Bubble tour, five on the afternoon with lunch. You spend your time in cellars and villages, not in a van.

Choose Epernay if you want the family growers, a house visit on foot, and a night where the tours start. Where to stay in Epernay compares the centre with the villages.

The case for Reims

Reims has what Epernay does not: its cathedral, and big houses of its own, among them Mumm, Veuve Clicquot, Pommery and Lanson. Its part of the UNESCO property is Saint-Nicaise Hill. The Epernay champagne houses covers the avenue's side of the comparison, house by house.

The Reims days start at its station forecourt. The family wineries tour leaves the Reims station forecourt for four and a half hours with two growers, from $149. The three family domains day meets there at 9:20 am, visits three family estates with nine glasses and lunch, and drives along the Avenue de Champagne in Epernay on the way. Both reach the vines by van.

Choose Reims if the cathedral matters to you, or if you want a Reims house such as Veuve Clicquot by name. Then take a tour that brings you to the Epernay side for the growers.

Doing both in one day

You can. The TER "Ligne des Bulles" links the two stations every 30 minutes, in about half an hour. A realistic plan:

1. Morning in Reims. The cathedral, then a house visit booked with the house.
2. Midday train. Half an hour to Epernay, stopping at Aÿ.
3. Afternoon on the avenue. Mercier from EUR 25 or Moët & Chandon from EUR 48, then the walk back to the station.

Or reverse it: a morning house in Epernay, then the Reims family wineries tour at its own start. What to skip if time is short? A second house in the same town. One house and one tour teaches you more than two cellars in a row.

Getting between the two towns

The TER "Ligne des Bulles" is the link. It runs every 30 minutes and takes about half an hour, stopping at Rilly-la-Montagne, Germaine, Avenay-Val-d'Or and Aÿ. Aÿ is the last stop before Epernay, so you can also get off there for the vines. By car the two towns are 27 to 28 km apart.

Watch for one trap. The TGV station called Champagne-Ardenne is outside Reims, 25 km from Epernay, and Reims-Centre is 28 km away. If you book a TGV into Champagne, check which station it stops at before you plan your connection.

What each base costs you

The houses price their visits the same way in both towns: you book a slot with the house. In Epernay, Mercier starts at EUR 25 and Moët & Chandon at EUR 48, a short walk apart. The tours are where the towns differ.

• From Epernay: a cellar hour in Pierry for $19, two hours in the vines for $57, an afternoon with lunch for $257.
• From Reims: the tours sold here run from $149 to $292 a head, because the villages are further out.
• From Paris: $262 to $400 a head, transport included.

So Epernay is the cheaper base for the growers: the tours are shorter because the vines start at the edge of town. The Epernay visitor guide covers the station walk and the houses' calendars.

What about a day from Paris?

If you will not sleep in either town, the Paris days decide for you. They collect you at your hotel or a café and choose the stops themselves: some take in the cathedral in Reims, others the avenue in Epernay, and most pair a big house with a family producer. Compare them on the champagne tours to Epernay from Paris page, or go straight to the day trip from Paris with eight tastings.

Verdict by visitor

• First trip, you want the growers: Epernay, for the afternoon tours.
• You want to walk between houses: Epernay, for the avenue.
• You want the cathedral: Reims, then a tour to the villages.
• You have one night: the town your tour leaves from.
• No night at all: a day from Paris.

How to visit Epernay covers the train and the house bookings, and the Epernay map shows the avenue, the station and the villages. For the dates that matter, see when to visit Epernay.

Days that start in Reims or cover both towns

From Reims: Champagne and Family-Run Wineries Tour

Four and a half hours from the Reims station forecourt: two family wineries and a village stop above the Marne, six tastings. Lunch is not included.

From $149 per person

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From Reims: Champagne Day Trip to 3 Family Domains & Lunch

A full day from the Reims station at 9:20 am: three family estates, nine glasses and lunch at a local restaurant, with a drive along the Epernay avenue.

From $292 per person

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From Epernay : Bubble Champagne Tour 6 tastings

Three and a half hours from the Epernay tourist office: a grower's cellar in Oger, three champagnes, then ratafia, fine and marc in Cramant. No lunch.

From $189 per person

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