Looking for how to visit the Veuve Clicquot Champagne House? This post will help you plan a day at this prestigious winery in Reims, France.

Veuve Clicquot in Reims, France stands as an iconic champagne house where heritage meets innovation, inviting you to explore its storied cellars, sample exquisite champagnes, and bask in the legacy of one of the world’s most renowned sparkling wines.

I first became knowledgeable about touring champagne houses outside of Paris, France from an Instagram post on my explore feed.

So when my oldest daughter suggested we spend her 28th birthday together in Paris, I knew this would be the perfect day trip for these two champagne drinkers ;).

After visiting Veuve in Reims, we realized there are multiple champagne houses to visit in this champagne region of France including Taittinger, Ruinart, and Vranken Pommery.

A little trickier to get to in the Champagne region of France but equally as delightful are Moet and Chandon (and Dom Perignon!), Champagne Mumm, and Perrier Jouet to name a few. There are also champagne tours that you can sign up for ;).

In fact – did you know champagne is exclusively produced in the Champagne region of France? Any other similar product does not get to use the name champagne (ie – if not made in this region it has to be called sparkling wine or champagne wine).

In a rush?

How to Get to Veuve Clicquot

Getting to Reims is a short 45 minute train ride from Gare de l’Est in Paris on the direct train option.

Buy your train ticket directly on the SNCF website. You can even download the SNCF app so that your mobile tickets are easily available via the app and you can check any train timelines you need.

Our Veuve tour in Reims started at 1pm and we didn’t know how long it would take us to get to the champagne house from the train station so we got on the 10:58am direct train that arrived at 11:44am.

Tickets range in price from $25-$55 each way depending on which train you book on and what class (we try to book first class when we can because the seats are more comfortable and the coaches are quieter).

The roundtrip tickets I purchased allowed us flexibility with which return train we could travel on and after our day in Reims, we got on the 6:45pm direct train back to Paris Gare de l’Est.

Once you arrive at the Reims train station, you will find taxi’s outside the station or you can use the Uber app. We decided to walk the 1.8 miles to the champagne house as we had plenty of time and wanted to get our bearings of this small city.

When to Visit Veuve Clicquot

The winery is closed for tours from October 28th to March 13th.

And the Sunday at the end of August that we visited the city of Reims was quite sleepy (many restaurants and shops were closed).

That said, the best time to visit the Champagne houses is April to September when the vineyards are in full bloom, and outdoor tastings offer a delightful experience amid the picturesque French landscapes.

Late September is particularly busy with the fall harvest but many houses offer opportunities to watch this key champagne making step.

What Tour is Best for You

Looking at the list of tour options on the Veuve Clicquot website and now having been on one of them, the options can be somewhat confusing.

I purchased two tickets for the tour labeled ‘Only One Quality, the Finest’ in which we had a cellar tour and a tasting. What I find interesting about the tour options is that our tour also taught us plenty about Madame Clicquot (which is another tour name being offered for a higher price than ours).

I cannot say what the Madame Clicquot tour offers in addition to what ours did but I can say we learned plenty about the Grand Dame of Champagne herself as well as how this magnificent beverage is made on our lesser priced tour ;).

The Tour in Photos

Undoubtedly if you are reading this post, you are already sold on touring the Veuve Clicquot champagne house however I am adding some of my favorite photos of the experience below to entice you more ;).

The tour ends with a tasting of four different Veuve champagnes still in the cellar.

Café Clicquot

After our tour, we were too hungry to wait to eat anywhere but Café Clicquot on the grounds. We just missed the grill closing but the hamburgers we saw on other patrons’ tables looked INCREDIBLE.

We were able to order a salad and ham and cheese platter that satiated our hunger until we were able to walk into town for a bigger meal.

The cafe is open March 22 to mid October and serves hot food until 3:30pm (we stayed in the gift shop a little too long I guess as our tour ended at 2:30p ;0).

Reims, France

After our champagne and aperitifs, we walked a little over a mile to explore the city centre of Reims.

The don’t misses in the city of Reims are Cathedral of Notre Dame of Reims and Place Drouet d’Erlon.

As I mentioned earlier, we were there on a Sunday afternoon and the majority of the shops were closed.

The above Place Drouet d’Erlon had many eating options however we decided to head back to Paris for a late dinner by the time we made it to this plaza…

What to Wear in Reims, France in Summer

My daughter and I wore a dress and a skirt with light sweaters for our day trip to Reims, France at the end of August 2023.

However, as is always the case while traveling, the most important outfit item is comfortable shoes!

Our Full Itinerary in a Nutshell

• Day 1 Fly San Diego to Paris via Dallas on British Airways
• Day 2 Arrive Paris
• Day 3 in Paris
  • Explore Louvre grounds
  • Walk along the Seine River to Saint Germain des Pres neighborhood and Odette Pastry Shop
  • Walk to Jardin du Luxembourg
  • Tour Sainte-Chapelle
• Day 4 in Paris
  • Day trip to Versailles – 10:30am ticket (while my oldest daughter arrived in Paris)
  • Dinner at Cafe de l’Homme
• Day 5 in Paris
  • Brunch at Monsieur Bleu
  • Walk along Seine to get different viewpoints of the Eiffel Tower (best is Passerelle Debilly)
  • Dinner at Girafe Cafe
• Day 6 day trip to Reims to tour Veuve Clicquot winery
• Day 7 in Paris
  • Eiffel Tower (11am tickets)
  • Walk down Avenue George and Avenue Champs-Elysees (see Arc de Triomphe) and Avenue Montaigne
  • La Galerie Dior (3:30pm tickets)
  • Drinks at Bar 228 in Le Meurice Hotel
  • Dinner at Les Deux Magots
  • Drinks (again) at Le Rooftop at the Peninsula Hotel
• Day 8 in Paris
  • Brunch at Le Consulat
  • Walk around Montmartre
  • Visit Sacre Coeur and the sinking house and photo booth
  • Drinks at Hemingway Bar at the Ritz
  • Seine River dinner cruise
• Day 9 – take Eurostar to London
  • Visit Leadenhall Market and Sky Garden
• Day 10 in London
  • Walk through St James’s Park to Buckingham Palace tour (11am tickets)
  • Lunch at Harrods Department Store
  • Go to Camden Market
• Day 11 in London
  • Brunch at Sketch
  • Walk around Covent Garden and Neal’s Yard
  • Dinner at Mamma Mia the Experience at the O2
• Day 12 fly home to San Diego nonstop on British Airways

I hope you found this post helpful for your visit to the Veuve Clicquot Champagne House in Reims.

A visit here offers an immersive journey into the art of champagne-making, where the historic cellars, captivating vineyards, and exquisite tastings combine to create a luxurious experience.

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I want to make some memories.

~Mamma Mia

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