Paris English Forums

andyo · Paris Forum Guest

Hello. My husband and I will be in France Oct 14 - 22 for our first visit. Unfortunately we do not have time for both, so we're trying to decide between a day trip to either: 1) Reims for champagne tours, or to, 2) Burgandy for wine/vineyard tours. We are going to either of these locations for special sights and experiences only available in France (and do not have a reference point of a US/Napa wine tasting experience).
If anyone has visited both of these areas, it would be great to hear your recommendations. I've searched TA and have found out info about both of these locs., however, nothing yet on comparing the two. In your response, it would be great to hear about getting there from Paris, getting around in the town, which champagne tour or vineyard tour is best (w/ contact info.)., what else is great about the area, etc., etc...
Also, the travel agent is steering us towards scrapping this idea, since we're also planning to do day trips to Versailles and Normandy beaches. She mentioned that if we ever get serious into wine, we could do a trip in the US that mimics either of these France experiences~and her guidance is to spend more time in Paris. To me, that doesn't feel right yet so I am hoping to hear from your expertise.

alea · Paris Forum Guest

For a day trip I think that the Champagne region is much easier. The drive is not much more than an hour or two (scenic route) and there are numerous small producers that are really worth visiting. We have had a hot indien summer, so the harvest and pressing may be over, but this means the wine makers will be around and have the time to give you a visit of their operations.
HOWEVER, I totally agree with your travel agent. Paris is full of marvels. A week is just enough to start getting a feel for the city. The Normandy beaches are three hours away, making that for a very LONG day trip and leaving you with only five days in Paris. Several of those days you will be exhausted from the travel, so I think you will get ore out of your trip if you limit yourself to just two day trips. If you really think you are going to be getting sick of Paris, why not plan an over night in Normandy, giving you time to swing by Mont St Michel on your way back to Paris?