elaine

Hi all <BR>I've already done a search on this topic here but I'm looking for some details. For those of you who have done this daytrip from Paris by train, were the logistics easy? I would like to leave Paris in the am, perhaps see the cathedral in Reims and if possible tour one champagne cave, have a wonderful lunch (at Les Crayeres), and return to Paris late in the day. My companion does not have a lot of stamina-- <BR>is a lot of walking involved in my idea? Is the cathedral close to the train station? <BR>Is it difficult to do one of the champagne cave tours? Are taxis easily available? <BR>Advice appreciated.

jim

about 10 years ago, when i was studying in paris for a month, i took a day trip to the caves in eparney and to the cathedral in reims. about an hour by train perhaps. was done in a day, with plenty of time, as i recall. the dom perignon caves are open to tours in eparney, and i liked the tour a lot. with free moet et chandon champagne at the end! as i recall, it wasn't too much trouble to go on to reims on the train, and the cathedral wasn't too far from the station. the cathedral was nice, but the most memorarable part of the day for me was the caves.

mwg

I was in Reims quite a while ago. We went to the Mumms caves. It was a very enjoyable tour.

Lori

Took the train from Paris to Reims in May. It was an easy ride to Reims, the biggest problem was lugging our luggage from our hotel, onto the Metro, onto the train to Reims. The train station in Reims is small, and I found it to be not to tourist friendly (no real information booth, no brochures about the area, and only one small toilet on the train platform) It is a good 20 minute walk to the cathedral which is absolutely beautiful. The caves are pretty spread out and walking to them would be difficult. You should probably rent a car or take a cab (we had a car as a friend met us there). We took the tour of the Taittinger caves which included of course a tasting and a gift shop. The prices were a little cheaper than here in the states but a bottle of good champagne makes for great memories. We also went to Pommery (missed the tour unfortunately, but hit the gift shop), which was a beautiful building looking like a castle with a great view of the cathedral. Also, hit Veuve Cliquoe, and again missed the tour but they were nice enough to offer us a taste. At Veuve Cliquoe you need to make a reservation for the tour, which I believe includes a picnic lunch and you go to the actual vineyard. We intend to do that the next time. As for Les Crayeres, you better make a reservation now. Have a great time!!

Monica

My Mom and I took the 7:17am train to Reims from Gare de l'Est (May 1999). It arrived at 8:46. There is another train which leaves at 8:04, arriving at 9:36; and 10:58 arriving at 12:30, though that's too late to enjoy a full day in Reims. We walked (15-20 min) to the Cathedral which is beautiful, especially the stained glass windows! Then we took the local bus (10 minute ride) to the Taittinger Cave. You can get the bus number at the tourist office. The tour lasted about an hour and we enjoyed tasting their champagne. There is no pressure to purchase, though I wish I had bought a bottle. Enjoy!

Lou

Just returned from Reims and Le Crayeres---great city-- Epernay is nice but visitcaves in Reims.GotoPommeryChampagne house for a tour , across the street is Le Crayeres ( worthwhile-- try have 1/2 portions at the same price to explore the menu) If you plan ahead Le crayeres will make a private appointment at Pommery before or after the meal. Le crayeres was the home of Madame Pommery. Good Luck Lou

elaine

<BR>Thanks to all for the info. <BR> <BR>Lori and/or Lou <BR>Are Pommery and Les Crayeres, right in town, or in the outskirts? How did you get there?

lori

A friend of mine from Brussels met us in Reims with her car, so we drove to the champagne houses. However, Pommery was a little ways from the cathedral, and I recall we commented on how difficult it would be to walk there. I did not find Reims to be a walking-friendly town.

Lou

Pommery and le Crayeres is located at the outskirts of town. We had a car--take a cab,but let Le Creayeres set up a private appointment. Most tours will have 20+ people- the private tour was my wife, myself and the tour guide--wonderful Lou

steve

We spent most of June driving around France and whilst there, some friends took the train out from Paris to Reims one morning. We collected them from Reims around 9:30 am in our car but I did notice that there was a car rental office right next door to the railway station which might be of interest to you. We then drove to Epernay for 1 hr tour of one of the caves, grabbed a bite to eat and spent about 3 hours driving the well-signposted Route de Champagne around the Epernay area. Dropped into a couple of caves for a tasting or two before parking near the Cathedral in Reims for a visit. It was then about a 15 minute walk to the station where we dropped our friends in plenty of time for the 7pm train back to Paris. <BR>They had a great time. The only thing we should have done is checked the train timetable as it stopped in Epernay. <BR>regards <BR>Steve <BR> <BR>