We leave in a week...so excited!! We will be in Paris 17-24 Jan. We would like to do a day trip outside of Paris to a Winery or similar. There will be 4 adults (we may leave the teenagers at home this day!!)and we have been thinking that perhaps self drive isn't the way to go.

Does anyone know of a company that specialises in such tours, that they would highly recommend?

for ex: pick us up at our accommodation and drive us to a few winery's for tasting etc. and then perhaps somewhere nice for lunch and return us back to our lodgings.

Thanks so much in advance.

top up for aussiedreamer...

Hi AD,

January is not exactly high season for the wine country.

Do you actually want to tour a winery or do you want to sample wines?

You could take the train to Reims or Epernay and visit a champagne house, but many of them are closed in January.

ira's right - it's just not the time of year to be visiting wineries. Obviously, the fields are bare and the wine's already in the barrels, and the vineyard personnel are taking time off, so there's not much to see or do except taste the wine, which you can do in any wine bar.

Our personal experiences with wineries in the Loire Valley and upper Burgundy (reasonably doable as a day trip) is that their tasting rooms are closed from November to sometime in spring. We did one trip in late October and early November and caught some of the wineries on the very last week-end open to the public before they shut down for the fall and winter. Perhaps the champagne houses have winter hours; we haven't toured any of those.
In the Loire Valley, you can sample a variety of local wines at the Maisons du Vin in Angers and Saumur. The Angers MdV is located an easy walk from the train station and is right across the street from the chateau, so you could tour the chateau, have lunch, then try several wines and purchase the ones you liked best on-site to take back with you.
For that kind of trip, you wouldn't need a driver, just a round trip ticket on the TGV.
CocofromDijon might give you better leads on where to go in Burgundy. But by car (rather than TGV), it's quite a drive for a day trip.
If you decide to stay in Paris, take advantage of many of the excellent wine bars and base your purchases on what you taste there that you like best. Upscale food stores like Fauchon have their own sommelier and wine bar so you can try and buy without leaving Paris (eight days will whiz by, you may decide you don't want to leave Paris even for a day!).

Thanks BTilke ;-) but I'm not an expert on wine cellars as I don't drink myself.
I would advise to take a TGV (1h40) from Paris and then go with a wine tour company that would pick you up at the station. No stress..
There are at least 2 that had good reviews :
http://www.burgundydiscovery.com/index.php
http://wineandvoyages.com/index.html

hope it helps!
bon voyage et bienvenue en France!
corinne

You could just take the train to Reims and try some champagne and have a nice dinner....

or you could go to Chinon...but it's not really wine tour season.

If you go to Chinon, you won't be able to visit the winery at Couly-Dutheuil (the most popular winery to visit in Chinon and across the street from the castle)...it's most definitely closed after the first week-end in November until spring.

What's the point in going to a winery in the middle of winter, anyway? Nothing will be growing, it won't have beautiful views, etc. Just go to some winebar in Paris and have some tastings of a few wines, and save yourself the trouble. If you want to do more, visit the Wine Museum over in Passy in the 16th.

Here is a good article on some excellent Parisian wine bars:
http://parisvoice.com/02/nov/html/fooddrink.cfm

Here is a company in Paris (O Chateau) that has tastings in a nice venue near the Seine, led by a French sommelier:
http://www.o-chateau.com/en/main/

Here is the wine museum, they also have some tastings and other events you can sign up for:
http://www.museeduvinparis.com

This is the association of vintners in the Ile de France, but I don't think there are great ones to visit nearby
http://www.vigneronsfranciliens.com/

I thnk Chablis is about the closest worth anything (not far from Auxerre), although Suresnes has vineyards and is a Parisian suburb on the Seine. They have a wine festival in October and I guess are the best vineyard in the Ile de France (they say). www.ville-sereesnes.fr

Here is an article on some wine spots, tips, and Ile de France wineries:
http://www.novusvinum.com/features/n...edefrance.html

Woh, thanks one and all. I should have realized that they would all be closed.

I guess one of the reasons we thought winery was to 'get out' and see something other than Paris. What about a drive out to a 'Chateau' or similar for a nice lunch and a 'drive in the country side'?

What do you think the countryside is going to look like in the middle of January? gray and bleak with bare trees, most likely. It could be sunny that day, I know, it's just that touring the countryside in January isn't that appealing to me -- except for areas with hills and snow and thus scenic views for that reason, which leaves out the area around Paris.

You could go to Reims, and visit some champagne houses instead. I think they are open in winter for tastings, and have tours to show you their business. I don't remember the trip between Paris and Reims as being in any way scintillating, though. I went by train, which is easy.

I don't know where would be scenic in January, but Normandy might be a possibility to see the countryside. You could take a trip to Honfleur, that's a charming little seaport village. I would go for that -- I know a cosy little restaurant at the port for lunch and good local cuisine -- Le Chat qui Peche who now have a cute website
www.lechatquipeche.com

The Normandie countryside can be scenic. A car is best to get to Honfleur, though.

that's my idea for the day, maybe someone else will have a suggestion on countryside for day trips around Paris.

Hi AD,

How about taking the train to Chartres.

http://www.chartres.com/va/bienvenu.htm

thanks for your suggestions. Woh, sorry Christina..........I just thought it would be nice to have a good look around, regardless of the weather or the state of the trees. Didn't mean to sound 'dumb'

Thanks Ira, i will check it out.

If you haven't been to Versailles, it's an easy day trip from Paris and very worthwhile any time of the year.

Otherwise, my vote is for Chartres. I think that's where we're going next time we're in Paris.