Gîtes and Villas in Champagne

Champagne is the home of the world's most celebrated sparkling wine, where centuries of winemaking tradition meet surprisingly accessible day-to-day French life. The region centres on Reims, a city of genuine historical weight — French kings were crowned in its cathedral for eight hundred years — and the landscape beyond is a gentle patchwork of vine-covered slopes, quiet market towns, and beech forests. Self-catering stays here put you within easy reach of the famous champagne houses, but also give you time to explore at your own pace, shop in local markets, and experience a working wine region rather than just a tourist circuit.

The region sits comfortably within a two-hour drive of Paris or three hours from Calais, making it a practical first or last stop on a longer French itinerary, or a long-weekend destination in its own right. You'll find the gîtes near Reims and across the surrounding countryside offer a quieter, less touristy base than the capital, with genuinely good-value eating and drinking once you step away from the most famous cellar doors.

About Champagne

Champagne's character is shaped by its dual identity: a serious wine region with global prestige, and a historically significant corner of north-eastern France that has seen more than its share of conflict and reconstruction. Reims itself was heavily damaged in the First World War, then rebuilt with a mix of Art Deco civic buildings and careful restoration of its medieval core. The result is a city that feels both practical and quietly grand, with wide boulevards, a thriving student population, and a working-week rhythm that doesn't revolve entirely around tourism.

The countryside around Reims is where the famous grapes grow — mostly Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier on chalky soils that have been worked for centuries. The landscape is gently rolling rather than dramatic, with villages strung along the slopes and the occasional surprise: the Faux de Verzy, for instance, is a small nature reserve where twisted, umbrella-shaped beech trees grow in contorted shapes that have puzzled botanists for generations. It's a reminder that Champagne has more to offer than cellars and tasting rooms.

People stay in this area for the champagne houses, certainly, but also for the slower pace and the sense of being somewhere real. Markets like the Halles Boulingrin in Reims are genuinely local affairs, not staged for visitors, and the restaurants and bakeries reflect everyday French standards rather than tourist-menu compromises. The self-catering options on this page make a good base for exploring the vineyards, the cathedral, and the surrounding countryside without the formality or expense of a city-centre hotel.

Things to do in Champagne

The Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims is the obvious starting point — a vast Gothic cathedral where most French kings were crowned, with some of the finest medieval stained glass in Europe and a façade covered in sculpture that rewards a long, slow look. Nearby, the Basilique Saint-Remi is a quieter Romanesque church with beautiful cloisters and the tomb of the saint who baptised Clovis, the first Christian king of the Franks, in 496.

The champagne houses themselves are the main draw for many visitors. Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin operates a visitors' centre where you can tour the cellars and learn the story of the widow who transformed the family business in the early 19th century, while Champagne Taittinger offers tours of its extensive chalk cellars, parts of which date back to Roman times. Both require advance booking, especially in summer and autumn.

For a break from wine, the Porte de Mars is an imposing Roman triumphal arch that once marked the main road into the ancient city — it's the widest surviving Roman arch anywhere and sits unexpectedly in the middle of a roundabout. The Faux de Verzy nature preserve, about half an hour's drive south, is worth the detour for its strange, stunted beech trees and the quiet walking trails through the forest. Back in Reims, the Place Drouet d'Erlon is the main café-lined boulevard where locals gather in the evenings, and the Parc de Champagne offers green space and views over the vineyards if you need a breather from the city.

Food & drink

Champagne is, unsurprisingly, the drink to try — but beyond the famous labels, look for smaller grower-producers (récoltants-manipulants) who make wine from their own grapes and often offer better value than the big houses. The local food is hearty rather than refined: expect charcuterie, potted meats, and dishes with mustard and cream. Biscuits roses de Reims — dry, pink biscuits traditionally dunked in champagne — are the local speciality, sold in pink tins at bakeries and markets.

The Halles Boulingrin is Reims' covered market, a striking 1920s Art Deco building where local producers sell cheese, fruit, vegetables, and prepared foods on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday mornings. It's the best place to stock up for self-catering and to see what's actually in season. The surrounding region produces Chaource, a soft, creamy cheese with a white rind, and you'll find good examples at the market or in local fromageries.

Getting there

Champagne is well-positioned for British travellers. Paris Charles de Gaulle airport is 106 kilometres away, roughly an hour and a quarter by hire car via the A4 autoroute, or you can take the TGV from the airport's train station to Reims in about 40 minutes. If you're arriving by Eurostar, Paris Gare du Nord is 121 kilometres distant — change onto a direct TGV to Reims, which takes about 45 minutes.

Driving from Calais — whether via Eurotunnel, DFDS, or P&O ferries — is 260 kilometres, roughly two and a half to three hours on mostly motorway. The route is straightforward: A26 south, then A4 east towards Reims. It's a manageable drive on the same day you cross, or a comfortable first overnight stop if you're heading further south or east.