My fiance and I are going to Paris for our honeymoon and plan to go into the countryside for 3 days to stay in a B%26amp;B and tour the vineyards. We found a beautiful B%26amp;B outside of Avignon that was actually quite reasonable. They asked if we wanted to do the wine tour, which is around $700 USD for both of us for 5 hours. We were both stunned. Is this the norm for wine tours? Is there a way to tour ourselves; maybe rent some bikes and ride from vineyard to vineyard? Any suggestions on areas to go and how much we should expect to pay if we want to go to vineyards.
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Um....Avignon is out in the countryside, but it is also at the opposite end of the country -- at least a 4-hour TGV trip. A good visit, to be sure, but not exactly just on the outskirts of Paris!
You could go to Reims or Epernay, in the Champagne region.
You could go to the Loire Valley, where they produce lovely Sancerres, Vouvrays, and the gorgeous Touraine reds.
There%26#39;s cidre (hard apple cider, absolutely lovely) and Calvados in Normandy (not wine, but worth your attention!).
All are within a couple of hours%26#39; driving time, or a quick hour or so on the train.
You absolutely can rent bicycles and ride -- or you can rent a car. The tourist information offices in each region will have complete information on vineyards (or in Normandy, cidre producers) and there%26#39;s very often a wine road.
You could also rent a car and head out into the country, looking for signs reading %26quot;cave%26quot; or %26quot;degustation - vin a vendre%26quot; (cave, or tasting - wine for sale)
$700 for a day is exorbitant.
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Hi there. Thanks so much for your posting. We actually knew that Avignon was a bit away, but we thought it was more like 2:30-3:00 hours away. We don%26#39;t mind travelling a bit. Do you think it%26#39;s worth it or would we be better to stay closer in one of the places you suggested? Can you recommend any places? Also, would you take the train or rent a car? Thanks again for all of your help. This is our first time going and it%26#39;s a bit overwhelming.
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If you can afford a car, I%26#39;d rent one, simply because it affords you the opportunity to travel from wine village and wine cave as they interest you.
A visit to the Loire can be great, because you can also take in the spectacular chateaux at Chambord and Chenonceau, among others.
A visit to Champagne country is also a great suggestion, though they are a bit opulent for my tastes.
My wife and I personally favor a tour through Burgundy wine villages, like Beaune, Pommard, Volnay, and Santenay. These are very close to each other, and very low-key, down-to-earth opportunities to meet directly with the vintners and sample their wines, both white and red. There%26#39;s a spectacular underground cave tour at Patriarche et Fils in Beaune that is not to be missed, http://www.patriarche.com/uk/index.htm
The A6 autoroute will get you to Beaune from Paris in roughly 3.5 hours. Alternatively, you can take the TGV from Paris to Beaune, and stay in Beaune exclusively, it%26#39;s beautiful, small, lots of great restaurants.
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Avignon is gorgeous and worth a trip -- but not with only 3 days to spend. It%26#39;s 4-5 hours by TGV -- and a 8-9 hour drive from Paris.
I%26#39;d take the train to Reims/Epernay or to the Loire - Blois, Tours, or Amboise - then rent a car at the station for a day or two. Then you can tour and picnic to your hearts%26#39; content for a couple of days, then catch the train back to Paris.
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You can catch the train and go to Burgundy. It%26#39;s beautiful, don%26#39;t miss the canals and Beaume. There are wine tastings everywhere. If you rent a car, you can locate the vineyards on a map. Most all of them have wine tastings throughout the day. Burgundy wines are some of the best produced in France. Beaume is really a lovely town, it has a nice market and wine museum.
Your $700.00 trip must include premium wines and probably lunch.
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You can easily go to vineyards all over France (Loire Valley, very close to Paris, has many) for a fraction of that, but you do it yourself. The $700 probably also includes a lot of guiding...
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For $700, it should include guiding, lunch, and a truckload of wine!
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Take the train to Reims or Troyes. Both are in the champagne area. Reims was the capital of France in the middle ages and it is a mini version of Paris with its own %26quot;Champs Elysee%26quot;, pedestrianised, and its own cathedral. There are plenty of hotels and chambres d%26#39;hote in the area. Go to the local tourist information office and ask for the brochure on the Champagne trails. Hire a car and then drive along one or two of the trails. In each village on the trail there will be a fair number of champagne producers who are open and will welcome you with a free tour and/ or degustation. In this area champagne is the local wine, there are over 3,500 producers of champagne, the majority bottle their own wine, sparkling and still. The country side is very pretty and there are plenty of restaurants for lunch. If you want to be very local, buy some bits for a picnic at the nearest charcuterie and when you stop at a producer, buy at least a half bottle of champagne to accompany your picnique. Be prepared to be amazed at the variations in the champagnes produced by each vineyard, blanc et blanc, blance et noire, methode traditionelle, vintage, rose, etc. At one producer we were invited to taste the owner%26#39;s complete selection of seven wines, five sparkling and two still.
Troyes is slightly smaller and has an exquisite town centre of mediaeval timber buildings. Dining out in a summer evening in Troyes%26#39; mediaeval town centre is memorable.
As you probably speak French, be aware that in the Reims area all vowels are confusingly pronounced %26quot;a%26quot;, so Reims is actually pronounced Rannes.
Bon voyage.
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Avignon IS only 2 hours or so on the TGV, and it%26#39;s a beautiful part of the world. It depends on what time of year you%26#39;re going, though, because it can get very hot and full of tourists. I must say that $700 for a wine tour sounds exorbitant, unless you%26#39;re going to be drinking some extremely rare Chateauneuf du Pape....
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