Reims; Saturday, 13 April, 2024

I had a quick breakfast in the hotel and after dropping my key off in the express checkout box headed back over to the Gare de l’Est to wait for my TGV out to Reims. When I’d first booked the train I was pretty certain it was going to Strasbourg with just one stop in Reims. When I got to the station there was the Strasbourg train, going direct but leaving two minutes earlier, and on the neighbouring platform and leaving at the advertised time a train direct to Reims only. The Reims train had the same train number as that printed on my ticket, so I joined that service and nothing was mentioned when my ticket was checked.

It was a smooth, and fast, journey across the country, taking just 45 minutes to complete the 160Km from Paris to Reims, which meant I was in Reims just after 11:15 with 45 minutes to spare before I could drop my back off at the hotel, so I went for a wander.

After leaving the station I headed over to the park and gardens that were directly opposite, eventually finding myself in the Jardin d'Horticulture Pierre Schneiter, a pretty formal garden located directly below the railway embankment and hemmed in by the congress centre, canal and office blocks. In mid-April the tulips were in full bloom, as was much of the tree blossom so it was a very pleasant place to spend about an hour wandering around, after which I headed the short distance over to my hotel to checkin and drop off the unneeded contents of my bag.

I freshened up in the hotel before heading back out again and towards the most prominent sight on the city skyline- the two towers of the Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims. After taking in the spectacular external façade of the building I headed inside to have a look around the building which for centuries was used to coronate the Kings and Queens of France until they decided to let them part ways (mostly at the neck).

Having looked around the cathedral I had a bit of a wander around the surrounding area, making sure I was back behind the cathedral in time for the 15:45 sightseeing tour. In a change from many French cities and towns there is no petit-train running around the city, instead there is a mini-bus with a retractable roof – which does make for a much more comfortable and quicker ride, particularly over the cobbles of the old city.

The tour took in many of the key sights of the city, including several of the Champagne Caves that are dotted around the city centre with Reims being an important location in the Champagne trade, with many major brands completing all their fermentation, maturation, mixing, aging and bottling in cellars that stretch for kilometres underneath the city and surrounding hills.

The tour ended up back where it started and from there I retraced some of the steps the route took by heading back through the Place Royale and the Place du Forum to the Cryptoportique. This is a Roman era galleries below the square that may have been used as a storage space for market goods. Today they are normally only open during the height of the summer, but due to an arts festival taking place in the city over the weekend they had been pressed into service to display works – and allowing me to have a look around the site.

After being down in the cellars below the square I headed back up onto the square itself and partook of a glass of beer in one of the cafes that, in the gloriously warm spring sunshine, had spilled out onto the square.

Beer completed I headed out for a bit more of a wander taking in a few different parts of the city including the ruins of a convent and, after heading back past the cathedral, the main streets of the city centre including the spectacular Fontaine Subé. From there I headed back to the hotel to freshen up.

A little later I headed back out in search of some dinner and after eating I went for a wander through the city at night taking some photos of the city in the dark before heading back to the hotel for a well deserved night cap and a good nights sleep.