Discover Reims in a different way with Parisi Tour
Reims is the centre of champagne, and all your favourite houses are lined up for you to visit and taste. What's more, you may not know it, but all the kings of France, from 987 to Charles X in the 19th century, were crowned right here at Reims Cathedral.
The city is also full of little discoveries that will delight you: a museum specialising in a historical event that took place in Reims and changed the world, a Roman arch in the middle of a square, a chapel painted by a great modern artist and an art deco library donated by Andrew Carnegie.
Let's explore the best things to do in Reims:
Reims Cathedral
On the site of 900 years of royal coronations, it's almost breathtaking to think of all the historical figures who have passed through here.
Before entering, see if you can find the smiling angel in the north doorway on the west façade.
This 13th-century sculpture has its own story to tell, as it was decapitated during the German bombardments of 1914 and the fragments became a famous piece of anti-German propaganda in France.
The smiling angel is one of a small army of figures sculpted on the façade, more than in any other cathedral in Europe, with the exception of Chartres.
Finally, for art lovers, the apse features stained glass windows designed by Marc Chagall to replace those damaged during the war.
Tau Palace
The episcopal palace next door houses the cathedral treasury and also plays a role in the coronation ritual. It was here that the king would don his robes and, from 990 to 1825, it was here that the post-coronation banquet was held. The exhibition features an astonishing array of tapestries, reliquaries and statues. Among the must-sees is a 9th-century talisman belonging to Charlemagne.
But nothing can match the importance of the Holy Ampoule: it contained the anointing oil for every coronation, from Louis VII in 1131 to Louis XVI in 1774.
Villa Demoiselle
Next to the Pommery cellars is a magnificent town house built during the transition from Art Nouveau to Art Deco at the beginning of the 20th century.
After being abandoned in the 80s and 90s, it was restored in 2004: Paul-François Vranken, Chairman of Champagnes Vranken, spared no expense in restoring the villa to its Belle Époque splendour. Sublime pieces of furniture and decoration have also been added, including sinuous chairs by Gustave Serrurier-Bovy, and an Emile Gallé cordovan leather ceiling. There is also a fireplace by a pupil of Louis Majorelle, which was exhibited at the 1900 Paris Universal Exhibition.
Basilica of Saint-Remi
This church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is considered a Gothic masterpiece for its sculptural decoration and architecture. Parts of the building are much older than the Gothic period, with the Romanesque nave and transepts dating from the 1000s. Later Gothic additions, such as the choir ambulatory and the façade, are masterful in the way they contribute to a unified whole. The historic relics of the patron saint of Reims can be found inside: Saint-Remi was the bishop known for baptising Clovis, King of the Franks, in the early 6th century.
Champagne houses
You can't come all the way to Reims without visiting at least one of the champagne houses that have called the city home since the 18th century.
The hardest part will be knowing which one to visit: Mumm, Veuve Clicquot-Ponsardin, Tattinger and Ruinart are just some of the prestigious names, and they are all open to visitors. All will take you into the crayères, man-made chalk tunnels that predate the champagne industry and provide the ideal temperatures and humidity for the second fermentation that takes place in the bottle and creates that inimitable fizz.
Ruinart was the first wine producer to set up in Reims, and its tunnels, 40 metres underground, are protected as a historic monument.
6. Museum of Fine Arts
Housed in a former abbey, the Reims Fine Arts Museum is a product of the Revolution: its collection is based on works seized from the region's aristocracy.
Since then, the inventory has been enriched by donations, giving you a comprehensive overview of the main European artistic movements from the 1500s to the 1900s.
It includes paintings by Renoir, Matisse, Monet and Charles Le Brun (who decorated the Château de Versailles). But the museum is best known for its collection of 27 works by 19th-century landscape artist Camille Coroy, the second largest in the world.
7.Mars Gate
There's not much left of Reims' Roman history, but this arch on the Place de la République is as solid as ever.
It was built in the 200s and, at 33 metres long, is the largest Roman arch in the world.
The arch is very worn, but if you know your Roman mythology, you can boast by identifying the reliefs of Romulus and Remus, and Leda and Jupiter.
One of the reasons the Porte de Mars has remained intact is that it was a city gate, and later part of a medieval castle for the archbishops of Reims.
8. Musée-Hôtel Le Vergeur
The Place du Forum is home to a 16th-century town house built by the bourgeois merchant Nicolas Le Vergeur. Before going inside, you can appreciate the gables and half-timbering that cover the stone base. The museum here has received donations from people from all walks of life, so the collection is wonderfully diverse.
It features Gothic and Renaissance furniture, German Meissen porcelain and 19th-century Oriental art. But a must-see is a collection of 50 engravings by the German Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer.
Step out into the courtyard to see historic architectural fragments salvaged from the town, such as the Romanesque arches of a 12th-century Templar church.
9. Hôtel de La Salle in Reims
In the rue Dr Jacquin, the Hôtel de La Salle is a Renaissance-style town house built in the mid-16th century. On the exterior, the influence of classical architecture can be seen in the Doric and Ionic pilasters (ornamental pillars) on the ground and ground floors respectively.
If the name of the building rings a bell, it is the birthplace of John Baptist de La Salle, founder of the very first Catholic schools and patron saint of teachers. There is an exhibition on the Institut des Frères des Ecoles Chrétiennes, and if you enter, you should head for the courtyard, which has an exposed spiral staircase leading up to the turret.
10. Fort de la Pompelle
This fortress was part of the Séré de Rivières national defence system, which France developed in the decades following the defeat of the Franco-Prussian War. Fort de la Pompelle was completed in 1884, was armed with six 155mm Bange cannons and had a company of over 270 men.
Reims saw some of the heaviest fighting of the First World War, but despite almost four years of bombardment, the fortress was never taken.
Today, you can explore the tunnels that were dug during this conflict, and inspect the Freise collection, which includes some 550 German Pickelhaube (pointed) helmets.
There is also a room dedicated to René Dorme, the ace fighter who won 23 victories and died around Reims in 1917.
11. Reims Champagne Automobile Museum
With over 230 cars on display, this museum will give you as clear a picture as possible of the history of the French automobile.
The oldest vehicle dates back to 1908, and what will delight car historians is the number of cars from long-defunct brands such as Salmson, Delage, Berliet and Chernard-Walcker. Some of these are limited editions, and are among the world's last remaining models.
There is also a vast collection of bicycles and a huge assortment of 5,000 miniatures and miniature cars.
12. Place Royale
The most magnificent square in the centre, Place Royale was laid out in 1760 in the neoclassical style, with rooftop balustrades, arcades and cast-iron lanterns.
It was built in honour of King Louis XV, and there is a statue of him dressed as a Roman emperor (no coincidence, as the square stands on part of the Roman forum). The original monument to the king was sculpted by the famous Jean-Baptiste Pigalle, and although his statue of the king was destroyed during the Revolution, the pediment beneath it survives and depicts Pigalle under the protection of the king.
The current statue dates from 1818 and was designed by Pierre Cartellier.
13. Carnegie Library
Reims was one of three towns damaged by the First World War chosen to receive a library from the American philanthropist Andre Carnegie.
The library catalogue includes medieval manuscripts, incunabula (books printed before 1501) and many books printed under the Ancien Régime. Most people only come for the aesthetics: the library was built between 1921 and 1927 and is an art deco marvel.
Admission is free to all, and you'll need to come in for a few minutes of quiet snooping. Admire the mosaics in the reception area, the geometric railings in the Catalogue room, the various stained glass windows and the lantern and fountain below in the hall.
14. Foujita Chapel
In the grounds of the Mumm champagne house, opposite their cellars, there is a magical curiosity to be found. Tsuguharu Foujita was a Japanese painter who spent most of his career in France and was a member of the Paris School.
In the 1960s, he designed this garden chapel and painted the fabulous frescoes that cover the walls inside. Foujita had converted to Christianity ten years earlier and it is surprising to see the Christian themes depicted in his oriental style. A special mention must go to the stained glass windows created by the master builder Charles Marq.
15. Museum of the Surrender
Not everyone knows it, but the official surrender of Germany at the end of the Second World War was signed at the Lycée Franklin-Roosevelt in Reims on 7 May 1945. The museum commemorating the event was opened 40 years later and is packed with military memorabilia, photographs, medals and framed newspapers from that memorable date.
You'll find out which military units were stationed in Reims at the time, and how this technical college was used as General Eisenhower's headquarters. The very room where the document was signed has remained untouched since the surrender 70 years ago.
Would you like to discover the wonderful city of Reims and the surrounding area? Opt for a excursion with Parisitour.
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