Best Dog-Friendly Hotels in Champagne

Before you go

What happens when you get there

Getting there

The A26 runs from Calais to Reims, about 270 km and roughly two and three-quarter hours, and Épernay is about 30 minutes further south. Royal Champagne at Champillon sits right on the way between the two. UK dogs need the usual paperwork for entering the EU, so check the current rules before you travel.

Champagne houses

Most of the big houses don't take dogs, and Pommery's Villa Demoiselle is a clear no. Book a grower tasting instead. Gosset, Telmont, G. Tribaut in Hautvillers and Joly-Champagne are listed as dog-welcoming by the Épernay tourist office.

Dogs in restaurants

Dogs are often allowed on the terrace. Book ahead and say the dog is coming. Le Café d'Hautvillers, Clotaire in Hautvillers, L'Atelier by Patrick Baillet in Aÿ, Lez'Arlequins, Chez Max, La Table Kobus and Au Bateau Lavoir in Épernay, and Brasserie du Boulingrin in Reims all welcome dogs. Le Royal at Royal Champagne and the restaurant at LOISIUM don't.

Trams, buses and trains

Reims trams and buses only take a dog carried in a bag or basket, so a medium or large dog can't ride. On regional TER trains a small dog goes in a carrier and a bigger one travels muzzled and on a lead with a paid ticket. The Pass Reims Épernay includes a free return train between the two towns.

Fees

EUR 20 per dog a night at Hôtel Margaux. EUR 25 a stay at La Caserne Chanzy and EUR 30 a stay at the Grand Hôtel des Templiers. EUR 30 a night at Briqueterie, EUR 45 a night at LOISIUM, EUR 50 a stay at Les Crayères, EUR 50 a night at L'Assiette Champenoise and EUR 75 a stay at Royal Champagne. The Grand Hôtel Continental doesn't publish a fee.

Dog services

Call into the Reims tourist office for a free water bowl and a free kit for your dog, with poo bags and treats. In Épernay, Les Balades de Neva do dog walks, day-care and in-room sitting, which frees you up for a cellar tour.

Vineyard walks and events

The vines are working land, so keep dogs on a lead and off the rows, especially at harvest. Some organised vineyard walks ban dogs outright, even on a lead, so check each event before you book.

Best walks

The Parc naturel régional de la Montagne de Reims covers the forest and vineyard slopes between the two towns, and its marked walks take dogs on a lead. In Reims, the Coulée Verte follows the canal and the Vesle through the city, the Parc de Champagne sits beside the Pommery estate on the Boulevard Henry Vasnier, and the Promenades and the Parc de la Patte d'Oie are by the station. In Épernay, walk the Avenue de Champagne and the Marne riverbanks just north of the centre. From Champillon and Mutigny the vineyard tracks run down to Hautvillers and Aÿ.

When to go

Spring and early summer are the easiest, before the harvest crowds. Harvest usually runs from late August to late September, when the region fills up and the vineyards are busy working land, so book early and keep the dog on a lead. Winter is quiet and some grower cellars close or cut their hours, but for a first night off the Calais crossing it works any time of year.