The Champagne Route: Troyes, Épernay, Reims
June 2026
Dr KathLeen Olive
*** Preliminary Itinerary ***
Explore the fascinating medieval history and superlative food and wine of the Champagne region, in Troyes, Épernay and Reims, from Knights Templar to outstanding stained glass and prestigious wines
OVERVIEW
Discover France’s Champagne district on this new tour, which takes in the best of Épernay’s prestigious wines as well as the fascinating history of Troyes and Reims.
The tour commences in Troyes, conveniently reached by high-speed train from Paris, and surveys the outstanding medieval heritage of this town, once home to an annual medieval currency market. Its half-timbered houses and well-preserved hôtels particuliers testify to the vibrant medieval economy of the town, which became renowned for stained glass. We admire outstanding examples of the medium in Troyes’s Cité du Vitrail museum and on the Stained Glass Route that follows the Aube river, encountering St Bernard’s abbey at Clairvaux and one of the best-preserved headquarters of the Knights Templar.
The second half of the tour is based in Reims, known for its magnificent Gothic cathedral, the traditional location for the coronation of French kings and a UNESCO World Heritage site. We admire fine collections of decorative arts and crafts, collected for centuries by the cathedral’s archbishops, and the fine arts museum with its excellent works by Vouet, Poussin, Delacroix and the Impressionists.
As its name indicates, the Champagne region is one of France’s most important, for its terroir and for the culture of food and wine that it has proudly preserved. From traditional cheese-making in Chaource and along the Marne river to the most prestigious sparkling wines of Épernay, we enjoy tours of wineries and fine meals in distinctive regional restaurants. The winery visits, select fine dining, and museums and galleries are complemented by the knowledge and experience of your tour leader, Dr Kathleen Olive.
Tour Leader
Dr Kathleen Olive is one of Australia’s best-known cultural tour leaders, with over fifteen years’ experience leading tours to Western Europe, North America, Australasia and Japan.
Kathleen has led cultural tours since 2003 and has designed and led a number of successful tours to France, from Burgundy’s medieval history, art and architecture to the birth of modern art in southern France. She is well known for her lectures on history, art and culture at the WEA (Sydney), the Italian Institute of Culture (Sydney), the Art Gallery of NSW and for the Art Society (formerly ADFAS).
Tour participants frequently praise her engaging and attentive leadership of a group.
Highlights
Discover delightful Troyes, a well-preserved town of half-timbered medieval houses and French Renaissance hôtels particuliers
Admire outstanding medieval stained glass, on the Route des Vitrails in and around Troyes
Understand significant figures from the Middle Ages, from Champagne’s merchants to the Knights Templar and St Bernard in Clairvaux
Visit a number of the world’s most prestigious wineries, in the heart of the Champagne-making district at Épernay
Marvel at Reims’ magnificent Gothic cathedral, the traditional place of French kings’ coronation and a repository of outstanding medieval artefacts and architecture
Survey the masters of French art, from Renoir in Bar-sur-Seine to fine collections of painting and sculpture in Reims’ Museum of Fine Arts and Musée Saint-Remi
Questions?
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