Video: Reims Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims)

We visit the magnificent 800-year-old Reims Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims), a Gothic masterpiece where the Kings of France were crowned, before some free time perhaps to wander around this delightful city with its grand squares and elegant shopping arcades.

Reims is famous for two very important things. It is the capital of the Champagne Region and its center is marked by the Reims Cathedral of coronations. The city is named for Saint Rémi, the Bishop of Reims, who in the year 498 baptized Clovis, the King of the Franks, in an act that gave birth to the French Nation. Starting in 815 Reims’ famous Cathédrale Notre-Dame was the location of the French King’s coronations until 1825.

Reims Cathedral is considered by many to be the most perfect Gothic church in the world. It was almost completely destroyed in the battles of World War I, but remained almost untouched in WWII, and has since been completely restored. From Louis VII to Charles X, the kings of France made it a point of honor to be crowned in the city where the history of the country really began.

Beneath the town and its suburbs, there are endless caves for champagne. Champagne Cellars of Reims include Maison de Pommery, Maxims, Mumm, Piper-Heidsieck, Ruinart, Taittinger and Veuve Clicquot-Ponsardi

Read more about Reims >