Grand Est is the region of north-eastern France formed in 2016 from Alsace, Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne, and it borders Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and Switzerland. It holds three very different trips: Alsace, with Strasbourg and the half-timbered wine villages below the Vosges; Champagne, with the chalk cellars of Reims and Épernay and the cathedral where the kings of France were crowned; and Lorraine, with the 18th-century squares of Nancy, the Centre Pompidou-Metz and the First World War battlefield of Verdun.
must30 covers Strasbourg and the Alsace Wine Route on their own pages, and the France page has the Strasbourg Christmas market, Riquewihr and a champagne cellar in Épernay. This page adds two stops on the road from Paris to Alsace: Reims cathedral, with its coronation history and Chagall windows, and the Verdun battlefield, from the memorial to the Douaumont Ossuary.
See the coronation cathedral of Reims and its Chagall windows
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims, Reims
One to two hoursFree
All but seven French kings since Henry I were crowned here, among some 2,300 statues and three deep-blue Chagall windows.
What it is
Notre-Dame de Reims is where the kings of France were crowned: from Henry I in 1027, all but seven of them were anointed here, Charles VII on 17 July 1429. The present cathedral was begun after a fire in 1210 and is one of the great works of Gothic art, with some 2,300 statues. German shells set the roof on fire in September 1914, and in 1962 de Gaulle and Adenauer sealed Franco-German reconciliation here. In the axial chapel, three windows by Marc Chagall from 1974 glow deep blue, flanked by Imi Knoebel's windows of 2011.
How to do it
Entry is free, every day from 08:00; doors close at 19:30, or 19:15 on Sundays, when only the narthex is open until noon.
Good to know
Look for the Smiling Angel, the emblem of Reims, on the left-hand portal of the west front.
Time needed
One to two hours
Best time
A sunny weekday morning, for the light through the glass
Mémorial de Verdun and Douaumont Ossuary, Fleury-devant-Douaumont
A full dayNo booking needed
Some 300,000 men died on less than 20 square kilometres of hills in the longest battle of the First World War.
What it is
The Battle of Verdun, from 21 February to 18 December 1916, was the longest of the First World War, and on less than 20 square kilometres of hills north of the town some 300,000 men died.
How to do it
Start at the Mémorial de Verdun, built on the site of the station of Fleury-devant-Douaumont. Then visit the Fort de Douaumont, and the Fort de Vaux. End at the Douaumont Ossuary, where the bones of at least 130,000 unidentified French and German soldiers can be seen through small windows at its base, above the white crosses of the national cemetery. The Meuse TGV station is 25 km away, so come by car or on a tour.
Good to know
From 21 September to 31 December 2026 the memorial and both forts open 09:30 to 17:30, and combined tickets are valid for 48 hours.
Eight Christmas markets across Strasbourg's old town island, with vin chaud in a deposit cup and calmer weekday evenings.
What it is
Strasbourg's market claims a tradition going back to 1570, and in 2026 it runs from 27 November to 24 December. It is not one market but eight, spread across the Grande Île, the island that holds the old town: the Christkindelsmärik on Place Broglie, the stalls around the cathedral, La Petite France, the great tree on Place Kléber, a market of Alsace producers and the alternative Marché OFF among them. More than 300 wooden chalets sell food and crafts.
How to do it
Leave the car behind: the city publishes its own guide to getting around without one. Vin chaud is served in a cup with a small deposit, refunded when you hand it back.
Good to know
Expect security checkpoints on the way into the Grande Île. Weekday evenings are far calmer than Saturdays.
Time needed
An evening, or a day with the old town
Best time
A weekday evening, 27 November to 24 December 2026
Follow the wine road to walled Riquewihr and taste in a winegrower's own cellar, under the grand cru slopes above the village.
What it is
The Route des Vins d'Alsace is a signposted road of about 170 km from Marlenheim, west of Strasbourg, to Thann in the south, opened in 1953. Riquewihr is the centrepiece, a walled village on the Plus Beaux Villages de France list, its main street running from the town hall gate to the 13th-century Dolder tower, now a small history museum with a view over the roofs. The slopes above the village are two grand cru vineyards, Schoenenbourg and Sporen.
How to do it
Do not try to drive all of it in a day: the cluster of villages around Colmar, which makes a good base, is the stretch to choose. From April to October a small tourist train leaves from the town hall for a loop through the vines.
Good to know
Taste in a winegrower's own cellar rather than a shop on the main street.
For a first trip, Alsace is the heart of the region: two days in Strasbourg and two or three on the wine route from Colmar. Add Reims for its cathedral and champagne houses if you come from Paris, since it lies on the way, and Verdun if the First World War matters to you; give it a full day. Nancy and Metz suit a second visit.
How to combine them
Reims is about 45 minutes from Paris Est by TGV, so it works as a day trip or as the first night on the way east. Verdun lies between Reims and Metz, about 1 hour 15 minutes from Reims by motorway, and Strasbourg is about 2 hours 30 minutes from Verdun. Reims, Verdun, Strasbourg and Colmar make a week by car from west to east; by train, base yourself in Reims and Strasbourg and take a car or a tour for Verdun.
Getting around
TGVs from Paris Est serve Reims, Metz, Nancy, Strasbourg and Colmar, and the Meuse TGV station lies 25 km from Verdun. Regional TER trains link Strasbourg with Colmar, Sélestat and Obernai. The Verdun battlefield and the wine villages are far easier with a car, since the sites are spread out and buses are few.
When to go
May to October for the vineyards, the battlefield and long evenings; the harvest falls in September and October in both Champagne and Alsace. From late November, Strasbourg, Colmar and the Alsace villages hold their Christmas markets, the busiest weeks of the year in the region. The Verdun sites stay open almost all year but close on 24 and 25 December and 1 January.
Questions travellers ask
Is Reims worth a day trip from Paris?
Yes. The TGV from Paris Est takes about 45 minutes, the cathedral is free and open every day from 08:00, and the champagne houses run cellar tours. The Palais du Tau next door, with the coronation treasury, is closed for works until 2027.
How much time do you need at Verdun?
A full day for the Mémorial de Verdun, the Fort de Douaumont, the Fort de Vaux and the Douaumont Ossuary; combined tickets for the memorial and the forts are valid for 48 hours. The sites are spread over the hills north of the town, so come by car or on a tour.
Should I base myself in Strasbourg or Colmar?
Strasbourg for the city itself, its museums and its links to Germany; Colmar for the wine villages, Eguisheim, Kaysersberg and the Haut-Kœnigsbourg. They are about half an hour apart by regional train, so many visitors split their stay between the two.
When are the Christmas markets in Alsace?
From late November to late December. In 2026 Strasbourg's market runs from 27 November to 24 December; Colmar and many wine villages hold their own over the same weeks, so book rooms early.
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