Free Walking Tour Reims: Roman Arch to Coronation Cathedral

Your Reims Walking Tour Stop by Stop: Romans, Saints and Kings

1. 1

   Porte Mars

   

   Start at the oldest stone monument in Reims: a Gallo-Roman triumphal arch, probably from the 3rd century, still standing exactly where it was built. It is 13 metres high, 6.4 metres deep and 32 metres wide, which makes it the widest arch of its kind in the world. Walk around it before you walk through it. Three passages cut through the stone, and both the outer faces and the inner walls of the passages were covered with inscriptions and carved decoration.

   Now look up into the vaults. The carving is badly eroded, but it holds a rare scene: a Gallic harvesting machine, the kind of everyday detail Roman monuments seldom show. Then look down. Deep ruts under the central arch show where carts rolled through, while people on foot used the passages on either side.

   Reims was then Durocortorum, a wealthy city that could afford monuments on this scale. Four gates stood at the ends of its two main axes, the cardo and the decumanus, and this one took its name from a nearby temple to Mars, god of war. From here Roman roads ran to Soissons, Bavay, Laon and Boulogne. One theory says the townspeople raised the arch to honour Emperor Augustus, in thanks for the solid roads the Roman garrison built, and to show off what the alliance with Rome had brought them.

   The arch was later built into the bishops' ramparts and served as a city gate until 1544. In 1817 the buildings crowding around it were pulled down so it could be seen properly, and the open space became the Place de la République. From here it's 780 m, about 10 minutes, to Place Drouet d'Erlon.

   Hours

   Open 24/7 (all day, year-round)

   Price

   Free

   Website

   reims-tourisme.com ↗

   Location

   Porte Mars on Google Maps ↗

2. 2

   Place Drouet d'Erlon

   

   Place Drouet d'Erlon is where Reims comes to sit outside. Locals usually just say place d'Erlon. Most of it is pedestrian and lined with café terraces, and the shopping centre d'Erlon and the Galerie du Lion d'Or open off one half of it. In the middle stands the Fontaine Subé, crowned by a statue known as La Gloire, an easy meeting point.

   Walk its length and you feel the size: 401 metres long and 35 wide, more than 14,000 square metres. That makes it the longest square in France, ahead of the Place de la Concorde in Paris at 360 metres. The name goes back to a statue of Jean-Baptiste Drouet d'Erlon set up in the centre in 1849; it was later moved to the corner of boulevard Victor-Hugo and boulevard Henry-Vasnier.

   The square you see is fairly recent. Work began in November 1991 to dig it out 15.45 metres deep for an underground car park with 650 spaces on five levels, which cleared the cars from the surface. The new pedestrian square opened on 18 December 1993. Since then it has hosted farm weeks, a Ferris wheel for the Christmas market and campaign events, and since late 2019 the Opéraims multiplex, with 11 screens, has stood where the old Gaumont cinema was.

   The ground itself is much older. People lived here in the La Tène period, part of the area lay inside the Gallic oppidum, and in Roman times stone houses lined a street. Once the 3rd-century wall left it outside the town, it became a burial ground; 23 graves were excavated in 1994. The marshy land was long used for vegetable gardens.

   Next comes the longest leg: 2040 m, about 29 minutes, to the Basilique Saint-Remi. If lunch is due, have it here first.

   Hours

   Open 24/7

   Price

   Free

   Location

   Place Drouet d'Erlon on Google Maps ↗

3. 3

   Basilique Saint-Remi

   

   After the cathedral, the Basilique Saint-Remi is the most important church in Reims, and nearly as large. Entry is free, and going in is worth it, especially if you like Romanesque churches: the eleven bays of the nave, with their galleries and side aisles, and the transept go back to the 11th century. The church was built and reworked through the 11th, 12th, 13th and 15th centuries, so you're looking at several building periods at once.

   It holds the relics of Saint Remi, the bishop of Reims who baptised Clovis, king of the Franks, on a Christmas Day sometime between 496 and 506, perhaps in 499. Tradition settled on 496, and Pope John Paul II came to Reims in 1996 to mark 1,500 years since the baptism. Remi died in 533 at the age of 96 and asked to be buried in a small chapel of Saint Christopher, two kilometres from the cathedral. His reputation for holiness and miracles drew pilgrims so fast that monks were installed to guard the body, the chapel was enlarged into a church, and the relics were moved there on 1 October, which became Saint Remi's day.

   Around 760 Abbot Tilpin, who reappears as Turpin in the Song of Roland, founded a Benedictine abbey here, and the monks stayed until the French Revolution. In the 9th century Archbishop Hincmar enlarged and consecrated a Carolingian abbey church, which vanished after the year 1000.

   Abbot Airard then started a vast Romanesque replacement, but the plan was too ambitious, and his successor Thierry scaled it back. What survived is the nave you walk through, which back then had a timber roof. Pope Leo IX consecrated the church in 1049 during the Council of Reims. The abbey has been a listed historic monument since 1840.

   From here it's 1530 m, about 21 minutes, to the Palais du Tau, the archbishops' palace beside the cathedral.

   Hours

   Daily: 08:30–17:00

   Price

   Free

   Website

   catholique-reims.fr ↗

   Location

   Basilique Saint-Remi on Google Maps ↗

4. 4

   Palais du Tau

   

   The Palais du Tau is currently closed, so this is an outside stop, and still worth a pause. This was the residence of the archbishops of Reims, and at coronation time it housed the king. After the ceremony in the cathedral next door, the royal banquet was served in its great hall, the salle du Tau.

   The name comes from that hall's T shape, tau in Greek, and it already appears in a charter of Louis VII in 1138. Back then the palace looked like a fortified house: a thick crenellated wall stood where the wall between the two courtyards runs today, and towers probably ringed the site, though only the Tour d'Éon is recorded in pictures and texts.

   People have lived on this spot since the 5th century, when Bishop Nicaise built a church to Notre-Dame and moved into a Gallo-Roman villa next to it; remains of that villa turned up in excavations in the palace's lower hall. Archbishop Ebbon enlarged the residence in the 9th century, a fire in 1210 probably damaged it badly, and major rebuilding followed at the end of the 15th century and again in the 1680s and 1690s.

   During the Revolution the palace became a law court, then a commodity exchange. On 19 September 1914, early in the First World War, the shelling of the cathedral set it on fire. Restoration began in the 1950s, and since 1972 it has housed the museum of the cathedral and of the coronations of the French kings.

   The cathedral is just 310 m away, about 4 minutes on foot. On the way you pass the Carnegie Library, a lesser-known address worth a glance.

   Status

   Currently closed

   Website

   palais-du-tau.fr ↗

   Location

   Palais du Tau on Google Maps ↗

5. 5

   Reims Cathedral

   

   Reims Cathedral, Notre-Dame de Reims to the French, is where the walk has been heading. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, it was the traditional coronation church of the kings of France, and between 816 and 1825 most of them were crowned here. It ranks among the most important works of Gothic architecture, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991 and draws about a million visitors a year. Entry is free.

   What you see is High Gothic. Building began in the 13th century, after fire destroyed the earlier church in 1210, and was completed in the 14th. The Revolution did little harm, the 19th century brought extensive restoration, and the First World War damaged the cathedral severely, which led to another restoration in the 20th century. Since the 1905 law separating Church and state, the building has belonged to the French state, which pays for its upkeep, while the Catholic Church has exclusive use of it.

   The roots go much deeper. Julius Caesar wrote about Durocortorum, the settlement of a Gallic tribe called the Remes, and in the 3rd century the town was capital of the Roman province of Second Belgium. Saint Sixtus, the first bishop, founded the first church between 250 and 300. In the early 5th century Bishop Nicasius moved the cathedral to this site, once occupied by Gallo-Roman baths built by Emperor Constantine, and about a century later Remi baptised Clovis here, the first Frankish king to receive the sacrament.

   Go inside and take your time: after the Roman arch and the abbey, this is where the city's story of gates, saints and kings comes together. On Sundays, services limit visitors to the narthex, the entrance hall, for part of the day, so choose another day if you want the whole interior. The walk ends here, and the GPS navigation in your browser can take you back to Porte Mars if you need it.

   Local name

   Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Reims

   Hours

   Daily 8:00–19:30 (Sun/holidays until 19:15; admission ends 15 min before closing); Sun until 12:00 access only to the narthex due to services; 1.1 and 25.12 shortened 9:00–12:30 / 14:30–19:15

   Price

   Free

   Website

   cathedrale-reims.com ↗

   Location

   Reims Cathedral on Google Maps ↗

Shorter Walks through Reims

Not every visit has room for the full loop through the city. These three cuts follow the same order and keep the walking short.

Roman Reims and the long square

Stops: 1, 2

For a first look on arrival or an evening stroll that ends at a terrace table. Porte Mars and Place Drouet d'Erlon are 780 m apart, about 10 minutes on foot, and both are free. Allow under an hour, including time to study the carvings in the arch.

The two great churches

Stops: 3, 4, 5

For anyone here for Saint Remi, Clovis and the coronations. From the Basilique Saint-Remi it's 21 minutes to the Palais du Tau and 4 more to Reims Cathedral, 25 minutes of walking in all. Both churches are free to enter, and the Palais du Tau is an outside stop for now. Allow about 1 h 45.

Cathedral quarter only

Stops: 4, 5

For a tight schedule. The Palais du Tau and Reims Cathedral are 310 m apart, about 4 minutes, and the cathedral visit is free. About an hour covers the palace exterior and a proper look inside the cathedral.

How Long This Reims Tour Takes, With and Without Visits Inside

The pure walking time is 1 h 4 min over 4.7 km, and most of it sits in the middle of the route: 2040 m from Place Drouet d'Erlon to the Basilique Saint-Remi (29 minutes) and 1530 m on to the Palais du Tau (21 minutes). The first leg takes 10 minutes and the last only 4.

Count on just under three hours in total: about half an hour inside Saint-Remi, around 45 minutes in the cathedral, and shorter pauses at the arch, on the square and outside the Palais du Tau. A sit-down lunch adds roughly an hour.

The short Roman walk takes under an hour, the churches variant about 1 h 45, and the cathedral quarter on its own about an hour.

Before You Start in Reims

• Start: Porte Mars is the recommended start, but you can join the route at any stop; the order here is simply the one that tells the story best.
• Finish: The walk ends at Reims Cathedral. If you want to return to the start, the GPS navigation in your browser can lead you back to Porte Mars.
• Best time: Late morning works well: you reach Place Drouet d'Erlon around lunchtime and spend the afternoon in the two churches. A weekday or Saturday is easier than a Sunday.
• Admission: All open stops are free, including the Basilique Saint-Remi and Reims Cathedral. The Palais du Tau is currently closed and is seen from outside.
• Water: Carry a reusable bottle and refill it at a fountain, or buy bottled water in a shop.

Food and Breaks on the Walk through Reims

The obvious place to eat is Place Drouet d'Erlon, early in the walk and lined with terraces where locals outnumber visitors. French kitchens keep strict lunch hours, and turning up mid-afternoon can mean being turned away, so eat before you set off on the long leg to Saint-Remi. At the end, the cathedral area has a square where the Champagne trade itself goes for a drink.

Tourist Traps to Avoid in Reims, from Sunday Closures to Souvenir Markups

• Sunday ghost town: On Sundays Reims largely shuts down: very few restaurants open, taxis are hard to find and public transport is limited. If your walk falls on a Sunday, pack food or eat at the train station, and check in advance which champagne houses are open.
• Restaurants and souvenir shops by the cathedral: Tables and shops right next to the cathedral charge for the location. For better value, head to the area around Halles du Boulingrin and rue de Mars; Le Clos, opposite the market, serves tapas with seats on wine barrels. For edible gifts, shop at the market hall or buy Fossier rose biscuits from the factory shop.
• Skip-the-line touts: Street sellers offering priority tickets or group tours are worth ignoring. Both churches on this walk are free, and official museum staff never sell tickets on the pavement.
• Bracelets, roses and petitions: Someone ties a bracelet on your wrist or hands you a free rose, then demands money; clipboard petitions in English work the same way. Both are often a cover for pickpocketing, so keep walking. Be wary too of uniformed pairs asking to check your wallet for fake notes.
• Water at the table and on the street: Waiters may put an expensive bottle of mineral water on the table unasked. Order une carafe d'eau for free tap water instead, and skip the street vendors selling cheap bottles of doubtful origin.

Common Questions about Walking Reims