Luxury Accommodation: Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa

The Champagne region is one of the world’s finest wine tourism destinations, and importantly it is very well set up to facilitate visitor experiences. 34,000 hectares of vineyards bless this wine region with scattered cities, towns and small villages to be explored via an easy to use road network, relatively reliable public transport and well set up routes for bicycles and pathways for ramblers.

If you are staying more than one day then unless you are lucky enough to own a holiday home there or have friends / family with a spare sofa bed, you are likely to be requiring somewhere to rest your head for the evening. Nearly all budgets will be catered for from hostels ideal for travellers to the magical locations catering for those never to be forgotten life experiences.

“There is a wide choice of overnight accommodation throughout the Champagne region from AirBnB to Gites de France. If you want to experience camping there are plenty of options, river boat hire too and it is a great destination to explore with a camper van. Countless hotels are at your service and you can stay at many of the Champagne houses who offer over night accommodation.” Christopher Walkey

For this series of articles we want to explore the luxurious side of accommodation in the Champagne region and to start off with we will take a look at a very recent addition. The Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa, opened in 2018, is located only a few minutes away from what many see as the capital of the region, Epernay – Only a 1.5 to 2 hour drive from Charles de Gaulle Airport and if arriving by train you can reach Epernay, via Reims, and have yourself a taxi ride to the hotel.

This luxury hotel destination is positioned a minutes drive from Champillon and its setting on the top of the hillside provides you an open view over the vineyards including those of Hautvillers which is the place where Dom Perignon is buried (Church of Saint Sindulphe).

The design of this hotel is visually pleasing, though I will admit that my only visit to see it was during its construction and I was quite doubtful with the architectural side of things as it appeared to be a somewhat modern, concrete, over sized dwelling that could be a blot on the landscape. I needn’t have been so doubtful in that the architect (Giovanni Pace) certainly knew what he was doing and the amass of glass affording visitors the splendours of the views along with multiple inset gardens really affords the hotel a harmonised presence and a positive addition to the wine tourism of Champagne.

So what splendours does the Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa offer? There are a total of 47 luxurious rooms, each affording you amazing views of the Champagne landscape holding some of the regions most famous vineyards. Prices, as of 2023, seem to commence at 569€ per night and during the peak summer months the main Josephine Suite (1,184-square-foot) comes in at over 1,500€. To be honest, just for the location and views itself, I find this not too expensive! Bookings can be made quite easily via their website.

 

For those wishing to explore restaurant and bar options then you will be at home at the Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa – It is a gastronomy heaven. You’ve a choice of two dining experiences via Le Bellevue Restaurant & Terrace and Le Royal, Etape Gastronomique – If you are after a glass of Champagne and even cocktails then you can head towards the Abysse, Bar & Terrace. For those wishing for a private dinner / tasting then you can hire the The Chef’s table and enjoy the private experience!

 

If you really wish to indulge yourself with all the hotel has to offer then the next stop is the Spa and Wellness facilities:

“Ours is an urban spa experience in the most bucolic of settings. Nowhere else in the Champagne region can you explore the vineyards, then return to a world-class destination spa overlooking the vines. Hand-selected therapists await to pamper, replenish, indulge, and restore you to the healthiest version of yourself with also nine treatment cabins, two swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), steam room, sauna, Jacuzzis, yoga studio, fitness room, beauty bar.” Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa