Champagne tourism route celebrates 70 years

In Australia, along with many other wine producing countries, wine tourism is a recent arrival.

In the Hunter Valley 40 years ago there was barely anywhere to stay other than a couple of motels in Cessnock.

Now wine tourism is massive from the US to South Africa, Argentina to Italy.

In some parts of Europe - definitely not all - wine tourism has been a thing for quite a while.

This year, for instance, marks the 70th anniversary of the Route Touristique du Champagne, the tourist trail of Champagne.

The route is made up of several well-signposted circuits that take visitors through the different terroirs of the appellation - and every turn has its own potential Champagne discovery.

The routes include the Montagne de Reims; the Marne Valley; the Coteaux Vitryats; the Côte des Blancs and the South Slopes of Epernay; the Coteaux du Sézannais and Petit Morin; the Massif of St Thierry and the Ardre Valley; the Marne Valley West and finally the Côte des Bar.

There are a number of events taking place throughout the year to mark the anniversary and these will be posted via most Champagne social media networks and via this link: https://www.tourisme-en-champagne.com/