Palais du Tau (Tau Palace)
Next to the cathedral is the Palais du Tau, the former archbishop's palace, which houses treasure from the cathedral including tapestries, sculptures and artefacts from the kings’ coronations including Charlemagne's 9th century talisman. The "Salle du Tau", once used as a banqueting hall after coronations, is particularly noteworthy.
2 place du Cardinal Luçon, (+33 (0)3 26 47 81 79). Closed Mondays.
Musée des Beaux-Arts (Museum of Fine Arts)
The museum is situated in the ancient St Denis Abbey and houses works from the 16th century to the present day. The majority of the collection is made up of paintings, with a good selection of sculptures and furniture. The museum has one of the earliest collections of French paintings from the 19th century, as well as a beautiful collection of paintings from the 17th and 18th centuries. The collection includes an excellent series of landscapes by Corot and some exceptional drawings and paintings by Cranach father and son, Monet, Renoir, Gauguin, Delacroix and Courbet.
Located at 8, rue Chanzy, in the heart of the city, near the Cathedral.
8 rue Chanzy (+33 (0)3 26 47 28 44). Open daily except Tuesday. Small entrance fee.
Saint Remi Basilica (Benedictine Abbey of St Remi)
A Romanesque-Benedictine abbey church, built between 1007 and 1049 to contain the tomb of Saint Remi. Also contains a collection of 12th century stained-glass windows. Place du Chanoine Ladame.
Reims' Museum of Archaeology and History
The museum is housed in the ancient Benedictine Abbey of St Remi, a beautiful building that is well worth a visit in its own right.
The main part of the building was built in the 18th century and there is a magnificent entrance hall to the museum, which features collections from the Prehistoric age to the Renaissance, as well as a section dedicated to military history. There is also a superb collection of tapestries which tell the story of the life of St Remi, the patron saint of the city.
53, rue Simon, (+33 (0)3 26 85 23 36). Open daily. Small entrance fee.
Musée de la Reddition (Museum of Surrender)
Germany signed its surrender to the Allies on May 7th 1945 in an old schoolroom near the railway tracks that had served as Eisenhower's HQ from February 1945. That schoolhouse is now the small but fascinating Musée de la Reddition. A short film and several galleries of photos lead to the glassed-off room with 13 chairs in which the British, French, American, Soviet and German heads of state sat.
Open daily (except Tuesdays and public holidays) 10am–noon & 2–6pm.
Located near the train station at 12, rue Franklin Roosevelt. (+33 (0)3 26 47 84 19).
Hôtel de Vergeur
Contains a museum full of all kinds of beautiful objects, including two sets of Dürer engravings - an Apocalypse and Passion of Christ. Next to the museum there is access to sections of the partly submerged arcades of the cryptoportic which date back to 200 AD. Reims' other Roman monument, the quadruple-arched Porte de Mars, on place de la République, belongs to the same era.
36 place du Forum. Open Tuesday to Sunday 2–6pm.
Ancien Collège des Jésuites (Jesuit College)
The Ancien Collège des Jésuites was founded in Reims in 1606, and the building itself was completed in 1678. Guided tours in French take you round the refectory, kitchens and the beautifully ornate library. The books on the shelves however are false and remain from the filming of La Reine Margot for which they were made.
rue du Grand-Cerf.
Daily guided tours in French.
Centre de l'Automobile (Automobile Centre)
If you are interested in old cars, head for the Centre de l'Automobile where all the vehicles on show are part of the private collection of Philippe Charbonneaux, designer of a number of the postwar classics. In addition to the full-scale cars, there's an impressive selection of models, antique toys and period posters. Open daily except Tuesday 10am–noon & 2–6pm; 84 av Georges-Clemenceau.
