Champagne wine tourism boosted by Unesco listing

n July 4, the villages, hillsides and cellars of Champagne will be celebrating the tenth anniversary of their Unesco World Heritage listing. The occasion provides an opportunity for Séverine Couvreur, chair of the Unesco Mission “to measure its impact on our region and learn lessons for the future”. A survey conducted among 600 participants – elected representatives, industry members and local residents – has confirmed that the results are very positive. The listing’s leading contribution is that it has led to an increase in tourist numbers.

In Reims, the number of tourists rose by over 60% between 2016 and 2023, increasing from 1.1 million to 1.8 million annual visitors. In Hautvillers, the Marne village where Dom Pérignon ‘invented’ Champagne, the number of visitors has more than doubled, with 162,000 visitors in 2024 compared with 72,500 in 2016. More than one in two tourists is aware of the Unesco World Heritage listing of the Champagne wine region. Foreign tourists mainly come from Germany, the Netherlands and England, followed by Belgium, the United States and Italy. The number of tourism-related jobs – hospitality, accommodation, activities and transportation – increased by 30% in Marne from 2016 to 2023, by 33.8% in Aube and by 39.9% in Aisne.

In order to support the development of tourism, 74% of industry members questioned reported they had made at least one investment aimed at renovating or modernising their infrastructures, 61% provided new tourist activities and 31% created new communications media. High-end choices were expanded, including the Royal Champagne opened in Champillon and the Loisium in Mutigny. Champagne houses also invested in wine tourism. The new Ruinart pavilion in Reims now even features on Time Magazine’s list of the 100 Greatest Places in the World.