Driving in Reims 2026: Crit'Air Tightened Step by Step
Reims, France · ZFE
Reims — the capital of Champagne, where French kings were crowned in a magnificent Gothic cathedral and where the great Champagne houses keep their cellars in chalk tunnels under the city — runs a Crit'Air ZFE (foreign cars included) with fines of EUR 68-135. The centre around the cathedral is walkable. Park in a garage and walk; keep the car (with a designated driver) for the Champagne route through the vineyards.
Locally the zone is called Zone a Faibles Emissions Reims (France) — that is the wording on the boundary signs, on the official portal and on any penalty notice, so it is the phrase to search for once you are there.
Next
- Check your own car against Reims — enter your fuel and Euro class, get a yes or no in one step.
- Reims has a zone too — the nearest one to Reims, and the rules are not identical.
- If a fine arrives after you get home — who pays on a hire car, and what is actually enforceable across borders.
Can your car enter Reims?
Reims phased its ZFE in rather than launching it all at once: Crit’Air 5 vehicles were excluded from January 2022, with Crit’Air 4 following a year later, and today’s fines run EUR 68-135 for cars without a valid sticker. Order the Crit’Air ahead of arrival and park in a garage near the coronation cathedral. Several grandes maisons, among them Taittinger and Ruinart, still age their Champagne in chalk crayères tunnelled beneath the streets.
This page covers driving around Reims. For the emission classes and zone boundary, see the Reims ZFE details.
Crit’Air, garage, walk the centre
Order the Crit’Air sticker ahead (certificat-air.gouv.fr); without it the ZFE fine is EUR 68-135. Park in an underground garage and walk the compact centre around the coronation cathedral. France’s limits: 50 km/h urban, 0.05% alcohol.
The car’s job: the Champagne route
Some grandes maisons (Taittinger, Pommery, Ruinart) have central cellars to tour. Keep the car for the vineyard route toward Épernay and the grand cru villages — with a designated driver for the tastings. Paris is 45 minutes by fast train.
Speed limits, fines, equipment & license requirements
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Winter tyres in France — 2026–27 season
Winter tyres are required in France whenever conditions are wintry — 1 Nov - 31 Mar (mountain law, designated departments).
- Tread minimum: 1.6 mm — France sets no separate winter figure.
- Accepted marking: M+S or 3PMSF
- Studded tyres: restricted
- Penalty: Not published by the French authorities. Note: the obligation is only enforceable where the B58/B59 signs have actually been installed (Code de la route art. D. 314-8).
In French the rule is pneus hiver, and snow chains are chaînes à neige — that is the wording on signs, in hire-car paperwork and on any penalty notice.
Verified against national legislation, August 2026 · Full France tyre law · Compare all countries
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Reims's ZFE requires a Crit'Air windscreen sticker for all cars, including foreign-registered ones, with the most polluting classes restricted. Order it ahead from the official site (certificat-air.gouv.fr), as it arrives by post. Driving in the zone without a valid sticker risks a EUR 68-135 fine.
Several of the grandes maisons — names like Taittinger, Veuve Clicquot, Pommery and Ruinart — have cellars in Reims itself, many in ancient chalk tunnels (crayères) beneath the city, and offer tours and tastings, usually by appointment. Some are walkable from the centre; others are a short drive. If you're tasting, use a designated driver or a tour, given France's 0.05% alcohol limit.
Notre-Dame de Reims is where almost all the kings of France were crowned, a masterpiece of Gothic architecture and a UNESCO site, famous for its sculpture (the 'smiling angel') and its Chagall stained glass. It stands in the centre, walkable from the garages, and is the city's centrepiece alongside the nearby Palais du Tau and the Basilica of Saint-Remi.
Use an underground garage near the centre, then walk. The cathedral and the central streets are compact and walkable. For the Champagne cellars, some are central and some on the edge of the city; for the vineyard route beyond, you'll want the car. Parking centrally and walking the core, then driving out for the vineyards, works well.
Not for the city — the walkable centre and the tram cover it, and Reims is about 45 minutes from Paris by high-speed train. A car helps for the Champagne route through the vineyards toward Épernay and the grand cru villages, driven out from a central garage with a designated driver for tastings.
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