Heading for Châlons, along the vineyards and the canal

This first stage of the Vallée de la Marne à Vélo takes you from Dormans to Châlons-en-Champagne. The route runs alongside the Marne and its lateral canal, offering alternating sections of greenway and low-traffic shared roads, accessible to all cyclists.

Right from the start, Dormans welcomes you with its 14thᵉ century château and its vast 25-hectare park, where gardens, streams and the Memorial to the Battles of the Marne stand side by side, a powerful reminder of local history. The town centre and its narrow streets, as well as thetourist office located within the castle walls, are a good starting point for preparing your itinerary.

Following the Canal Latéral à la Marne, you will pass through a succession of picturesque Champagne villages: from Vincelles to Oeuilly, these small rural hamlets are the discreet expression of an ancient agricultural and wine-growing heritage, where the Marne and the wine-growing hillsides shape the landscape. A little further on, don't hesitate to make a short diversions to Fleury-la-Rivière to enrich your day: it's here, beneath the vines, that you'll find the Cave aux Coquillages, a unique geological site offering a plunge into a 45-million-year-old fossiliferous world of giant shells and fascinating galleries.

The next section takes you into the cradle of Champagne: Cumières, then Hautvillers, an emblematic village linked to the history of Dom Pérignon, and Épernay, the capital of the great Champagne houses. These stages offer a host of wine-tourism stops, cellars and panoramic views over the hillsides listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, perfect for savouring a moment of tasting or discovering the secrets of Champagne wine-making.

Continuing on to Aÿ-Champagne, which has been awarded the Petite Cité de Caractère® label, you enter one of the most emblematic towns in the vineyards. Don't miss the Centre d'interprétation sensorielle des vins de Champagne, an interactive and immersive space that gives you a better understanding of the specific characteristics of the terroir and the subtleties of wine tasting. The road to Châlons-en-Champagne then takes you through more open, agricultural landscapes dotted with quiet villages.