Plan Your Dijon Wine Tour
Dijon's wine has no gate and no single ticket. The cellars in town sell a seat at a tasting, the vineyards south of the city are open land, and the domains pour on a tour or by appointment. If you are pricing Dijon Wine tickets, decide first how much of your time the wine gets: an evening, a morning, a whole day or two.
Getting to Dijon
You arrive by train more often than not. The TGV from Paris Gare de Lyon takes about an hour and a half, and so does the TGV from Lyon. One operator's own planning note uses the 7:56 am from Paris, in Dijon at 9:29, in time for its 9:45 am start. Check SNCF for your date, because the timetable changes.
| Leg | How | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Paris to Dijon | TGV from Paris Gare de Lyon | About 1 h 30; one operator's example is the 7:56 am, in Dijon at 9:29 |
| Lyon to Dijon | TGV | About 1 h 30, the Cité's own access page says |
| Dijon station to Place Darcy | On foot | A few minutes: Place Darcy sits between the station and the old centre |
| Dijon station to the Cité | On foot, or tram T2 | About 10 minutes' walk; 15 from the old centre |
| Into the vines | A tour's minivan, an e-bike or your own car | Nobody in your party drives after tasting on a tour |
The station sits at the west edge of the old centre, so most kerbs are a short walk from the platform. If you drive in, the tourist office suggests the Trémouille-Marché car park or rue de la Préfecture for the centre. Short answers on trains and kerbs are in the FAQs.
Where do the tours start?
Each shared tour names its own kerb in the centre, and you walk to it. Arrive ten minutes early: two operators ask for that, and a van will not wait long in the square.
| Where you meet | What leaves from it | When |
|---|---|---|
| 16 Place Darcy (Maison Divia) | The Ophorus half-days and full day, the Authentica day, the villages day | 9 am on the full day and the villages day, 9:45 am on the Authentica day; half-days by the slot you book |
| In front of Saint-Bénigne | The À La Française lunch day and its e-bike day | 9:45 am for the lunch day, 9 am by e-bike |
| 78 rue Monge | Both bike days from the Bourgogne Évasion shop | 9:30 am for the e-bike day, 2:30 pm for the city ride |
| The Hôtel du Palais | La Cave du Palais cellar tasting | Five minutes' walk from Place de la République |
| 32 rue Berbisey | Les Caves de La Fine Heure cellar tasting | By the slot you book |
| Opposite Saint-Bénigne cathedral | La Source des Vins, four wines and four cheeses | By the slot you book |
| Your hotel | The vintage van (its reception) and the private days (pickup) | Named on your booking |
The private days collect you instead, in Dijon, Beaune or nearby. Which area of the city puts you closest to your kerb is set out in where to stay.
Can you taste without a tour?
Yes, and in the centre you do not need a car. The Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin is free to enter, and its wine cellar pours 250 wines by the glass from 3,000 references. Its École des vins de Bourgogne runs paid workshops too.
Three cellars in the old centre sell a seated tasting by the slot. La Cave du Palais pours six wines in 90 minutes under the Hôtel du Palais. Les Caves de La Fine Heure on rue Berbisey pours five with a gougère, and La Source des Vins pairs four with four cheeses. All three are on wine tastings in Dijon.
What a glass cannot give you is the vineyards. The domains of the Côte receive visitors by appointment, and a tour books them, drives you there and brings you back.
Opening hours you will need
Three places set their own hours, and two of them change with the season. The tourist office is your walk-in help desk in the centre; the Cité and the Clos de Vougeot are the two wine sights you can visit on your own.
| Place | Where | Open | Good to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dijon tourist office | 11 rue des Forges, in the Palais des États | Mon–Sat 9:30 am–6:30 pm; Sun and holidays 10 am–6 pm | Closes 4 pm on 24 and 31 December; shut 25 December, 1 January and 1 May |
| Cité internationale de la gastronomie et du vin | 12 Parvis de l'UNESCO | Ticket desk daily 9:30 am–7:30 pm from May to September; from October to April Mon–Fri 11 am–5:30 pm, weekends 10 am–5:30 pm | Entry to the Cité is free; exhibitions and workshops are ticketed |
| Clos de Vougeot | Rue de la Montagne, Vougeot | Daily: 9:30 am–6 pm from April to October, 10 am–5 pm from November to March | English guided tour 11:30 am and 3:30 pm, EUR 15 (EUR 7 aged 8–16), book ahead; the desk shuts 30 minutes before closing |
The Clos de Vougeot is the walled vineyard and château of the Cistercian monks on the Côte de Nuits. You can walk in without a tour, and one private day from Dijon includes your entry.
What does a Dijon wine day cost?
The price follows the time you give it. A glass costs you only the glass, and a private car for the day costs about ten times a cellar seat. The table sets the lengths side by side.
| How long | What you pay | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| A glass on your own | Free entry to the Cité; you pay by the glass | 250 wines by the glass at the Cité's wine cellar, no vines |
| A tasting in town | $45 to $63 per person | Four to six wines in a cellar in 1 to 1 h 30, or a city ride with a glass |
| A half-day on the Côte | $112 to $173 per person | Two wineries on one côte in 3 to 4 hours, 8 guests at most |
| A shared full day | $165 to $254 per person | Two or three wineries, usually both côtes, lunch in some fares |
| A day by e-bike | $250 or $579 per person | Riding between cellars, lunch in both fares |
| A private day | $492 to $680 per person | Your party only, hotel pickup, the route built on what you ask for |
| Two days | $1,378 per person | Private, 12 Premiers and Grands Crus, two lunches; hotel and dinners extra |
Tour fares are the operators' own, in US dollars, per person. The tastings are inside every fare except the villages day, which pours nothing. Lunch is in only five fares, so budget for it on the rest.
Would you rather someone else drove?
The half-days and full days leave Place Darcy and Saint-Bénigne in the morning, and the private days collect you from your hotel.
Ages, access and what to wear
Each operator sets its own minimum age, so check your tour before you book a family day.
- Over 18 only: the Cave du Palais tasting and the e-bike day in the Côte de Nuits. Most other shared days are the same.
- Younger riders: the city bike ride pours its glass of Aligoté for over-18s and hands a soft drink to the rest.
- Non-drinkers: the Auxois villages day has no tasting in its fare.
- The Côte de Beaune e-bike day: you must ride safely on your own. It is not for pregnant women, bad backs or low fitness.
Only the two-day private tour says it is wheelchair accessible, with 48 hours' notice; most listings say they are not. For the cellars, wear good shoes and bring a warm layer, and eat a proper breakfast first. The operators warn that the tastings rarely come with food.
Spitting, bottles and carrying them home
You can spit or leave a glass unfinished, and on an eight-wine day it is wise. Cellars and domains sell bottles on the spot, and the fares never include them. Ask about shipping before you buy a case, because the tours carry none home for you.
Frequently asked before you go
Do I need a tour to taste wine in Dijon?
Where do Dijon wine tours start?
Can I join a wine tour from Dijon on a day trip from Paris?
Can I visit the Clos de Vougeot?
Is the Cité de la Gastronomie free?
When is the Dijon tourist office open?
Next: see when to visit Dijon for wine for the seasons and the Hospices sale, compare every tour on Dijon Wine Tours, or read what travellers said in the reviews.