Visiting Burgundy during harvest means arriving while the grapes are picked and taken back to the winery. The BIVB places the harvest in September or October, and in 2023, 2025 and 2026 it started in August.
Most Burgundy harvests are done by hand, though some wineries use machines. Some estates welcome visitors during the picking weeks for a special tasting or a morning in the vines, while others close or receive visitors only by appointment.
This page covers how the dates are set, how to get there from Paris, which estates stay open, what harvest visits cost and what to watch for on the roads.
When the harvest happens
There is no fixed start date. Until 2008, a prefectural decree set the harvest date in Bourgogne. Now each winegrower decides when to pick, depending on the ripeness of the grapes and the weather, and growers walk through the vines tasting the berries to judge it.
The Beaune tourist office says each domaine's start depends on the soil, the vintage and the grape variety. The harvest generally begins in September, usually lasts 10 to 15 days and needs about twenty pickers.
Start dates in recent years, from the BIVB:
- 2023: picking began at the end of August, in a heat wave unprecedented for the season, and ended in the third week of September.
- 2024: the Crémant plots were picked from September 2, and still wines started gradually during the second week of September.
- 2025: the Crémant de Bourgogne harvest began on August 18, the first still-wine plots followed a few days later, and the harvest was finished everywhere just after mid-September.
- 2026: Bourgogne harvested earlier than ever, from August 8 for Crémant de Bourgogne and a few days later for still wines, after a very dry and very hot season.
One estate's calendar
At Château de Meursault, which farms 65 hectares, the team began taking maturity samples from its 80 plots on August 8, 2025. Picking began on August 22, 2025, in Beaune Toussaints, Volnay Clos des Chênes and Meursault Perrières, and ended on September 4, 2025, with the Savigny reds. In 2024, the estate picked from September 16 to September 25.
A picker's day
Pickers cut the bunches into baskets, and porters collect them. The day starts around 7:30 a.m. After about two hours, the estate provides coffee, red and white wine and a snack. Lunch is around 12:30 p.m. and lasts about an hour, and the day ends around 5 p.m. Some pickers also work at the sorting table.
Domaine Rion in Vosne-Romanée, in the Côte de Nuits, has at least 40 people helping at harvest, and all the work is done by hand. Around 3 weeks of work in the winery follow.
The harvest ends with the Paulée, a meal shared by pickers, winemakers and friends, where the estate's wines are tasted.
Getting there
The fastest route from Paris is the direct TGV from Gare de Lyon to Mâcon-Loché TGV, in 1 hour 30 minutes. Direct TGVs from Gare de Lyon reach Dijon in 1 hour 35 minutes, and the fastest journey to Beaune takes 2 hours 15 minutes with a change at Dijon.
| Option | From | To | Time | Changes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Direct TGV | Paris Gare de Lyon | Mâcon-Loché TGV | 1h30 | 0 |
| Direct TGV | Paris Gare de Lyon | Dijon | 1h35 | 0 |
| TGV then TER | Paris Gare de Lyon | Beaune | 2h15 | 1 at Dijon |
| TER | Paris-Bercy | Auxerre-Saint-Gervais | 1h45 | Direct or 1 |
From Dijon, the TER to Beaune takes 18 minutes at fastest, and the line toward Mâcon stops at Gevrey-Chambertin, Nuits-Saint-Georges and Beaune. Gevrey-Chambertin is 15 km from Dijon, under 10 minutes by TER.
Mobigo bus line 113 runs from Dijon to Beaune through Côte de Nuits villages including Gevrey-Chambertin, Vougeot and Vosne-Romanée. Bus line E links Mâcon-Loché TGV with Mâcon-Ville station.
Chablis has no station. It is 20 km from Auxerre, and the Chablis wine board says to rent a car at the station. For more, see Paris to Beaune by train, Getting to Chablis and Burgundy without a car.
When to go
Plan for late summer and keep your dates flexible: from 2023 to 2026, the first grapes were picked between August 8 and September 2.
The Beaune tourist office calls September and October a lively time, when the vines turn gold and red. It also says some estates are less available then because of the harvest and work in the cellars. In winter, from November to March, fewer wineries are open.
In Chablis, the harvest falls between September and October, when the grapes reach the desired ripeness. Every year, visitors from all over France and elsewhere in Europe come to pick there by hand.
Fall events in 2026 and every year:
- Foulée des vendanges, Savigny-lès-Beaune: on October 17, 2026, from the Château de Savigny, with children's races of 1 or 2 km, a 5 km race for women, a 10 km race and a half-marathon.
- Auxey-Duresses: every year on the fourth weekend of October, the village opens its cellars to the public.
- Fête des Vins de Chablis: October 24 and 25, 2026, with about forty winegrowers.
- Hospices de Beaune wine sale: the 166th sale takes place on November 15, 2026, and Beaune's tourist offices open Friday to Sunday over the sale weekend, November 13–15, 2026.
Visiting the estates
At harvest time, visits range from harvest experiences to year-round tastings. The Beaune tourist office advises booking activities in advance and adds that some estates accept visits without booking.
Harvest experiences
Some estates around Beaune welcome visitors during the harvest for a special tasting with a tour of the winery, the cuverie (vat room) or the vineyard plots. Some winemakers invite visitors to pick alongside the seasonal grape pickers, for a morning or a full day, with a tasting.
Château de Pommard runs a Vendanges (harvest) experience of 3 hours, available only in September. All its experiences are by reservation only. The château opens every day from April 1 to November 30, 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. A restoration project is under way, and its cellars can't be visited.
Estates that close or change their hours
Domaine Baptiste Guyot, at 48 rue du faubourg Saint Martin in Beaune, closes during the grape harvest, in August and between Christmas and New Year's Day. When open, it runs a tasting tour of about 1 hour, with two whites, two pinot noirs and a tour of the estate and cellars, for 20 people per time slot.
Domaine Antoine et Laura Robin, on avenue d'Oberwesel in Chablis, normally opens Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. During the harvest, it receives visitors by appointment only, on 03 86 51 65 52.
Open through the picking weeks
- Château de Meursault, Meursault: open every day from May to September, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tastings without a reservation run on the terrace or in the lounges every day, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., subject to availability. The booked Grands Terroirs visit covers the château and cellars with 7 wines, for 12 people at most.
- Caves Patriarche Père & Fils, Beaune: at 5 rue du Collège, a self-guided cellar tour followed by 6 wines tasted with sommeliers, about 1 hour, with no reservation needed and 10 people per departure. Visits run every day from January 2 to December 30, 2026.
- Maison Joseph Drouhin, Beaune: tastings, visits and vineyard tours by vehicle or electric bicycle on reservation. Its Oenothèque at 1 place du Général Leclerc opens Monday to Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Château du Clos de Vougeot: built in the 12th century by the monks of Cîteaux Abbey, it opens 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. from April 1 to October 31, and the self-guided visit needs no reservation.
Côte de Nuits by appointment
In the Côte de Nuits, Domaine René Leclerc in Gevrey-Chambertin receives visitors by appointment at two times, 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., with four wines. Domaine Henri Gouges in Nuits-Saint-Georges prefers appointments and opens Monday afternoon to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Jean-Claude Boisset – Les Ursulines in Nuits-Saint-Georges runs a daily guided tour and tasting by appointment only, in French and English, lasting 1 hour 30 minutes, for 12 people at most.
Chablis and the Mâconnais
La Chablisienne's cellar in Chablis opens all year, and all its formulas are by reservation. Chablis grapes are picked by hand or by machine, and machine harvesting uses high-clearance tractors.
In the Mâconnais near Mâcon, Domaine Auvigue's Initiation en Mâconnais in Fuissé takes place in a winery set in a renovated 12th-century Romanesque church, with an aroma workshop and 4 wines, in about 1 hour 30 minutes. Reservation is required.
The Cité des Climats et vins de Bourgogne has sites in Beaune and Mâcon, and its visitor trail includes a tasting of wines or fruit juices. The Beaune site opens daily, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. from June to September and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in October and November. The Mâcon site opens Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., from March 1 to November 5.
The BIVB's online search covers more than 260 tourist cellars with the Vignobles & Découvertes label and filters by village, the dates of your stay and languages spoken. For appointment etiquette and fees, see Booking Burgundy domaine visits.
What it costs
Visits and tastings at the estates on this page cost €6.50–100 ($7–108). La Chablisienne's Discovery costs €6.50 ($7), René Leclerc's visit €20 ($22), Henri Gouges' Découverte €20 ($22), Patriarche €25 ($27) and Château de Pommard's Discover Burgundy Tasting €30 ($32).
Château de Pommard's Vendanges experience costs €100 ($108). Its other experiences cost €35 ($38) for Bourgogne, €60 ($65) for Gourmet and €80 ($86) for Clos Marey-Monge, and the Jeunesse experience for ages 5 to 17 costs €5 ($5).
At Château de Meursault, walk-in tasting packages start at €35 ($38), and the Grands Terroirs visit costs €59 ($64). Henri Gouges' tastings run €20 ($22), €45 ($49) and €75 ($81), and Jean-Claude Boisset charges €15 ($16) for a tasting and €35 ($38) or €50 ($54) for a tour and tasting.
In the Mâconnais, Domaine Auvigue's Initiation costs from €25 ($27), and the VitiPass costs from €35 ($38) per adult, with one tasting for 2 people at each of 3 partner wineries, collected at the Mâcon tourist office.
The Cité des Climats et vins de Bourgogne costs €14.50 ($16) for adults in Beaune and €9.50 ($10) in Mâcon. The Clos de Vougeot self-guided visit cost €12 ($13) for adults at 2025 rates.
Before you go
- Share the roads and vineyard paths with care: in September and October, wine-making machinery is at work, and some estates are less available.
- Expect some estates to close or switch to appointments during the harvest, as Domaine Baptiste Guyot and Domaine Antoine et Laura Robin do.
- Keep your dates flexible: there is no fixed harvest date, and each grower picks when the grapes are ripe.
- Spit or choose a designated driver if you are driving between estates.
For the wider region, see Burgundy.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Burgundy harvest?
The BIVB places it in September or October, but recent years have started earlier. In 2026, Crémant de Bourgogne picking began on August 8, the earliest on record. In 2025, it began on August 18 and ended just after mid-September, and in 2024 it began on September 2.
Can I pick grapes in Burgundy as a visitor?
Yes, at some estates. Some winemakers around Beaune invite visitors to pick alongside the seasonal pickers for a morning or a full day, with a tasting. Château de Pommard runs a 3-hour Vendanges experience in September for €100 ($108), by reservation.
Are Burgundy wineries open during the harvest?
Some stay open. Château de Meursault opens every day from May to September, and Caves Patriarche in Beaune runs walk-in cellar visits every day. Some estates are less available, though: Domaine Baptiste Guyot in Beaune closes during the harvest.
What is a Paulée?
The Paulée is the meal that ends the harvest in Burgundy. Pickers, winemakers and friends gather to eat together and taste the estate's wines after the last grapes are picked.
