How to Visit the Beaujolais in 2026: Lyon, the Kerbs and a First Day's Budget
The short answer. There is no gate and no ticket for the Beaujolais. It is a wine region that starts less than half an hour's drive north of Lyon, and you visit it on a day that starts in the city: at a kerb on Place Bellecour, at your hotel door, or off a short train to a station in the vines. Choose the half first, the golden-stone south or the crus of the north, then the length of the day. A shared half day costs from $112 with the tastings in the fare.
The Beaujolais at a glance
Most first visits stumble on one of three things: the wrong half of the region, the wrong kerb, or the wrong idea of what a fare includes. The table covers all three. Searching for Beaujolais tickets? There is no ticket office to buy them at, so the fares side by side are the closest thing.
| What | The figure | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Distance from Lyon | Under a 30-minute drive to the vines | A half day leaves you the rest of the day in Lyon |
| The region | 55 km north to south, 12 appellations | The south and the north are different days |
| Shared half day | $112 to $126 a person | Four hours, tastings in the fare, 8 guests at most |
| Shared full day | $161 to $184 a person | Lunch at a restaurant, at your own cost |
| Private full day | $557 to $578 a person | Pickup or a train to the vines; some include lunch |
| Beaujolais Nouveau | Third Thursday of November | 19 November in 2026 |
Tickets: what you actually buy
You do not buy the Beaujolais the way you buy a museum. The region is 13,500 hectares of vines, villages and family estates, and each estate receives visitors in its own way. The simple way into two or three cellars in one day is a tour that books the visits, drives the roads and pours the wine for you. Every tour from Lyon that we list includes its tastings in the fare.
So the choice is between tours, and it comes down to three things: which half of the region, how the day starts, and whether lunch is in the fare. Lunch is included only on some private days. On every shared day you eat at a village restaurant and pay for your own.
- The south, the Pierres Dorées: golden-stone villages around Oingt, closest to Lyon, mostly half days.
- The north, the crus: the ten named wines such as Fleurie and Morgon, on granite, half days and full days.
- Both in one day: one shared full day tastes near Oingt in the morning and at Fleurie after lunch.
The difference between the two halves is set out on the Beaujolais wine route.
Getting there: how the day starts
Every day here starts in or near Lyon. There are three ways it can begin, and the booking tells you which one yours uses.
- A kerb on Place Bellecour. Most shared days meet at the ONLYLYON tourist office pavilion, across from the Royal Hotel, and end back there.
- Your door in Lyon. Most private days collect you from your hotel or flat.
- A train into the vines. The Land Rover and Defender days meet you at Belleville-sur-Saône, about half an hour from Lyon Part-Dieu, and the winter day at Mâcon Ville.
What to bring, and what you cannot
A wine day is simple to pack for, but a few rules catch people out.
- A reusable water bottle. Several shared days no longer hand out bottled water; you can refill your own.
- Comfortable shoes. Village streets can be steep, and you walk in the vines.
- A card or euros. For lunch on a shared day, and for any bottles you buy.
- No stroller on some days. The Golden Stones half day does not allow baby strollers; the crus full day does.
- Nothing to eat or drink in the van. Food and drink stay out of the vehicle on the Golden Stones half day.
How long to allow
Plan by the format, not the distance. The vines are close, but the day is built around the tastings.
- A half day: four hours door to door, or 4 hours 30 on the 2 pm afternoon tour. Two estates, one half of the region.
- A shared full day: six to nine hours, with a sit-down lunch between two estates.
- A private day: seven to nine and a half hours, sometimes with lunch in the fare.
- A tasting in Lyon: two hours in the Croix-Rousse, without leaving the city.
When to go
The day starts in Lyon, so Lyon's weather is the one to read. Météo-France's averages at Lyon-Bron put July highs at 28.2°C and December's at 7.7°C. October is the wettest month, with 99.8 mm of rain, and February the driest. Spring and early autumn give you mild days in the vines. November brings Beaujolais Nouveau on its third Thursday. The month-by-month figures are on Beaujolais weather by month.
Which day for a first visit
Match the day to the time you have, then book the one that fits.
| If you have | Book | From Lyon |
|---|---|---|
| A morning, and want villages | Golden Stones half day | $112, Place Bellecour |
| A morning, and want the crus | Crus half day | $112, Place Bellecour |
| An afternoon | Afternoon crus tour | $126, 2 pm, Place Bellecour |
| A whole day | Crus full day | $161, 9 am, Place Bellecour |
| A day, and want lunch included | Land Rover day | $567 a person, Belleville station |
You can read the full day plan of the Golden Stones half day, the crus full day and the Land Rover day before you book. The crus half day and the afternoon crus tour go straight to their booking pages. Every shared start sits on beaujolais wine tour from lyon, the four-hour days on beaujolais half day wine tasting tour, and the days for your party alone on private beaujolais tours.
Nearby: what to add to the day
The sights worth adding sit on the routes the tours already take. Oingt, one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France, has a 12th-century tower with a panoramic terrace. Pérouges, a medieval town about 30 km from Lyon, is east of the city in the Ain, not in the Beaujolais, and one private day pairs it with the golden-stone villages. Both are covered on things to do in the Beaujolais.
Where these facts come from
- Inter Beaujolais, the Beaujolais wine council
- Inter Beaujolais: the 12 appellations
- ONLYLYON, Lyon's official tourist office
- Météo-France: fiches climatologiques 1991-2020, Lyon-Bron and Mâcon
- Les Plus Beaux Villages de France: Oingt
- Les Plus Beaux Villages de France: Pérouges
Half days for a first visit
Beaujolais wine tour from Lyon half day
Four hours in the Pierres Dorées from the Bellecour tourist office: a white and red introduction around Oingt, then a family estate at Le Bois-d'Oingt where you meet the producer.
From $126 per person
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From Lyon: Beaujolais Wine Tour with Tastings
A four-hour run north from the Bellecour tourist office to two family estates in two different cru appellations, with the tastings in the fare and eight people at most in the van.
From $112 per person
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Private half-day tour to Golden Stones Beaujolais with tastings
The Golden Stones half day for your party alone, from your central Lyon hotel: a Montmelas winery and a Pierres Dorées estate near Oingt, with a mâchon of cold meats and cheese.
From $695 per group, up to 3
Check AvailabilityNext: See what a day costs on the Beaujolais visitor guide. Every fare from Lyon sits side by side on Beaujolais Tours.