“When is the best time to visit Beaune?” It is the question we hear most often at the front desk. The honest answer: there is no bad season, but the four of them tell very different stories. Here is what you need to choose properly.<\/p>\n\n
The vines wake up. Between the pruning in March and bud break in April, the slopes turn from brown to pale green in a matter of weeks, and the light takes on a softness photographers know well. The Parc de la Bouzaise shakes off winter, and the terraces on Place Carnot reopen.<\/p>\n\n
The upside:<\/strong> this is the season when growers have the most time for you. The harvest is far off, the winemaking is done, and nobody is glancing at their watch.<\/p>\n\n The catch:<\/strong> the weather is changeable. Bring a layer, even in May.<\/p>\n\n The season of evenings that never quite end. Open-air concerts, festivals, a packed Saturday market, dinner on a terrace well past sunset. The whites of the C\u00f4te de Beaune \u2014 a Meursault, a Saint-Aubin \u2014 are served cold and go with almost anything. It is also the best time to head into the vineyards by bike<\/a>, ideally early in the morning.<\/p>\n\n The upside:<\/strong> long days. See the town before 11am, rest through the heat, come back out at 6pm once the stone has cooled.<\/p>\n\n The catch:<\/strong> this is high season. Book early, for both your room and your table.<\/p>\n\n For many, the finest. The harvest takes over the whole C\u00f4te from late August into September: trailers coming and going, the smell of must in the air, villages that barely sleep. Then the leaves turn gold and red, and the vineyards become genuinely spectacular.<\/p>\n\n November brings the high point of the Beaune year: the Hospices de Beaune wine auction<\/strong>, held on the weekend of the third Sunday of the month. The sale itself takes place in the afternoon under the covered market, and forms part of the Trois Glorieuses \u2014 the Chapter dinner at Clos de Vougeot on Saturday, the gala dinner on Sunday evening, and La Paul\u00e9e at Meursault on Monday lunchtime.<\/p>\n\n The upside:<\/strong> come just after the harvest, in early October. The colours are there, the frenzy has passed, and so have the peak rates.<\/p>\n\n The catch:<\/strong> during the harvest itself, growers are out in the vines and receive few visitors. And on auction weekend, the town has been full for months.<\/p>\n\n The season for those in the know. The town belongs to the people of Beaune again, lights go up along the streets in December, and you can walk through the Hospices<\/a> almost alone \u2014 which changes everything. Vaulted cellars finally make sense, so do the reds of the C\u00f4te de Nuits, and Burgundian cooking comes into its own: slow-braised beef, eggs in red wine sauce, a table near the fire.<\/p>\n\n The upside:<\/strong> the quietest and least expensive time of year. For a first visit where you want to take your time, it is hard to beat.<\/p>\n\n The catch:<\/strong> some estates and restaurants close for a few weeks in January. Check before you build your itinerary.<\/p>\n\nSummer \u2014 June to August<\/h2>\n\n
Autumn \u2014 September to November<\/h2>\n\n
Winter \u2014 December to February<\/h2>\n\n
So, which season?<\/h2>\n\n