With restrictions easing in Australia, my heart is set on getting back out to wine country! With international travel off the table for the foreseeable future, what better time to explore the incredible wine regions of Australia? So many of them need our support now more than ever with the year 2020 has turned out to be! With natural disasters and now the COVID-19 crisis – I think it is worth us all packing our bags and heading out to some of our great wine regions! I mean not only are we supporting them, but we’re also getting to taste great wine! So I thought I would do an article on how to choose a wine tour that’s right for you to get your creative juices flowing!
I did a post a while back about planning a wine getaway, but I wanted to dive a bit deeper into wine tours. My partner and I have done many wine tours over the year. Some would say it’s our favourite hobby other than drinking wine! We often opt to do a tour instead of driving ourselves because we want to sample all the delicious wine on offer, and neither of us can ever agree on who drives! So wine tours are definitely right up our alley so we can both have a good time!
But how do you choose a wine tour for your needs and your budget? Well, I’ve got plenty of experience in this and I’m going to lay down some knowledge that might help! Below are some of the options we’ve used and most tend to be available in all wine regions.
Group tours
Price: medium-high
Ease of use: easy
Flexibility: low
First cab off the rank is group tours. This is where you jump on a bus with people you’ve never met, and settle in for a day of wine tasting. They can range from a small minibus to large buses depending on the type of tour you go for, and what you want to pay. They will either pick you up from a capital city and drive you out (particularly good for Melbourne and Adelaide), or they’ll pick you up from your accommodation or a central spot in the region. The ones that pick you up from your accommodation are best because at the end of the tour you won’t want to be trying to make your way home!
These group tours usually have a pre-determined itinerary. They will tell you how many wineries are included in the tour and if they include other stops like lunch, cheese stores or chocolate stores. Some are a little flexible in the wineries you visit, but most will already have the day planned out. So if you aren’t familiar with the region and want someone else to decide on wineries for you, this will be right up your alley! You can sit back and relax, and maybe make a few new friends!
These group tours vary in price based on how much you get included in the tour (lunch, tastings, winery stops, pickups and drop-offs) and how large the tours are. Generally, larger tours are cheaper. The flip side is that you don’t get as much flexibility in where you visit as they will usually have to visit the major wineries. It also means you normally don’t get a chance to ask as many questions or get a more personalised experience. Smaller buses would be my recommendation. The extra cost is definitely worth it to get to visit smaller wineries, and have more time at the wine tasting to ask questions etc. You can sometimes get the cost down by opting for one that doesn’t include lunch or as many stops.
Private tours
Price: high
Ease of use: easy
Flexibility: high
If you aren’t strapped for cash when you are looking to choose a wine tour. Private tours are something that we don’t usually do because, to be honest, we can’t justify the cost. This is definitely the most expensive way to do a winery tour, but it is very flexible. You’ll hire a driver for the day and be able to choose the wineries that you go to. Sometimes they will have an itinerary and lunch booked for you, but it is very flexible because you are the only people on the tour.
This is the best solution if you have a large group of people going around the wineries. The cost comes down significantly when you’re splitting it between 8-12 people! It’s a great way to have a fun day out with friends in wine country where you can customise the experience and not have to worry about annoying other people on the tour!
You can find some great companies that do these tours, and if you are happy to pay the extra price, they are a great way to see the wine regions. We opted for a private tour when we went to Mornington Peninsula last year and had the best time! He even took photos throughout the day for us to look back on.
Hop-on-hop-off buses
Cost: low
Ease of use: medium
Flexibility: medium
Hop-on, hop-off buses are a great and affordable way to see the wine regions, and they are certainly building in popularity. The way they work is sort of like a regular bus. They have set stops and you simply hop on at one and hop off where you want to visit. They’ll have a timetable for when they will arrive at certain wineries, and you just need to keep an eye on the time so you can go to your next location.
The great thing about these tours is that you can really select where you want to go. Although you can only go to wineries on their timetable, there are plenty of options and they normally go to the main wineries of the region. You can also sometimes walk between a couple if you get sneaky about it! We did this in McLaren Vale and managed to squeeze in a few extras!
These tours are very affordable and a great way to ensure you can still visit plenty of wineries at a low cost. You will have to pay for your tastings and lunch (most require you have a lunch booking to board), but it usually ends up being the most affordable option.
Cycle tours
Cost: low-medium
Ease of use: hard
Flexibility: high
If you are looking to choose a wine tour and get some exercise, most winery regions have plenty of options for hiring bikes and exploring. The regions have spent a lot on creating cycle paths so you can easily navigate them on a bike. There are plenty of options from push bikes to e-bikes to suit any level of fitness. It’s a perfect way to get outside and enjoy the region with a few wine stops along the way.
I have to admit, whilst I love the idea of exercising and drinking, it is simply not something that I enjoy in practice. I’m sure other avid cyclists would love it, but for me, it was nothing but pain. We did it in McLaren Vale, opting for a 24-hour hire of their council bikes. The trouble started getting the bikes home, which required getting up quite a large hill! The next day wasn’t much better – even though it was cold I ended up a sweaty mess. Perhaps a testament to my fitness than the bike riding. I am sure others would have more luck than me! I think next time I might opt for an e-bike!
The other thing to consider is the weather. We tried to hire e-bikes when we were in the Hunter Valley but everyone said it was too hot to ride them. There’s also the concern of rain! But if you get a good day, and you have good fitness, and you like bike riding, this is a great way to have a fun activity to do while you ride.
Another thing to note – only do this in wine regions where there are plenty of wineries nearby to one another. You don’t want to be cycling really far between them, especially if it is hilly!
Task it out
Cost: medium
Ease of use: easy
Flexibility: high
My final recommendation is one we took advantage of when we were in the Yarra Valley in December. We had been a few times and so didn’t want to go on an organised tour that would likely take us to places we’d been before. Private tours were too expensive, and the hop-on-hop-off buses were booked. And I wasn’t going to get on a bike! So what were we to do?
Well, we decided to chuck up a task on Airtasker. We figured, what’s the harm in asking for someone to drive us around for the day for $200? I was amazed by how many offers we got back – and for people who usually ran wine tours or knew the area well! It was like getting a private tour without the price tag. Sure, the car wasn’t a limo and we didn’t get lunch, but Les picked us up from our accommodation and dropped us home. He took us to as many spots as we wanted, and even made some recommendations along the way! It was such a great day and meant we could hit all the wineries we wanted to visit without having to worry.
This option is perfect if you know where you want to go. If you want a guide, I wouldn’t choose this as an option. It is also a no-frills approach – sort of like getting an Uber to drive you around. But if you just want someone to get you from A to B, this is a great way to do it!
How to choose a wine tour that’s right for you
Hopefully, this has given you a couple of things to consider when you are booking a wine tour. It can be hard to choose a wine tour, but these tips should point you in the right direction! The next step is to start planning! You lucky ducks in states where there are plenty of wine regions to choose from are spoiled for choice without having to get on a plane so why not start planning? It’s a great way to fill that travel void, and discover some great wineries while you’re at it!