Coach Charter for Winery Days
A winery day works best when someone else drives and the cellar doors know you are coming. Book the tastings first, then build the coach timetable around them.
Tastings first, coach second
Hunter cellar doors expect big groups to book ahead of arrival, and winemaking tours need a booking too. The visitor centre at Pokolbin helps put group itineraries together. With more than 150 cellar doors in the region, three or four stops with lunch is a full day.
Tasting is a licensed activity. In NSW anyone who sells or serves alcohol to the public must hold Responsible Service of Alcohol training, and a winery with a producer licence can sell its own wine at the cellar door. The venue manages the pour; the driver manages the road.
How far each region is
McLaren Vale is about 45 minutes from Adelaide, Tanunda in the Barossa about an hour, the Clare Valley about 1.75 hours. On the way down from the Adelaide Hills, buses must be in low gear from Crafers, hold 60 km/h at most and keep left to the Measday Bridge, so allow for a slower descent.
The Swan Valley is about 30 minutes from Perth; Margaret River is about 3 hours, which makes it a long day or an overnight. Melbourne groups reach the Yarra Valley in about an hour, and Murrumbateman about 35 minutes from Canberra. Launceston has the Tamar Valley wineries on its doorstep.
Rules that apply
- Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) training is mandatory for anyone selling, serving or supplying alcohol to the public in NSW
- Western Australian vehicles on tourism or charter work need a passenger transport vehicle (PTV) authorisation
Western Australia and long days
WA sorts passenger work into categories. A trip following a published tour itinerary counts as tourism transport; a charter where the hirer sets the times and stops is on-demand. Vehicles doing tourism or charter work there need a PTV authorisation. Tell the operator which kind of day you are running.
Sydney to Pokolbin and back is about 4 hours of driving before a single tasting. Under HVNL standard hours a bus driver may work 12 hours in any 24 at most, and WA runs its own fatigue scheme. Plan a realistic finish time.
Questions
How many wineries fit in a day?
Three or four with a lunch stop is comfortable. Each visit needs time to get off, taste, buy and reboard, and larger groups move more slowly.
Minibus or coach for a winery day?
Under about 24 people, a minibus or midi coach is easier in small cellar door car parks. Larger groups need a full-size coach, and the booked wineries should know it is coming.
Can the coach collect from several hotels?
Yes. Send each address and a pickup time. The first and last stops set the length of the driver's day, so keep the hotel list short.
Cities
Vehicles
- Full-size coach — 45-57 seats
- Midi coach — 25-35 seats
- Minibus — 13-24 seats
- Executive Sprinter van — 10-11 seats
- Executive car (sedan or SUV) — 1-3 seats
- Wheelchair-accessible minibus — Varies by layout; wheelchair positions replace seats seats
Plan the winery day
Send the date, region, booked cellar doors and headcount. A licensed partner operator puts a price on the day, and you decide.
Request a quote or call +61485016608