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What is your Cancellation Policy?
When you book with us, $100 of your tour fees becomes “non-refundable” immediately. This is to cover the time spent with communication, planning, and admin.
As long as you give us at least 48 Hours notice prior to your tour, cancellations will only incur the $100 deduction, and all other tour fees will be refunded.
Inside 48 Hours, the fee becomes $300.
What is your pickup area?
We will pick you up at your location anywhere in the following regions: Portland, Dundee, McMinnville, Newberg, Carlton, Beaverton, Hillsboro, Forest Grove, Tigard, Tualatin, Wilsonville, Lake Oswego, Milwaukie.
Sorry, Vancouver, Salem, Silverton, Eugene, Oregon Coast, Gresham, Amity, and any other locations south of McMinnville are out of our pickup zone.
If you are staying outside of our pickup zones, we will be happy to arrange and recommend a meet-up point where you can leave a car for the day and enjoy the tour.
We will sometimes make exceptions for Salem pickups but please understand it must be at our discretion.
We are happy to drop you off in a different location than your pickup if you like, within reason.
Which wineries do you go to?
This is hard to answer concisely because we do not have a set route and every day is different. We have a repertoire of about 60 wineries that we frequent and over 100 that we visit at least occasionally. You can rest assured that they are all special and “high quality” in their own way. We tend to focus on the smaller boutique wineries that are off the beaten path. The overall focus is on superb wines and friendly, informative staff. Beyond that, we just try to offer some nice variety along with some of the valley’s most beautiful and breathtaking locales. In short, we go to the good wineries. 🙂
How many wineries will we go to?
Our itineraries include three winery stops. This allows for a leisurely pace, taking in all the valley has to offer. I do not recommend four or more wineries in one day. Keep in mind the types of wineries we frequent are more intimate, and offer a more in-depth, focused type of experience. So it’s best to leave yourself plenty of tine to take it all in. Also, “palate fatigue” is a real thing. The wines will all begin to taste the same. Remember, less is more. You’ll be surprised how fast time goes once you’re out there and enjoying the visits.
How do you choose which wineries to go to each day?
There are several considerations we take into account when planning the itinerary for the day. When you book, we ask you to fill out an Intake Questionnaire. If you state any preferences on style we will factor that in. If you have any specific requests on places to go we will try to accommodate those when possible. If you just leave it up to us (which we recommend), we will put together a well-rounded day with a focus on variety, scenery, quality wines, and interesting, educational experiences. Your best bet is to just sit back, relax, and let the day unfold and we will share our deep knowledge of the Willamette Valley with you. I have written a more extensive essay on the subject if you’re still curious.
What is the Lunch Like?
Our tours are highly focused on the wine, the wineries, the stories of the valley, and the beauty of the vineyards. Food is simply provided as sustenance to get you through the day. It’s usually a simple, tasty sandwich eaten “on the go.” We *may* have the ability to do a picnic, but this is weather dependent and also depends on the wineries in your itinerary. (Very few allow outside food)
What is the duration of the tour?
About 7 hours. But please understand, this is an estimate, not a guarantee. It may be more, it may be less – it really just depends on where we pick you up, your pace, and how the day goes. Most of the wineries are open from 11:00 AM until 4:00 PM and that is the time frame within which we structure our tours. We pick you up at 10:00 or 10:30AM and drop you off usually somewhere between 4:30 and 5:30PM. If you need to be back by a certain hour, please let the driver know and we will do our best.
Do you offer a half-day tour?
Sorry, all tours are full day only. There simply isn’t enough time in a half day to enjoy the breadth of wine country. If you want your tour to be a bit shorter than our average, we can accommodate, but please understand that the flat rate cost is the same either way.
Do you combine us with other people?
When booking, you have two choices: Joinable Tour or Private Tour. The Joinable Tour option (for groups up to 4pp in size) is more economical, and you may be joined by another small group. In any case, we will not pack more than 8 participants in the van, as we still want to keep things intimate and personalized. (Most “Joinable” Tours wind up being 2 couples, making a total group size of 4.) The Private Tour option is just that: Private. Joinable tours are only available for groups of 4 or less. Private tours are available to any group size.
What’s the largest group size you can accommodate?
The short answer is 14, however in rare cases we can caravan 2 vans together for a total head count 28. But a group this large comes with a number of other considerations that we will have to discuss, so just get in touch with us and we can work it out.
Why can’t I book a “Joinable” tour as a solo traveler?
Most of our tours are booked private, so there may not be a Joinable Tour available for you to join. Unfortunately I cannot initiate a van for a Joinable Tour with just a solo traveler because it would be a money-losing proposition. So sorry about that! If you are traveling solo, you may book a “Private Tour” at any time, or you can email us to inquire about the availability of a Joinable Tour.
Where should We Stay? Where Should We Eat? What Other Things Can We Do During our Stay?
Check out our list of recommendations here!
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