A McLaren Vale Wine Tour with a Difference!
Check out Adelaide’s #1 bike wine tour! Join us on this totally unique cycling experience: our McLaren Vale Bike & Wine Tour! Book directly from us to secure the lowest guaranteed price!
Voted the best cycling tour in Adelaide on TripAdvisor, and Adelaide’s #1 Outdoor Activity. EscapeGoat Adventures’ incredibly popular tour is the ONLY Adelaide bike & wine day tour operating regularly, all year round. For even more great ways to enjoy South Australia’s great outdoors, check out our MTB Day Trips from Adelaide and our longer Cycling Holidays in South Australia.
What to Expect on this McLaren Vale Bike Wine Tour
Rather than being a regular wine tasting tour, our tour is really more of a nature-based exploration of this beautiful corner of South Australia by bike, with a good bit of quality wine tasting and local produce thrown in! As we use high-end mountain bikes, we have the advantage of being able to get off the beaten tracks and really see the country, rather than being tied to bitumen roads and cycleways. You will see totally stunning parts of the region that others just don’t get to. We will roll through some of the amazing National Parks near Adelaide, enjoy an exhilarating (yet easy) downhill ride down Wickhams hill, and pedal through the vines to find sensational local wineries.
Don’t worry! We will take the sting out of the climbs by starting at the highest point in the area and riding mostly downhill! This is a leisurely cycle designed for beginner-level riders. Trips operate year-round, on Wednesdays, Fridays & Sundays, with other days by arrangement, although there are no Wednesday trips during off-peak. If you have any questions about our sensational Mclaren Vale Bike Wine Tour, then please don’t hesitate to contact us.
*Bookings are essential, we do often sell out and, due to operational restrictions, we may not be able to take late bookings. Book early if planning to join our trip! *
For Cruise ship bookings check the cruise ship booking option- if a date is not open drop us a note and we can open it up.
Tour Details
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InclusionsTransport from Central Adelaide
Delicious local produce platter lunch
Wine tasting at 2 wineries
Top-grade front-suspension Mountain bike
(e-bike upgrade available on request)
Helmet and gloves
Full days guiding with a local qualified bike guide -
Highlights*Explore Kuitpo Forest or Onkaparinga River National Park
*Roll down stunning Wickhams Hill
*Discover some of the region's finest wineries
*Enjoy a tasty local produce lunch platter
*Explore the beautiful trails through the vineyards in McLaren Vale.
* A flexible tour-depending on the group we can also visit micro-breweries, cafes, chocolate shops and more! -
DeparturesTrips run most Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, (other days available on request.)
Pick up from central Adelaide is 9am, and we return by 5pm
(Wednesdays not operating between 1 May- 1 October except for private group bookings) -
What to BringComfortable clothing, water, sun cream, swimwear if it's a warm day!
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DifficultyBeginner level mountain biking. The tour ride does vary due to various conditions, but expect some off-road riding, and maybe a little fun mountain biking trails on the first part of the day. The riding around the wineries is mainly on easy gravel roads, farm tracks, secret shortcuts and quiet backstreets.
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Price$175 per person
McLaren Vale Wine Tour Itinerary
Get picked up in Adelaide and transported to the McLaren Vale region
You will be picked up in central Adelaide and transported to the first ride spot of the day. We will provide you with a good quality mountain bike with front suspension & disc brakes, and a helmet and gloves, and we will set off to explore the area.
We will take you to absolutely stunning corners of the region that most people don't visit, or even know about! Exactly where does depend a little of the weather and conditions, but we will either explore the Onkaparinga River National Park where we have special access to ride groups along trails overlooking an impressive gorge, or a more relaxed ride in stunning native bush settings of Kuitpo Forest, both of which fringe the McLaren Vale wine region.
We regularly see kangaroos and koalas on the ride, but very few people.
Next stop is McLaren Vale, after a gentle descent
Next is a lovely descent down Wickhams Hill towards McLaren Vale, which offers stunning views of the Vale below. It's a 4km bitumen descent on a quiet country road. Keep an eye out for Koala's in the trees if you dare, or just enjoy not pedalling for the whole descent whilst taking in the views.
When we reach the Vale, it's then a short roll to our first stop, and time for a little wine tasting!
Glide from winery to winery
We will then ride through the vineyards and stop at a number of local wineries to sample their fare and perhaps purchase some wine to take home with you. We normally visit at least 2 wineries on the trip, plus other stops. We have been careful to pick nice medium sized wineries offering exceptional wines, and a personalised tasting experience. No big wineries with 10 other coach groups fighting for tastings on this tour!
Locals only riding!
As we ride between wineries we will utilise quiet backroads and private farm tracks and stay off the busy roads. We also have a few secret shortcuts that only mountain bikes can manage!
The riding is fairly leisurely and is suitable for anyone who is happy riding a bike on firetracks and country roads for a few hours.
Relax with a tasty local platter lunch
One of the highlights of the tour is lunch. We will stop at one of our favourite wineries, and after another tasting we will sit down for a delicious local produce platter lunch. Feel free to enjoy a glass of wine from the winery too, and buy wines to take home- we can pick them up later in the van.
After a few wineries it's time for beer, or chocolate, or maybe a swim!
In the afternoon we normally leave it to the group to decide our final visits- normally the wonderful Goodieson's Brewery wins the vote for a refreshing ale or two, but other options include another winery, a cafe/chocolate stop for a little desert, or if it’s really warm maybe a swim stop at one of the beautiful beaches that fringe the Vale.
Time To Go Home
Finally, you will be picked up and transported back to Adelaide. Exact details will depend on exactly where we end up, and stuff... it's pretty casual! You have about 45mins for a snooze on the way back to town!
Our van can also pick up your wine purchases along the way so you don't have to carry them.
contact us at info@escapegoat.com.au or call Ian on 0422 916289 for other options and special bookings.
Testimonials
Ian my guide was great. Showed me around some very nice single trails at Fox Creek. Excellent value!!!
We had a great time doing the Lofty Descents tour with Ian. A really interesting way to see parts of Adelaide you wouldn't normally get to see.
