Keen to visit a winery but afraid the kids will drive you nuts? Fear not! Australia has just as many family-friendly wineries as it does acclaimed wine regions, it seems. With offerings such as giant jenga, farmyard animals and playgrounds, you are bound to find a place that will keep the little ones entertained while you relax and sip a Pinot nearby.
Scarborough Wines has a giant checkers set and giant Jenga and for $5 you get an accompanying cheese plate with your tasting
Tamburlaine Organic Wines welcomes family members of all sizes (even the furry ones). The grass area and adjoining play area right next to cellar door is just perfect for pre-packed picnics. Kids can join their parents for a seated tasting experience with a selection of tasty snacks, non-alcoholic drinks and colouring pages to keep them entertained.
Elbourne Wines has farmyard animals including Wessex Saddleback pigs, Black Suffolk sheep, a pony, chickens, geese and ducks. The owners also let the kids of guests use their childrens’ play equipment, which includes a large sandpit, cubby house and trampoline, while their parents enjoy a tasting experience (by appointment only)
De Bortoli Wines offers camel rides around the vines every Saturday (weather permitting) to enjoy while parents indulge in a chocolate and wine pairing in the cellar door.
Calais Estate has a kids’ corner in the cellar door where children can play games and do craft activities. It also sells gourmet picnic packs which can be enjoyed on the grounds, which are home to peacocks, geese and other wildlife
Heifer Station, 15 minutes’ drive from the town of Orange, has a petting zoo and a sandpit complete with toy bulldozers for the littlies, as well as a rustic cellar door, housed in an old woolshed, and outdoor tables sure to please parents.
Lowe Wine has a farm trail walk, which takes kids past the jetty to see rescue donkeys, chickens, peacocks and ducks. Children can also play petanque and other games
Robert Stein Winery & Vineyard has a collection of vintage bikes at its motorcycle museum that little boys (and their dads!) will love. The family farm surrounding the vineyard also has Angus cattle, Dorper sheep and Berkshire pigs.
Coolangatta Estate near Berry offers onsite Segway tours through the vines and rides to the top of Coolangatta Mountain on board a large 4WD open-sided tractor with Bishop’s Bigfoot Adventures
De Bortoli Wines at Bilbul has a pergola where parents can enjoy a wine while keeping an eye on the kids on the nearby playground.
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
The Rivendell Restaurant and Cellar Door has a playground with a sandpit, slippery slide and climbing frame as well as games on the lawn, including totem tennis, football and bocce
Swings & Roundabouts has been recently renovated with a new eco-friendly wooden playground with wine barrels to crawl through, and a cubby house. Families also love the wood-fired Italian pizza
Xanadu Wines has a small shaded playground that you can see from the cellar door, plus a kids’ menu
Aravina Estate in Yallingup has a large lawn for picnics, a fenced playground and a kids’ menu
Cape Mentelle Vineyards has swings and a kids’ corner with a drawing table to keep children occupied while adults enjoy a wine tasting. They also operate an outdoor cinema in summer
Mandoon Estate on the banks of the Swan River, has an enclosed playground, alfresco area with picnic tables and live music on weekends
Gemtree Wines has a playground and lawn area for children to play on, animals they can visit with their parents, and a 1km-long eco-trail, as well as a picnic area with barbecues
Maxwell Wines has a maze where kids can get lost and a picnic area where you can snack on a cheese platter from the cellar door
Woodstock Wines has a wildlife sanctuary with kangaroos, wallabies and long-nosed potoroos
Fox Creek Wines offers a kids’ treasure hunt that sees them following clues in hanging wine bottles, spread throughout the cottage gardens before collecting a prize at the cellar door
Lake George Winery which is the oldest in the region, has giant games such as Connect Four, a small kids’ play area which includes colouring and a few games, a flying fox and a tractor to climb on
Tallagandra Hill Winery has a playground set for kids
Murrumbateman Winery features a ping pong table, chalkboard tables and colouring books. The dogs who live at the winery also love a good pat
Clonakilla offers colouring books, a basket of toys and outdoor games such as quoits. You can also BYO picnic lunch
At Ocean View Estates Winery and Restaurant kids can kick a ball around while parents enjoy a gourmet picnic hamper on the grass, or watch them from the noshery’s verandah
O’Reilly’s Canungra Valley Vineyards is also home to Mountview Alpaca Farm, where children can feed the alpacas and walk them through the vineyards
De Bortoli Wines has a playground, gazebo and gardens where families can picnic or dine in the Italian-inspired restaurant, Locale.
