The Okanagan is British Columbia’s most popular wine-touring destination, and with good reason. There are more than 100 wineries here, producing all types of award-winning wines – including Canada’s famous icewine.
Map out a personalized wine route or join a guided tour. Learn about winemaking at a large estate winery or meet the owner of a boutique winery. Attend a wine festival (there’s one for every season) or combine wine touring with a day of golfing, swimming or cycling.
Frommer’s named the Okanagan Valley a Top Travel Destination in 2007 and Sherman’s Travel named it one of the Top 10 Places to Go in 2008.
Wineries to Visit
Each winery has its own distinctive ambience, surroundings, and of course, wines. Discovering what makes each winery unique is part of the fun of a wine tour. Here are a few ideas to start.
Mission Hill Family Estate Winery features award-winning wines and dining. Its Terrace restaurant was named one of the top six winery restaurants in the world by leading travel magazine Travel + Leisure (2008). Informative wine tours, fantastic lake views and impressive architecture round out the experience.
Summerhill Pyramid Winery ages its vintages in a giant, white, scaled-down replica of Egypt’s Great Pyramid – they maintain that its “sacred geometry” enhances the quality of its organic wines. Tour the pyramid and learn about their sparkling wine making process.
Nk’mip Cellars (pronounced in-ka-meep) is North America’s first Aboriginal owned and operated winery. In addition to vineyard views, wine tastings and oak barrel grotto tours, Nk’mip also offers a resort, spa, golf course, self-guided nature trails and a Desert Cultural Centre.
Visit Wineries & Vineyards to learn more about wineries in this region.
Where are the Wineries Located?
Nearly all of the wineries are located in the Okanagan Valley between Kelowna and Osoyoos, with a few based further north (towards Salmon Arm) or west, in the Similkameen Valley (towards Keremeos). Some wineries are just minutes apart.
Find wineries tucked up next to the Okanagan’s largest city – Kelowna – or in Canada’s only desert, by Osoyoos. For a high concentration of wineries, look to Oliver (the “Wine Capital of Canada”) or to Penticton and the Naramata Bench. Drive along Black Sage Road (71st Street) north of Osoyoos for scenic vineyard views, or follow the Similkameen River west towards Keremeos, where vineyards are bordered by steep mountains.
For information on the different wine sub-regions, visit Wineries & Vineyards.
Self-guided Wine Tours
Spend as little as half a day or as much as a week exploring and wine tasting. Ask local Visitor Centres for winery information and maps, or visit BC Wine Institute for a selection of wine tour itineraries. On the road, follow burgundy and white wine route road signs. Pick up a copy of the Okanagan Wine Tour Guide (John Schreiner, 2007) – it’s an excellent wine touring resource book.
Or, drive with a high-tech “guide” – the Okanagan Wine Tour GPS guide uses satellite technology to automatically provide commentary at the right time and place along your wine route (available for rent at the Kelowna, Penticton or Osoyoos visitor centres; one-way rentals are allowed)
Cycling to Wineries
Pedal a particularly scenic – and downhill – stretch of the historic Kettle Valley Rail Trail from Chute Lake to Penticton (a bicycle shuttle service transports riders from Penticton to Chute Lake). This route passes by Naramata Bench wineries; stop in for wine tastings, tours or lunch, or pick up “Naramata Bench Blue” artisanal cheese for a trailside picnic.
A guided bike tour solves the problem of what to do with bottles of wine purchased along the way – put them in the support van! Most guided bike wine tours are geared towards the average cyclist and include rental bikes, transportation to the trailhead (from Kelowna), wine tours and tasting, and sometimes lunch.
Guided Wine Tours
Sit back, relax and enjoy an escorted guided driving tour to wineries. Tours can range from three hours to a full day and visit three to six wineries (depending on the operator). A stop for lunch at a winery or vineyard is often part of the route.
Guided tours leave from Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon; alternate pick up points can sometimes be arranged.
> See all wine tours listings
When to Visit
Many wineries are open year-round for tours and tastings but there is a high season – usually between May and October. When they are open, many welcome visitors seven days a week. If you’re visiting in the “off” season, call the wineries and see if they offer tastings and tours to suit your visit, and also to ensure the winery restaurants are open.
Wine festivals are a fun and exciting time to visit:
> Winter/Icewine Festival (Jan 12 – 17, 2010): Sun Peaks Resort serves up BC’s famous “liquid gold” dessert wines slopeside.
> Spring Wine Festival (Apr 29 – May 8, 2010): more than 100 events to choose from throughout the Okanagan Valley.
> Summer Wine Festival (Aug 5 – 7, 2010): wine education, tastings and pairings at Silver Star Mountain Resort.
> Fall Wine Festival (Sep 30 – Oct 1, 2010): consistently named one of the “Top 100 Events in North America” by the American Bus Association. This is the best known Okanagan wine festival, and features more than 150 events over ten days with some of the new vintages already available.
Practical Points
Visit Wine Touring and Tasting Tips for helpful information about booking tours, group travel, wine tastings, legal drinking age and more.