Naramata Full Day Lunch Wine Tour- Incl. Tasting Fees & Gratuity!

The best part of this Naramata tour is its mix of nine wine stops and a proper lunch break, all without asking you to drive after tasting. You move through family-run vineyards, boutique tasting rooms, and long-running estate wineries while the Okanagan Lake views do much of the scenic work.

I like the door-to-door pickup in the Penticton area, and I like that tasting fees and a 15% guide gratuity are included. Herb, the guide praised in the tour feedback, is described as someone who goes the extra mile to make the day fun. The main catch is time: six hours is a brisk schedule for this many stops, and lunch costs extra.

Key points to know before booking

• Nine winery visits are listed: MOCOJO, Moraine, Three Sisters, Lang, Ruby Blues, Deep Roots, Serendipity, Wesbert, and Lake Breeze.
• Each tasting stop allows about 30 minutes, usually with four or five wines and time to shop.
• Lunch is not included: choose Lake Breeze, Naramata Inn, or Poplar Grove, then pay the restaurant directly.
• Pickup and drop-off are included at hotels or vacation rentals in the Penticton area.
• The group can have up to 14 people, giving you a social but still fairly small tour.
• Wine purchases, GST, and lunch are extra, so budget beyond the tour price.

Why the Naramata Bench makes a good wine day

The Naramata Bench sits above Okanagan Lake near Penticton, with vineyards spread across clay bluffs and glaciated white cliffs. That setting matters here. You are not simply moving from one tasting room to another. You are following a compact wine route where the views, farms, family stories, and cellar work all form part of the experience.

This is a useful choice if you want variety. The wineries range from a newer family operation at Wesbert to Lang Vineyards, which began in 1990 as British Columbia’s first Farm Gate Vineyard. Several wineries focus on estate fruit and hands-off winemaking, letting the character of the grapes and the Naramata growing area lead the way.

The tour begins at 10:30 a.m. and lasts about six hours. Pickup is offered at your Penticton hotel or vacation rental, and you are asked to provide the address when booking. Your guide sends a text the night before to confirm the pickup time, a small but helpful touch when you are planning a full day around tastings.

The vehicle is air-conditioned, bottled water is provided, and the guide handles the driving. That makes the included gratuity and tasting fees more valuable than they may first appear. You can concentrate on the wines and scenery instead of counting tasting-room charges or deciding who must stay sober for the drive back.

MOCOJO Winery starts the tasting day

MOCOJO Winery welcomes you with a short, focused stop of about 30 minutes. You can expect four or five tastings, followed by time to shop for bottles you like.

The winery opened in 2014 with Gewurztraminer and Viognier, then added Marechal Foch and Malbec. Rosé and Merlot followed as production grew. The story is a reminder that many Naramata wineries are relatively young businesses built around steady experimentation rather than centuries-old tradition.

MOCOJO once used part of its property as a bed-and-breakfast, but growing visitor numbers led to a larger tasting room instead. You may find this stop especially appealing if you enjoy a lively, welcoming setting and want a chance to browse after the tasting.

Thirty minutes is enough for an introduction, not a long vineyard walk or a leisurely bottle discussion. If you find a favorite, make a quick note of the name because several more tastings follow.

Moraine Winery pairs wine with a charitable mission

Moraine Winery sits above Okanagan Lake on a shelf of the Naramata Bench, framed by white clay cliffs. The view is one of the strongest reasons to keep your camera ready, but the family story adds another layer.

Owners Oleg and Svetlana moved from Europe to Canada in 1995. They later moved from Edmonton to the Okanagan and began their winery adventure in 2009. Their approach connects wine with simple pleasures, family effort, and a sense of place.

You receive four or five tastings and time to shop. Moraine also gives part of its tasting fees to Chalice, an international charity that helps pay medical expenses for children in need. If you like supporting businesses with a clear charitable link, this detail gives the stop added meaning.

The practical limit is the same as at MOCOJO: half an hour passes quickly. Treat the stop as a tasting and view break, not a full winery tour.

Three Sisters keeps the family story close

Three Sisters Winery grew from a family project involving Rebecca, her winemaker husband Matt, and her parents, John and Liz. The first vintage was made in a barn on the family vineyard, with relatives and friends helping label the bottles by hand.

That background gives the tasting a personal feel. The winery name refers both to the family vineyard and to the three sisters in the two families. The wines aim for a balance between elegance and easy drinking, making this a comfortable stop for people with different levels of wine experience.

You will taste four or five wines and have time to shop. The hands-off winemaking approach puts the fruit first, so ask about the vineyard source and the varieties in the glass if you want more from the tasting.

Again, the schedule favors breadth. You get a clear introduction, but not much spare time for lingering over a long conversation.

Lang Vineyards brings three decades of winemaking

Lang Vineyards offers a look at one of the Naramata Bench’s older family estate wineries. Guenther Lang started in his garage and opened in 1990 as British Columbia’s first Farm Gate Vineyard. Thirty-three years of winemaking later, the operation has become a boutique winery with a long local connection.

The stop includes four or five complimentary tastings and time to purchase wine. I like this part of the route because it gives you a sense of continuity. The Naramata wine scene includes new labels, but it also rests on small family businesses that grew through years of vineyard work.

If you enjoy wine history in a practical form, this may be one of the most interesting stops. You can see how a small agricultural venture developed into a recognized tasting destination without leaving the family-estate setting.

Ruby Blues adds a playful boutique break

Ruby Blues Winery brings a different mood to the day. Its rock and roll theme, small-scale operation, wines, and local artisan goods give the stop a lighter character after several family winery stories.

Owners Prudence and Beat sold Red Rooster Winery in 2008, then chose to return to a smaller operation focused on vines, wine, and personal contact. Ruby Blues uses Okanagan-grown grapes, with much of the fruit coming from its own vineyards.

The tasting includes four or five wines, followed by shopping time. This is a good place to look for a bottle with personality, especially if you want something connected to the local boutique scene rather than a large producer.

The shop can tempt you into buying more than planned, so keep room in your luggage and remember that purchases are not part of the tour cost.

Deep Roots focuses on four generations of farming

Deep Roots Winery is run by a family with more than a century of farming experience. The family spent years selling grapes to other wineries before deciding to bottle its own fruit in 2012 and open a tasting room in 2014.

That change gives the tasting a clear purpose: show what the family’s own vineyards can produce. The winery sits on the clay cliffs above Okanagan Lake, so the setting and the agricultural story work together.

This stop is useful for understanding the difference between growing grapes and making wine under your own label. You can taste four or five wines and then shop, with the guide keeping the visit on schedule.

Serendipity Winery connects wine and food

Serendipity began when Judy Kingston discovered a Naramata orchard during an Okanagan holiday in 2005. She converted the property into a vineyard, planting Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Viognier, and Sauvignon Blanc. Judy’s daughter Katie is now the head winemaker.

The winery has won the title of BC Winery of the Year and includes a wine shop and bistro. You can expect four or five complimentary tastings and time to browse for a bottle.

Serendipity makes a strong impression because the wine and food sides of the business are linked. If you enjoy seasonal cooking as much as wine, note the bistro for another visit, even if your scheduled lunch happens elsewhere.

The tour does not promise a meal here, so do not arrive expecting the bistro to replace your planned lunch. Your guide will follow the day’s schedule and selected lunch arrangement.

Wesbert Winery brings South African hospitality

The Joubert family founded Wesbert Winery in 2019 after moving from South Africa. The winery sits near the Kettle Valley Rail Trail and draws hikers, cyclists, and beachgoers to its wine shop, tasting room, and terrace.

Its five grape varieties and hands-off approach keep attention on the fruit and the Naramata growing area. Since 2020, the family has expanded with a second vineyard and more varieties.

You receive four or five complimentary tastings and time to shop. Wesbert is one of the newer wineries on the route, so it offers a useful contrast with Lang’s longer history. I also like the setting near a popular trail, though the 30-minute stop leaves little time for anything beyond tasting, views, and shopping.

Lake Breeze combines a tasting with lunch

Lake Breeze is both a winery stop and one of the two listed lunch locations. The MacIntyre family began the winery in 2001, building it around Okanagan fruit, minimal intervention, and a strong connection to the land.

The tasting portion allows about 30 minutes. Afterward, you have about 45 minutes at The Patio Restaurant, where Chef Mark Ashton prepares farm-to-table dishes with organic local ingredients. The on-site Farmstead supplies vegetables, fruit, and herbs, and the restaurant offers a seasonal tasting menu designed to pair with Lake Breeze wines.

Lunch is paid directly to the restaurant. This option is convenient because your meal and winery visit happen at the same location. The drawback is time. Forty-five minutes is enough for a planned meal, but it is not a long, relaxed restaurant sitting.

Naramata Inn offers a local-food lunch

The Restaurant at Naramata Inn is another listed lunch choice. Its menu centers on seasonal local ingredients, including fruit, responsibly sourced proteins, and foods foraged from nearby hills.

The restaurant gives you a different dining setting from Lake Breeze. Instead of eating at the winery you just visited, you get a meal built around the wider Okanagan food scene. The schedule allows about 45 minutes.

Lunch is not included and is paid directly to the restaurant. Since the tour information does not provide menu prices, check the current menu if you need to keep close track of spending. This choice works best if food is a major reason you are booking the day, not just a break between tastings.

Poplar Grove adds views from Munson Mountain

The Restaurant at Poplar Grove sits on the slopes of Munson Mountain, with broad views toward Okanagan Lake. Executive Chef Stacy Johnston prepares dishes based on Okanagan ingredients, and the restaurant pairs the meal with Poplar Grove wines.

The lunch stop is listed as about 30 minutes, shorter than the lunch periods at Lake Breeze and Naramata Inn. You can still get a taste of the restaurant, but you should expect a quick meal rather than a long afternoon at the table.

This option is particularly appealing if scenery matters to you. The hilltop position provides one of the day’s strongest viewpoints, while the food gives you another way to understand the region beyond wine.

What the six-hour schedule really means

Nine 30-minute winery stops, plus lunch, make this a packed day. The itinerary lists more stops than can fit comfortably into six hours if every winery and every lunch option is used in full. That means the exact selection or order may vary, and some stops may be alternatives rather than visits all on the same day.

You should confirm the day’s final route with Sip Happens when your guide texts before pickup. This is not a complaint so much as a planning point. The tour is designed for variety, not for spending two hours at one winery.

A maximum of 14 people keeps the group smaller than a large coach outing, but it is not a private tasting for two. If you want a quiet, highly customized day, ask about the group arrangement before booking. If you enjoy meeting people and comparing notes over wine, the size should work well.

What is included, and what you still pay

The tour includes tasting fees, bottled water, an air-conditioned vehicle, a wine concierge, and pickup and drop-off at your Penticton-area hotel or vacation rental. A 15% gratuity for your guide is included as well.

That package has real value. Tasting fees can add up quickly across several wineries, and a full day of driving on the Naramata Bench is not a job you want to handle after sampling wine. The wine concierge element also suggests help with choosing bottles and managing the day’s purchases, though the exact service may depend on your guide.

You still pay GST, lunch, and any wine you buy. Since no tour price or restaurant prices are provided here, I would compare the package based on what it removes from your planning: transportation, tasting charges, and gratuity are already handled.

The booking is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. Also, the tour needs a minimum number of participants. If that minimum is not met, you are offered another date or experience, or a full refund. Keep that firm policy in mind before committing.

Who should book this Naramata wine tour

I would choose this tour if you want a broad introduction to the Naramata Bench, prefer not to drive, and enjoy small wineries with family stories. It also suits couples, friends, and food-focused visitors who want to combine tastings with a local lunch.

The tour is less suited to you if you want a slow day at one or two wineries, long vineyard walks, or a detailed cellar lesson at every stop. The schedule is built around short tastings and steady movement.

It is offered in English, uses mobile tickets, and allows service animals. Most people can participate, and the route is near public transportation, though the supplied details do not specify vehicle accessibility features.

Should you book it?

Book it if variety, convenience, and safe transportation matter most. The included tasting fees, water, vehicle, pickup, and 15% gratuity make the package easy to manage, while the family-owned wineries give the day more character than a simple sequence of commercial tasting rooms.

Before booking, confirm which wineries and lunch stop are planned for your date. If you are comfortable with a brisk six-hour schedule and an extra bill for lunch and bottles, this is a strong way to get your bearings on the Naramata Bench. If you want lingering meals and unhurried tastings, choose a shorter private itinerary instead.

FAQ

How long is the Naramata wine tour?

The tour lasts approximately six hours and starts at 10:30 a.m.

Where does pickup take place?

Pickup and drop-off are offered at hotels or vacation rentals in the Penticton area. You should provide your pickup address when booking.

How is the pickup time confirmed?

After your booking is confirmed, your guide texts the night before to confirm the pickup time.

How many people can join the tour?

The tour has a maximum group size of 14 travelers.

Are wine-tasting fees included?

Yes. Tasting fees are included at the listed winery stops.

Is lunch included?

No. Lunch is not included. You pay the restaurant directly.

Where can lunch take place?

The listed lunch options are The Patio Restaurant at Lake Breeze, The Restaurant at Naramata Inn, and The Restaurant at Poplar Grove.

Is the guide’s gratuity included?

Yes. A 15% gratuity for the guide is included.

Are wine purchases included?

No. Any bottles or other wine purchases are paid for separately.

What happens if the tour does not reach its minimum number of participants?

If the minimum is not met and the experience is canceled, you are offered a different date or experience, or a full refund.