Amongst the vines - wineries, chocolate and cruising the Swan River.
2024 marked the year that I ventured west. For the first time in my adult life, I was travelling to and from Perth, Western Australia regularly. It was only on my sixth visit to our most western capital city did I actually get to experience Perth in all its glory.
To be honest, I had my own preconceived ideas of Perth. I was firm in my belief that the city was home to Mining magnates, cashed up bogans who worked in the mining industry and backpackers. Well, wasn’t I in for a surprise! If you happen to pass throguh Perth Qantas Domestic terminal during pre dawn hours you are bound to see PPE laden employees, grogily making check in for their charter to anyone of the (x) mine sites scattered across Western Australia. But thats where it ends, the city was not overrun by FIFO workers. Perth is a every inch the cosmopolitan city.
My five days of sightseeing in this beautiful city had a list a mile long. Never one to shy away from a spot of sightseeing, I had to make a plan and stick to the plan and that involved culling a few items to make way for quality time. My revised plan involved some beach time, thrift shopping and a tour of the wineries.
Perth has no shortage of wineries at its doorstep. Western Australia’s winery regiona can be segmented into three regions - from the acclaimed Margaret River region, the Swan District, the Perth Hills and the Great Southern. Given that time was of the essence, I discovered a tour company that gave us maxium bang for our buck. Swan Valley Tours offer a total of 11 tours priced from $95 to $240.
How does one do winery tour you ask? You do it with your girl squad, that’s how. Once we all agreed on a day, we jumped online to book direct on Swan Valley Tours | Private & Group Wine Tours (svtours.com.au) We selected the Indulgence tour which included a 2 hour cruise along the Swan River, wine and cheese tastings on the cruise, a delicious lunch at The Homestead and a coach tour inclusive of 4 wineries, a brewery and a Chocolatier.
Pinterest provided the inspiration, but we provided the talent and Mandoon Winery provided the backdrop. We enjoyed our lunches and made way to the vineyard for a mini photoshoot. We joined a cheerful busload of other travellers on a journey taking in a selection of wineries, each with their own unique tasting.
Perhaps it was the pinterest inspiration and the catch cry of romanticising our lives, but booking the tour, learning about the tasting process and the history of vineyards along the Swan river added a very unique twist to sightseeing.