The 5 Best Wine Tours and Excursions From Los Angeles

Santa Barbara Valley is the longest transverse valley on the Western Pacific Coast, making it perfect for cool-climate wines such as pinot noir and chardonnay. Taste your way through some of these distinctive wines with this small-group tour that takes you to boutique wineries, vineyards, cellars and tasting rooms alongside a picnic lunch to keep you fueled. Get an insider’s look at the area’s vibrant winemaking culture as you explore with an experienced guide, learn about the Santa Ynez Valley’s unique history and try the varietals and blends that it’s best known for. If you want to stay close then check out our selection of Santa Barbara’s best hotels.

Paso Robles is the biggest producer of one of California’s biggest wine exports: zinfandel. On this half-day tour you’ll learn more about this varietal alongside others common in the area, such as cabernet sauvignon and syrah. Bouncing between three different wineries, your guide will fill you in on the significance and history of each area, including why Paso Robles’s unique climate makes it perfect for the grapes that grow here. You’ll leave with some new friends and an increased appreciation for the region’s wine production.

Starting in the city itself, your hosts Stephen and Justin will collect you from Santa Monica Pier in their sunshine-orange VW van, before whizzing you up the coast to Malibu. Starting at a local tasting room, you’ll get to sample wines from a range of California regions, accompanied by a cheese platter. From here, you’ll head along the Pacific Coast Highway, stopping at lesser-known local spots for the best views in the area. Don’t forget to grab some pictures with your memorable ride before returning to Santa Monica, where you can stay at one of the city’s many luxury hotels.

Expand your knowledge around wine tasting and identification on this San Luis Obispo wine tour. Visiting four wineries in the area you will get the opportunity to learn more about the burgeoning wine scene in San Luis Obispo and nearby Paso Robles. While perhaps lesser known than neighboring Santa Barbara, these regions are home to some seriously impressive wineries that are putting the area on the map. Discover them – and their award-winning wines – while also receiving an introductory lesson on how to see, swirl, sniff, sip and savor each glass as you go along. You can also stay at one of the area’s many fantastic hotels, if you’d like to further get to know this beautiful wine haven.

This tour will take you from the city to the Temecula wine region in no time. Covering four wineries, you’ll taste plenty of award-winning wines common to the Mediterranean-like region. Get familiar with varietals such as sangiovese, montepulciano and viognier, which you can sample while nibbling from meat and cheese platters. A relaxing and informative day that will leave you with an impressive amount of knowledge about lesser-known wines.