Martinborough Travel Guides (Updated September 2026)

A great day out, our guide is born and bred in the area and has a wealth of information that she passed on, so very interesting. She is also a very friendly and personable person so a" great job Trinnity". Really enjoyed what we saw and experienced and so glad that we did this tour. Again, well worth the trip keep doing what you are doing.

Jeff and I had such a great day doing a private wine tour around Martinborough with John Penney. It ended up being one of those days that just felt really easy and enjoyable from start to finish.John was very knowledgeable about the local wineries, the wines and the Martinborough area, but what we probably appreciated most was his attitude. He was friendly, relaxed and easy to talk to, and never made the tour feel too formal. We felt very comfortable with him pretty much straight away.We learnt a lot during the day about different wines, grapes and the local wine region, but it still felt fun rather than like we were being given a lecture. John was also happy to answer all of our random questions along the way and you could tell he genuinely knows and enjoys what he does.Because it was just Jeff and I, the whole day felt quite personal and intimate, which was exactly what we wanted. We never felt rushed and could just enjoy the wineries, the scenery, the wine and each other’s company.Such a lovely day and a really nice way to experience Martinborough. We would definitely recommend John, especially if you’re looking for a private tour that feels relaxed, personal and genuinely enjoyable.

The team were super responsive and accommodating when I put my booking through. Trinity our tour guide/driver was super informative/knowledgeable and a lovely person to have alongside us for the afternoon! Overall experience was great, we also got picked up and dropped off at our accommodation, and they returned a lost property item the next day no problem at all. Highly recommend!

I can’t recommend John’s Martinborough wine tour enough.I’ve visited quite a few wineries around New Zealand, but this experience was something really special. What makes John’s tour stand out isn’t just the wineries he takes you to – it’s the people you get to meet. We were lucky enough to spend time with the winemakers, walk through the wineries with them, and even do barrel tastings. Those are experiences you don’t usually get, and they were easily the highlight of the trip.You can tell John has built great relationships with the local wineries over many years. Everywhere we went, we were welcomed so warmly, and being able to chat with the winemakers made the whole experience feel much more personal. As someone who’s currently studying wine, this was an incredible learning opportunity and something I’ll always remember.One of my favourite memories was being invited to have dinner with John and his lovely wife. It was such a warm and genuine Kiwi experience. I also have to mention the homemade spring rolls—they were absolutely delicious!A huge thank you to both of you for your kindness and hospitality. If you’re looking for something more than just a standard wine tour, I couldn’t recommend John more. I’ll definitely be back next time I’m in Martinborough.

Kudos to Matthew and Lee for an ideal day of wine tasting and local history. We visited four wineries, including a tasty lunch at one of them. We even had a wee gin tasting along the way. We appreciated their focus on local small vineyards along side larger wineries. A highlight was meeting the vintner at a small winery and really diving into the process. So interesting.The wines in Martinborough are delightful. We are new to NZ wines and this tour deepened our knowledge and appreciation of Kiwi wines.Matthew and Lee shared their passion not just for the wines but also for the community. And when we decided to spend the night - to enjoy some local gin flights and a delicious meal- Lee got it sorted in no time. This day was a highlight of our time in Wellington. We’ll do it again when next we come back.

We spent a great day with a coffee stop at the “Land Girl Cafe”, a visit to a funny seal colony, the great view from Cape Palliser Lighthouse and a delicious lunch at the “Lake Ferry Hotel”. Our winetasting took place at the Swiss Christine and Raffael Burki at b.wine. Matthew gave us a lot of background knowledge about the region and Martinborough and we enjoyed the day very much! Thank you!:-)

THE BEST EXPERIENCE YOU CAN HAVE VISITING MARTINBOROUGH!!! 10000% RECOMMEND!!! It was an intense day visiting 4-5 wineries. We got to visit the most well-known names in the region including Ata Rangi, Palliser and Oraterra. I even met with winemakers and did barrel tastings which are something really special about John's tours. You don't get barrel tastings so often anywhere else honestly... Outside of tastings John showed us around the region and shared with us the history of Martinborough. He has a depth of knowledge about wine and this region and it was just fantastic to have him as a tour guide. Pick up and drop off service also included, and a platter lunch at Poppies was arranged followed by a tasting there. It was simply the best wine tasting and travel experience you can have - no worries about booking tastings on your own, not able to drink if you have a car, etc.... John does all the work! The tour is SUPER worthy and I will definitely visit John again when I revisit the region.

Our day with John from Wineinsights was one of the highlights of our visit to Martinborough.John has created a wine experience that is so much more than visiting cellar doors. Before we even visited our first winery, he gave us an excellent overview of the Martinborough wine region using a large 3D map, which helped us understand the area's geography and why it produces such outstanding wines.The itinerary was thoughtfully planned and each winery offered something different. We loved the guided tasting at Nga Waka, exploring the underground barrel room at Escarpment, the relaxed tasting at Ata Rangi, and finishing with a private tasting and barrel samples at Oraterra with the winemaker. These were experiences we would never have arranged on our own.Lunch at Poppies was exceptional. The seasonal sharing platter was beautifully presented and absolutely delicious.What really made the day special was John himself. He was warm, friendly, professional and incredibly knowledgeable. He never rushed us, happily answered our many questions, and shared his passion for both wine and the Martinborough region throughout the day. His recommendation for dinner at Karahui was also excellent.We live in New Zealand and were visiting the Martinborough region for a few days, and this was without doubt one of the highlights of our trip. If you're looking for more than a standard wine tour, we can't recommend Wineinsights highly enough. John's expertise, personal connections with the wineries and genuine hospitality made this an unforgettable experience. We would happily book another tour with him.

I am giving a 5 star rating, should actually be a 4.8 star rating. outstanding guide and driver, on time, nice vehicle, with a great understanding of the region and the wineries. Extremely helpful as I have serious mobility problems, and was able to accommodate at every step in our tour. The only issue is that I planned to have a private lunch with my companion, however the driver sat at our table while we had lunch without asking whether it was ok, and in this case it was not ok.

Brilliant, wonderful, lots of fun, lots of laughter, and delightful tasting experiences of some very good wines. Our group was a lot of fun, and made the day even more enjoyable.

Matthew was a great guide, very relaxed and very knowledgable of the area so the whole tour was great. The tour is not rushed so you have the time to climb to the lighthouse even if at a slow pace and enjoy watching all the seals play. Thankyou.....look forward to getting down that way again.

We were a group of 8 who had the best time. Trinity was our driver, and she was amazing! Nothing was a problem, and she was relaxed and very knowledgeable. Highly recommended

I did an all day private tour with John and it was an incredible experience. He was very responsive and easy to work with. He set-up a perfect itinerary that combined experiences at larger, flashier wineries with more rustic and intimate experiences. John has relationships with each of the wineries and is able to set-up experiences that you can't access yourself. I got to taste directly with winemakers out of the barrel. I received personalized attention at each winery and each experience was tailored to my interests. To top it all off, John is a wine expert himself. This is not just a taxi and booking service. John lives in this wine community and knows all the backstories. You're learning and having fun from start to finish. John also went above and beyond and gave me recommendations for the rest of my travels throughout New Zealand. Could not recommend John more!

When I think about my trip to New Zealand, this was the best tour of our trip. John had planned the best wine tour I have ever been on. It was educational, interesting and lots of fun. It was definitely not your typical wine tasting tour where you pull up taste and leave. We toured wine cellars, vineyards, did tasting from barrels, and had the privilege of meeting and talking with the actual winemakers. The lunch that John picked out was so delicious and in a perfect setting. All in all, I highly recommend Wineinsights.org wine tours if you are looking for something special.

A wonderful experience. We had so much fun on this tour. Our fellow tasters were a lot of fun and the wineries we visited were welcoming and only too happy to explain the regions variance and wine making techniques.

We had such fun with a fabulous guide and a terrific group of people. Every winery had a good range of wines on offer and the staff were only too happy to impart their knowledge of the region and wines offered.