Active Travel Ideas for Your Next Wine Trip

Cycling along the coastline of the Dingač wine region in Dalmatia, Croatia

For over five years, active travel has been my preferred form of traveling.

I first figure out what kind of physical activity I want to do during my trip (for example, surfing or running a race), and then I plan my itinerary and book reservations around it.

I love being outdoors in nature and seeing the sights at my own pace, and active travel has become a core component of my visits to wine regions! The saying goes, “Vines love a view,” and it’s no secret that many of the top wine regions of the world are located in or near some of the most beautiful destinations in the world for adventure travel.

Some benefits of active travel:

You can get a good workout in and build up a heathy appetite for your next meal.
Because many of the active travel destinations take you out of the big cities, you are usually not constrained to spending time on tour buses or lining up in queues for tourist attractions.
You can often explore less congested and more authentic, regional towns that are not geared towards catering to tourists.
You can obtain significant mental health benefits from spending time outdoors in nature while taking in the local scenery and unplugging from the chaos of the big cities. You will end your trip feeling rejuvenated mentally and physically!

While I’m figuring out which wine regions I want to visit next year and which physical activity I want to plan my next wine trip around, I’ve compiled below three active travel ideas for wine lovers to consider for exploring the world of wine while getting in a good workout along the way.

1. Cycling Tours

I only learned how to ride a bike back in 2017, and I don’t consider myself to be a great cyclist, but multi-day cycling tours have now shot up the list to become some of my favorite travel experiences. You can cover more ground on a bike and pause or slow down at your leisure.

Cycling tour companies will book accommodations for you, make reservations for certain meals and/or wine tastings (if included in the package) and move luggage for you as you cycle on to the next destination.

Multi-day cycling tours are available as group tours or individual tours, and some cycling tour companies will provide you with the option to customize your tours in terms of the number of days on the tour or your preferences for accommodations or interests.

Prior to the start of the individual tours, the tour companies will send booking information for accommodations and a GPS route to download onto your phone. Often, a local guide will meet you at the starting location to set you up with your bike, your helmet, your bike lock and do a short debrief session on what to expect for your tour.

The benefit of individual cycling tours is being able to stop wherever and whenever you want and take in the scenery at your own pace. For example, during my individual Bourgogne wine tour in 2021, I was able to do an awesome impromptu wine tasting in Clos de Vougeot along my route. The benefit of the group tours is that you get to know your fellow travelers in the tour group and have some more peace of mind, as the tour operators will have back-up bikes, first aid kits, water and snacks and offer route assistance. Having done both individual tours and group tours, I’m a fan of both types of experiences, and I think it’s a matter of personal preference.

Some incredible multi-day cycling tours I have done:

Bourgogne, France: A solo three-day individual tour through the Cote d’Or with Roar Adventures

Wine tasting at Olivier Leflaive in Puligny-Montrachet!

The Islands of Croatia: A group tour with Cycling Croatia

Taking a water break on the island of Korčula in Croatia

Western Tuscany, Italy: An individual tour with Roar Adventures

Cycling over the hills of Western Tuscany on the way to the beach towns!

Don’t want to commit to a multi-day tour? Day-trip bike tours are a great way to explore wine regions and still have enough time to get back to your hotel with enough time to shower before a well-earned dinner!

One of my favorite day-trip bike tours was the Saint-Émilion e-bike tour in Bordeaux with Rustic Vines. I learned about the beautiful wines of Right Bank Bordeaux while biking alongside the vines and medieval castles of Saint-Émilion. The e-bikes certainly helped for going through the hilly villages!

In front of Château Pavie, Premier Grand Cru Classé A (the highest level of classification in Saint-Émilion)

2. Runcations

Are you more of a runner than a cyclist? How about a runcation combining running with wine tasting?

Marathon du Médoc, Bordeaux, France

One of the most famous wine-related marathons is the Marathon du Médoc, which is held every year during fall in Bordeaux, France. It's fondly called the "Longest Marathon in the World," with cups of wine at every mile and ice cold beers, fries, oysters, steak and ice cream starting around mile 20. Getting a good time at this race is not really the point...

Costumes are mandatory, and the race is one giant party celebrating Bordeaux wine. When I ran it in 2022, the theme was "Cinema!", and my costume was Dory from Finding Nemo!
It was a bucket list experience for me and to this day, one of my all-time favorite travel experiences. Check out my blog post article here for a recap of my experience!

A runner re-lacing his shoes in front of Château Cos d’Estournel

Napa to Sonoma Half Marathon and Rosé 5k

This year, I participated for the first time in the Napa to Sonoma Half Marathon and Rosé 5k races as their 2024 Wine Ambassador, and this event exceeded all of my expectations!

Starting line at the Napa to Sonoma Half-Marathon

The Rosé 5k took place on the morning of Saturday, July 20th, and started and ended in Sonoma Plaza, with sips of rosé provided by Stonemason Cellars at the Rosé Garden after the finish line.
The Half-Marathon took place on the next day, Sunday, July 20th. Runners lined up in front of the vineyards of the gorgeous Cuvaison winery in Napa Valley, and we ended the race in Sonoma Plaza, where a wine festival celebrating Napa Valley and Sonoma wines awaited us.

The energy and the positivity all weekend was phenomenal. The event draws runners and wine lovers from all over the country, and it’s an event that everyone can partake in, regardless of one’s running skills or level of interest or knowledge in wine.

One of the best parts of the event is that you can enjoy the lovely wine tasting rooms and restaurants in Sonoma Plaza, which are all within walking distance of one another. We celebrated our 5k race with a delicious bottle of Schramsberg Blanc de Blancs while sitting out on the lovely patio of the restaurant, Layla, at MacArthur Place Hotel & Spa.

Insider Tip: If you are considering participating in this event, sign up early! Registration sells out weeks in advance, and the event is only getting more popular.

I came in First Place Overall (Women) for the Rosé 5k and First Place in Age Group (Women) for the Half-Marathon! Cheers to wine-loving runners!

Celebrating our 5k with Schramsberg bubbles!

Other running races featuring a major wine region include the International Marathon of Beaujolais in France and Ribera Run in Ribera del Duero.

3. Surfing

Are you more of a fish in water than a road runner? Check out these awesome wine regions near world-class surfing destinations!

Lanzarote in the Canary Islands, Spain

The Canary Islands are often called the “Hawaii of Europe,” with surf camps and surf shops spread out along the coastlines. Lanzarote is the easternmost island of the Canary Islands, and ever since I saw a photo of the sweeping landscape of Lanzarote with its black volcanic soils dotted with deep craters of grapevines in them, it was a bucket list travel destination for me.

When I visited Lanzarote in September 2021, the weather was warm, the waves were long and the views were absolutely stunning. The moniker is indeed well-deserved. I surfed in the mornings, and in the afternoons, I drove around the island to visit the wineries. There’s no place on earth like Lanzarote, and if you are into surfing and wine, it’s time to put Lanzarote on your bucket list, too!

Wine tasting in Lanzarote in the afternoon

Madeira, Portugal

In February 2024, I spent a week on the island of Madeira, and it was simply a week in paradise. Each morning, I woke up early to do a new hike on the island, drove back to the little beach town of Machico, where I was staying, had lunch outdoors with a glass of wine or a bottle of beer, and then headed out to the beach for a surf lesson. And every night, I was able to shower in my own hotel room, sleep in a comfortable bed and look forward to doing it all over again the next day!

Feeling like I’m on top of the world in Madeira!

Madeira is famous for their namesake fortified Madeira wines, and wine lovers can take a break from their outdoor adventures to visit the Madeira wine lodges in and near Funchal or visit other wineries on the island.

For more travel tips for Madeira, check out my article here.

Basque Country

Another cool wine region I surfed in includes the Basque Country! Biarritz on the French side of Basque Country is allegedly the birthplace of European surfing, and Donostia-San Sebastian in northern Spain has fantastic surfing locations as well.

Both surfing destinations are actually quite close to each other, so they can be visited in one trip, and you can also visit the nearby wine regions of Getariako Txakolina (a 30-minute drive from San Sebastian) and Rioja (a two-hour drive from San Sebastian) while you are not surfing. These travel destinations are known for their incredible food and wine scenes, so there is plenty to look forward to after finishing a hard surf session.