From private tastings to group outings, these Finger Lakes wine tours showcase the best wineries the Finger Lakes has to offer.
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We drove ourselves the one time we made it to wine country in upstate New York. Since then, I have gladly recommended that option. Few places reward having your own car like the Finger Lakes. After all, quiet roads and spontaneous stops are part of the experience. Half of the joy comes from driving between the lakes. Along the way, we kept the windows down and enjoyed the scenery.
One hitch comes with all that driving though: someone has to stay clear for the road. This is why F. nursed his pours while I tasted. That is the one thing a guided wine tour sorts out, leaving every person in the car free to taste and enjoy the ride.
More than 100 wineries dot the Finger Lakes wine region across four lakes. As a result, visitors have plenty of ways to explore one tasting room at a time.
On a wine tour, someone else picks the wineries and books the tastings. Meanwhile, you can sit back with a cold glass in hand. Wine culture here runs deep, and a good tasting tour is the easiest, calmest way to a full day of it.
What lands in your glass is a diverse wine list. It features cool-climate whites and soft reds you will not find elsewhere. Riesling is the star of the show.
However, the region offers much more than a single grape. Vineyards along the lakes grow everything from Gewurztraminer and Chardonnay to Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir.
- We have spent enough time in the region to come up with a list of favorite Finger Lakes wineries that we would happily visit again. Some are worth visiting for the food, which is why we rounded up the best Finger Lakes wineries with restaurants. If you plan to stay overnight, our guide to Finger Lakes wineries with lodging can help.
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So here are the best Finger Lakes wine tours. They bring together some of the best wineries in the region. Trust me, any one of them will get a glass in your hand and the road off your mind.
How to Choose Your Finger Lakes Wine Tour
Decide Between Private and Group
First, decide between a private and a group tour. A private wine tour gives you your own vehicle and a custom route, making it ideal for couples or small groups.
Group tours cost less and let you share the day with fellow wine lovers.
Choose Your Lake
Next, choose your lake. The Seneca Lake Wine Trail has the most member wineries and tour options, while the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail is known for fruit-forward wines.
The Keuka Lake Wine Trail is the birthplace of Finger Lakes winemaking and offers some of the region's most breathtaking views.
Meanwhile, the Canandaigua Lake Wine Trail combines wineries, breweries, cozy B&B's, and local eateries close to Rochester.
Check What's Included
Then look at what is included. A good tour should cover transportation, planning, the pickup location, and tastings at several wineries, often with a lunch stop.
Be sure to ask whether tasting fees are extra and how large the group will be. Spring and fall typically offer the best weather and the smallest crowds, though the Finger Lakes' mild microclimate makes wine tasting enjoyable year-round.
Consider the Wineries You Want to Visit
It also helps to picture the wineries you want on your route. Most guides aim for a mix on each itinerary, so a day might pair a big name like Wagner, Ravines, or Hermann J. Wiemer with a small Finger Lakes winery you would never find on your own.
On the Keuka Lake Wine Trail, Dr. Konstantin Frank is the stop nearly every tour wants, since it is one of the best wineries in the country.
Tell your guide what you are after, and they will point you to the right wineries in the Finger Lakes and line up the wine tastings.
Think About What You'll Be Tasting
Finally, think about what you like to drink. Whatever tour you pick, they will be serving cool climate wines.
Riesling is the star, from bone-dry to honey-sweet, grown in a microclimate that the deep lakes keep mild, which suits grape cultivation this far north. You will also run into Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Cabernet Franc.
The whole area carries the Finger Lakes AVA name, one of the country's better-known cool climate wine-producing regions, and the diverse, exquisite wines produced within the Finger Lakes keep wine lovers coming back.
What You Will Taste Along the Way
Whatever tour you pick, they will be serving cool climate wines. Riesling is the star, from bone-dry to honey-sweet, grown in a microclimate that the deep lakes keep mild, which suits grape cultivation this far north. You will also run into Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Cabernet Franc.
The whole area carries the Finger Lakes AVA name, one of the country's better-known cool climate wine-producing regions, and the diverse, exquisite wines produced within the Finger Lakes keep wine lovers coming back.
10 of the Best Finger Lakes Wine Tours for a Stress-Free Day
Crush Beer and Wine Tours
Duration: About 6 hours
Price: Around $245 per person, or roughly $315 with lunch added
Crush is the name you hear most when people discuss guided wine tours in the region. Not surprisingly, the reviews back it up. The company offers private and group winery tours across all four lakes.
Meanwhile, a Crush host handles the planning and reservations. They book every wine tasting and coordinate the itinerary. Along the way, they share local insights between winery visits.
A full day covers four wineries with an optional lunch stop, and it will also include brewery tours so you can mix wine and craft beer in one go.
Quality Wine Tours
Duration: A full day, about 6 to 7 hours
Price: By group quote; most budget-friendly in the region
Quality Wine Tours has been exploring these roads since 1996. Today, they remain one of the most experienced names on the Finger Lakes wine trails.
Based in Victor, they run driver-guided trips across the Seneca, Keuka, Cayuga, and Canandaigua lake wine routes, and they let you mix wineries, breweries, and even a distillery into one custom day.
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The bus is clean rather than fancy, which is part of why their rates stay friendly, and you can play your own music on the way between beer stops and tasting rooms.
Experience! The Finger Lakes
Duration: Half day or full day, around 5 to 7 hours
Price: Premium, with a four-guest minimum; the premium tier adds $50 per person
For nearly 20 years, this sommelier-owned company has ranked among the best wine tours in the country, and it shows in the details.
The groups stay small, the guides set up private tasting experiences and behind-the-scenes winery experiences you cannot book on your own, and one stop usually includes a vineyard walk or a production tour.
They pair award-winning wines with food and wine pairings, and a few trips fold in guided waterfall hikes around Ithaca and Watkins Glen.
This is the curated wine day for people who want a certified sommelier and a real story with every glass.
Finger Lakes Winery Tours
Duration: A leisurely day, usually 3 to 4 winery stops
Price: By custom quote; winery tasting fees run about $2 to $8 each
For the upscale end, Finger Lakes Winery Tours has run chauffeured trips out of Ithaca since 2001 in full luxury vehicles.
They put together wine, beer, and cheese routes with award-winning wineries throughout the Finger Lakes on Seneca, Cayuga, and Keuka, and their longer packages add vineyard walks and comfortable accommodations so you can make the Finger Lakes a whole weekend.
A trip builder tool on their site lets you shape the itinerary before you ever get in the car. They cap most days at four wineries, since any more and the wines start to blur together.
Winewagen Tours
Duration: 4 or 6 hours
Price: By quote, based on your group size and pickup location
Winewagen runs small private tours out of Geneva, and half the fun is the ride itself, which happens in a vintage 1971 VW Micro Bus.
You pick the lake and the pace, and they shape a route around what you feel like drinking, whether that is wine, craft beer, or a stop at a distillery.
Pickup is easy across the lake area, and the whole thing feels more like a friend driving you than a packaged tour.
For a couple or a few friends who want the day to themselves, this is one of the best wineries-in-a-day options around.
PalS Wine Tours
Duration: 6 hours, departing late morning
Price: A flat private rate for your group, booked online
Based near Penn Yan, PalS focuses on private custom tours shaped around the Keuka, Seneca, and Cayuga lake wine trails.
Their guides ask what you like first, then pick the wineries to match, so a serious wine lover and a first-timer can ride together, and both leave happy.
A full day can take in anywhere from six to ten tasting rooms, which is more ground than most tours cover. Pickup runs within about 45 minutes of Penn Yan, which makes this a strong pick for anyone based around Keuka Lake.
Bianconi Tours
Duration: About 4¼ hours, or a 7-hour wine-and-dinner cruise
Price: $99 per person; private boat charters from about $590
For something different, Bianconi runs tours by boat on Cayuga Lake out of Aurora. They pick you up right at your dock or a nearby launch, then set an easy pace between stops.
The four-and-a-quarter-hour Wineries by Water cruise stops at up to three dockside spots like Goose Watch, Long Point, and Thirsty Owl, with captains Matt and Jim handling everything.
If you want to stretch the day, their seven-hour Wine and Dine charter adds dinner in town before a sunset ride home. Tasting fees are on you, but the view from the water is what you will remember.
Water to Wine Tours
Duration: About 5 to 5½ hours
Price: Private charters from $500, booked by the boat
Water to Wine has been cruising Cayuga Lake since 1999, and it is the pick for a bigger group.
Their Isle of Skye boat is Coast Guard certified for up to fifteen people, which makes it a favorite for bachelorette parties, while the smaller Panga suits six or fewer.
The circular seating keeps everyone in the same conversation, a nice touch on a long afternoon. A regular trip runs about five hours, with three winery tastings and a lakeview bistro lunch worked in.
You book the whole boat rather than a seat, so the day is yours to set.
Screech Owl Tours
Duration: A full custom day
Price: By quote
Screech Owl is a one-man operation, and that is the charm of it. Wade Wykstra grew up around Seneca Lake and has been guiding since 2007, taking groups of two to six around in his Ford Flex. He is a professional driver who once arranged motorcades, so the day runs smoothly without ever feeling rushed. He mixes wineries and breweries with bits of local history and the natural side of the region. You book him by text, and for a quiet, personal day with someone who truly knows the area, he is hard to beat.
Finger Lakes Wine Rack Tours
Duration: A full day, customizable
Price: By quote; tasting fees of about $10 to $25 per stop are separate
Run by a local guide named Phil, Finger Lakes Wine Rack Tours shapes a custom day for groups of two to ten. He leans on years of relationships to point you toward old favorites and small finds, across wine, beer, and local spirits.
Tell him your taste and he plans the whole route, books the stops, and keeps the day moving at a pace that suits you. The rate covers your tax and a small fuel charge, with the tasting fees kept separate.
People tend to call Phil more friend than driver, which is really the whole idea.
Until Our Next Glass in the Finger Lakes
Our one trip through the region still comes up at dinner, usually when Leo and Lin argue about which lake had the better view. I took photos at every stop, but the best experience was the long lunch where nobody checked their phone for hours.
Next time F. gets to taste too, which is why the wine tours in the Finger Lakes region of New York above are saved in my notes. We are the kind of family that travels for the table, and a guided day promises the unique wine, the food, and unforgettable memories.
So gather your people, pick the lake that suits your taste, and book a wine tour today so everyone gets to enjoy it.
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