In Vino Veritas: The Truth About Cheap Flights to Your Perfect Wine Holiday.
By Florin R. Ferrs (International discounted airfare expert and von vivant extraordinaire)
The history of wine is the history of civilization and there is nothing more civilized than a wine holiday: Rolling hills, grapes ripening on the vine, the scent of the soil, unique microclimates, long-standing traditions, the wine festivals, all of this elevates the wine holiday from mere sightseeing, to something more akin to a communion.
We all love wines, in all their infinite variety. And just as there are many varieties of wine, nowadays, we also enjoy a large variety of wine regions, not only in the classic winemaking countries of the old & the new world, but in new emerging wine countries like China and India (yes, India and China are now producing excellent wine). So the concept of a perfect wine holiday is not as simple as it used to be. A perfect wine holiday today can just as easily involve the rolling hills of Tuscany or the rolling foot hills of the Himalayas!
Perfect Old World Wine Holiday:
Champagne Wine Holiday: The historical Champagne region is located in the French region of Champagne-Ardenne. It’s largest city is Reims, making it a perfect base for your wine explorations. Reim’s cathedral is one of the most beautiful medieval buildings in Europe, it survived the destruction that leveled the city during World War One.
How to Get There: Xl Airways France is offering low-cost Trans Atlantic flights from New York to Paris from $499 through the summer on Vayama.com. Reims is only 100 kilometers away from Paris and well served by France’s rail network.
If it's not from Champagne, it's not Champagne.
Perfect New World Wine Holidays:
South America:
Chilean wines are famous the world over, Chile’s Maipo valley region enjoys rich soil and the perfect climate for winemaking, producing an excellent Cabernet Sauvignon. Argentina’s wine region of Mendoza, located right at the other side of the Andes, is world-famous for its Malbec and Tempranillo based wines.
How to get there: Avianca and Taca offer flights from Miami to Santiago de Chile and from Miami to Buenos Aires from $700 this summer on Vayama.com . The Maipo valley is located in Central Chile, close to Santiago. Mendoza, Argentina can be reached by a short domestic flight from Buenos Aires to the foothills of the Andes mountains. Overnight Buses from Buenos Aires are also available.
Andes are Mendoza Wines
Australia:
Australian wines are praised the world over, the original vines were brought over from the Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) when Australia was still a Penal colony. Nowadays most of the wine production is centered around Southern New South Wales and Southern Australia, making them very accessible from Sydney and Melbourne.
How To Get There: V Australia is offering discounted airfares from Los Angeles to Sydney from $871 on Vayama.com. Rail and Car Rentals services are inexpensive and practical ways to get around Down Under.
South Africa:
South African wines date back to the mid 1600 with the Dutch settlers around the town of Constantia, Cape Town. Constancia wine became world-famous and it was considered one of the best in the world. Cape Town’s Mediterranean climate and signature Pinotage wines make it the perfect new world wine holiday.
How to Get there: South African Airways offers discounted airfares from $1120 total from New York to Cape Town, South Africa on Vayama.com. Rent a BMW and enjoy the rolling hills of the Cape, a world-class experience.
Perfect Emerging Wine Regions Holidays:
India:
Wine culture in India is surprisingly long, dating back to the height of the Indus civilization when vines were introduced by the Moguls from Persia. Modern wine regions include temperate zones in the North: Kashmir and Punjab and in the southern highlands around Bangalore. Chateau Indage, a winery near Pune, produces world-class Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.
How to Get there: Fly from New York to Mumbai from $872 on Vayama.com. You can hire a car with a driver in India from $39 a day.
Chateau Indage: Pairs well with Chapatis
China: Grapes and wine have been a part of western China for generations. Modern Chinese wineries are concentrated in the Yantai-Penglai region, with more than 140 wineries producing wines under brands like “Great Wall” and “Dynasty”. Chinese wines are of very high quality and it has been predicted that they will soon rival and perhaps exceed the quality of European wines.
How to get there: Fly from San Francisco to Shanghai from $747 on Korean Air on Vayama.com. Chinese wine is served in most official Chinese functions, book a tour of the closest wine region and enjoy the wines of the future, today.
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