Southern Rhône Wine Tour
Tuesday 3rd-Saturday 7th June 2025 – fully booked
5 days/4 nights based in Avignon, £1,499pp, £125 single supplement
Price excludes flights/Early booking discount available
- Two visits and tastings at Châteauneuf-du-Pape
- Discover renowned Côtes du Rhône villages such as Gigondas, Tavel, Beaumes de Venise and Lirac, with their diverse wine styles
- Stay in the beautiful historic town of Avignon
- Enjoy the stunning scenery of the region
- At least six visits over three days, covering key appellations, including Luberon in the south
- Comprehensive tastings at every visit, and four fabulous tasting lunches or dinners
Tour dates 2025
Tuesday 3rd-Saturday 7th June – fully booked
Outline Itinerary
Day 1
Our tour commences at our Meeting Point at Marseille Airport (see Flight Transfers below). I will meet the afternoon flight arriving from Heathrow and our coach will take us to Avignon, where we will settle in to our hotel. In the evening I will host a first night dinner at a local restaurant, at which we will commence our exploration of the wine and cuisine of this beautiful place.
Day 2
Châteauneuf-du-Pape is our destination on our first morning. The beautiful Château La Nerthe estate will introduce this magnificent appellation, and lunch will be in the town, overlooking the immense vineyard landscape. After lunch we will visit a top estate in Tavel for a tasting of both rosés from the appellation and red and white wines from neighbouring Lirac.
Dinner at leisure in Avignon.
Day 3
We head into Côtes du Rhône villages territory to get a different perspective on the classic grape mix of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre, visiting Domaine Mourchon in Séguret, where will also enjoy a lovely lunch. In the afternoon we will visit Domaine de Coyeux in Beaumes de Venise and discover there is more to the appellation than the eponymous sweet Vin Doux Naturel made from Muscat.
Dinner at leisure in Avignon.
Day 4
Our final full day is dedicated to Châteauneuf du Pape, with a visit, tasting and lunch at a top estate. After some free time to enjoy Avignon we will head out for our final night dinner.
Day 5
Due to our late flight from Marseille, we will have time to take in a visit to the Luberon en route to the airport. Château la Verrerie is a beautiful estate making superb wines and after our tasting we will take our final meal among the vines before heading on to the airport.
Note: the Itinerary may be changed at Tim Syrad Wine Tours discretion so as to facilitate the smooth running of the tour and to accommodate great opportunities for visits or tastings that may become available.
Key Tour Information
* The Key Tour Information specifies what you should expect from the tour, no matter how far ahead you book.
As additional information is published on the website, it will be advised to clients who have reserved a place. The daily itinerary will be finalised in the weeks leading up to the Start Date.
Pricing
- £1,499 per person based on 2 people sharing a double/twin room.
- £125 supplement for single occupancy of a double room,
- £100 discount for bookings made before 1st January 2025, and paid for 10 weeks before departure.
Price includes
- Transport from the Meeting Point at Marseille Airport to the hotel on Day 1, and to the Departure Point at Marseille Airport on Day 5.
- 5 days (including arrival and departure days)/4 nights bed and breakfast in a 4* hotel in Avignon.
- Coach for all activities in the itinerary.
- Three full days of visits and tastings.
- Six visits/tastings, including wineries in areas such as Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the Côtes du Rhône village appellations, tasting the key grape varieties and styles of the region.
- Four lunches/dinners with local wines.
- All local taxes and service charges.
- The services of Tim Syrad as your Wine Tour Manager and Wine Guide.
It is a condition of my accepting a booking that you will take out appropriate travel insurance – please see our Terms and Conditions Section 8.
Terms and Conditions are available here or on request.
Please note flights are not included in the price. Many of my clients prefer to extend their holiday before or after my tours, so I let people make their own flight arrangements.
* End of Key Tour Information
Flight Transfers
Our Meeting and Departure Point is Marseille Airport. I will arrange transfers to coincide with the following flights.
Outbound (Tuesday 3rd June 2025 )
British Airways from London Heathrow to Marseille (MRS). Flight BA0336 departs LHR 0905 arrives MRS 1205.
Return (Saturday 7th June 2025 )
British Airways from Marseille to London Heathrow. Flight BA0369 departs MRS 1705 arrives LHR 1805.
Please contact me if you would like to discuss travel options, for example flying to or from a different airport or making the journey by rail or driving. I cannot arrange travel for you, but I can advise on what might work best.
How to book this tour
Please contact me by phone or email, or use the enquiry form on the Contact page on the website to check availability. When I confirm a place is available, please complete the booking form to reserve your place.
Once I have confirmed a tour is proceeding I advise clients to arrange flights and confirm travel arrangements to me. Please do not arrange flights before I have confirmed your place and that the tour is proceeding.
Full payment must be made 10 weeks before the tour starts, invoices will be sent out 12 weeks before the tour starts. At this point you will need to provide your insurance details (name of insurer, policy number, 24 hour emergency telephone numbers), outbound/inbound travel arrangements and any dietary requirements.
More about my Southern Rhône Wine Tour
I ran this tour in 2023, and it is back by popular request. Please read the blog to find out more about what we got up to! In 2013 I ran five tours to both Northern and Southern Rhône, read the visit report.
The region is distinct from its Northern neighbour by virtue of climate (hotter and drier), topography (flatter) and history (close to Marseille with a handy river by which to ship wine). Unlike the Northern Rhône where Syrah rules red wines, the South has a bigger palate of grape varieties to play with, though for reds Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah are generally the main constituents of blends (with Carignon and Cinsaut in smaller proportions), while Grenache Blanc, Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier, Bourboulenc and Clairette are the most commonly used white grapes. All these varieties do well in relatively hot conditions, but from north to south there is a definite transition from Syrah to Mourvèdre in the blends.
Many vineyards are planted with vines trained as individual bushes, rather than wires, which provides shade for the grapes and offers protection from the Mistral wind, which has really gathered pace as it approaches the Mediterranean.
The Côtes du Rhône appellation covers regions that, as one might expect, are close to the Rhône river which winds through the landscape, but appellations further from the river are not considered Côtes, and have distinct characters reflecting their own geographies. The Luberon, which we will visit, is closest to the Mediterranean and borders Provence so its wines have a very Mediterranean character with the scent of garrigue herbs often to be found in the wines’ bouquet.
The Southern Rhône is best known for the rich, full bodied reds of Châteauneuf du Pape. The appellation led the creation of ‘rules based’ appellations in France, and the famous rules created by Baron Le Roy in the early 20th Century still pertain – though the minimum 12.5% alcohol never challenges winemakers in these warming times! Jancis Robinson describes them as ‘big and beefy’ with a ‘come-hither’ attractiveness (admitedly with high levels of alcohol). With eighteen permitted varieties, in any proportions, there is lots of variety, and we will discover contrasting approaches. The famous ‘galet’ pebbles, which we will see at the base of vines, are actually not the only soil type in the appellation (which is very large), and it will be fascinating to investigate the impact of terroir within the region. We will also experience some delicious white versions. The remnants of the historic 14th Century Pope’s palace are in the village and we will be able to take a look during our lunch stop.
The term Côtes du Rhône Villages appellation is available to some village that are considered to produce wine of superior quality. Around 20 of these can, if wines are made uniquely from grapes from them, append their names as well, as in Séguret. A few of these villages have demonstrated unique character and consistent quality over so many years they have been individually elevated to AOC status. The best example of these is Gigondas which is now producing many wines that compete well with Châteauneuf du Pape.
Tavel rosés are world renowned for their depth and intensity, Muscat de Beaumes de Venise needs no introduction as a top class sweet wine but did you know there is a Beaumes de Venise red? Lirac is another AOC that deserves more attention and we get the chance to understand this lesser known AOC better.
Avignon is a delightful place to stay as many will know. Famed for its fabulous 14th and 15th century architecture, the town oozes history. It is awash with excellent restaurants and is a lovely place to stroll around. Food that complements the wines we are drinking will, of course, feature strongly in our tour, the region has at its disposal the full ‘menu’ of Mediterranean ingredients, but is close enough to the sophisticated gastronomic scene of Lyon to present some of the finest cooking in France.
More about Tim Syrad Wine Tours
Since 1997 I have escorted over 140 groups of people on wine tours, visiting more than 40 wine regions in Europe and the New World. My clients keep coming back year after year because in addition to tastings and visits we really do meet the people who make the wine and tend the vines.
I pride myself in offering tours that are informative, imaginative and enjoyable. I keep group sizes manageable so that we spend our time appreciating our visits, not getting on and off the bus or queuing for the loos! I personally escort all of my tours, and I ensure as much as possible of the money my clients pay is spent on great food and wine, and good hotels. I believe you can combine appreciating fabulous wine with relaxation and laughter, which is why so many of my clients come on tour with me every year. More than 100 people have come on at least 10 of my tours.
There is a friendly and welcoming atmosphere on every tour from the start, and I am proud that many friendships have been made between the people who come on tour with me.
For more information about me, my next tours, and previous tours I have run, and to find out what my clients say (some of whom have been coming on tour with me since 2001) please explore the website.
For more information about this tour, or to book a place, please contact me
By phone (020 7060 4529)
Or email (tim@timsyradwinetours.com)
Or use the online enquiry form on the Contact page