Arizona Official State Travel Guide - Arizona 2025-26
Top Tours for Exploring Wine Country
2025-08-25 13:32:56
Thanks to curated tours, imbibers can sip and sample safely as they visit a flight of wineries by bus, boat, Jeep or train.
In 2021, Central Arizona’s Verde Valley became an American Viticultural Area, giving Arizona its third distinctive wine country. If you’re staying in the Scottsdale area and would like to day-trip to this lush riparian region, the AZ Wine Wagon whisks guests to three Verde Valley area wineries, including Cove Mesa Vineyard, a premium winery focused on small-production wines. Travelers overnighting in Sedona, Cottonwood or Page Springs can opt for the AZ Wine Crawler. This hop-on-hop-off service whistle-stops between numerous wineries in verdant Page Springs, pastel-painted Old Town Cottonwood and historic Clarkdale. Outdoorsy oenophiles can splash out on Verde Adventures’ Water to Wine Tour, a kayaking trip on the Verde River to Alcantara Vineyards’ Tuscan villa-inspired tasting room. Or journey to the river and Alcantara in an off-road vehicle on A Day in the West’s Jeep Tour and Wine Tasting. For even more horsepower, ride the Verde Canyon Railroad’s Grape Train Escape, departing from Clarkdale once monthly from May to September. Passengers can sip local wines while chugging through the Verde Canyon as it turns golden at sunset.
An entirely different terroir awaits in Southern Arizona, where you can immerse yourself in the chardonnay-colored grasslands of neighboring cities Sonoita and Elgin and the Wild West flavor of Willcox. Arizona Winery Tours ushers guests from Tucson to three wineries and a restaurant in either Sonoita or Willcox. At Rune Wines, score a seat under a sunshade and drink in sweeping prairie views while sipping wild-yeast-fermented syrah. And don’t miss Los Milics Vineyards from Pavle Milic, whose wine program at Scottsdale restaurant FnB was nominated for a James Beard Award. You even can stay overnight in one of the vineyard’s recently opened casitas: nine one-bedroom, stand-alone suites with panoramic views of the vineyards and Mustang Mountains.
WINE & WILDLIFE IN WILL COX
Pair wine tasting and wildlife in the dramatic desert landscapes of Willcox. Hike Chiricahua National Monument for southwestern species, witness the migration of thousands of sandhill cranes during Wings Over Willcox Birding & Nature Festival every January and bring your binoculars to Twin Lakes, recognized by the National Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area. Book a stargazing glamping dome or a vineyard cottage to make a weekend of it.
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