A group of 5 of us leveraged this tour (private, winter tour) and we were sadly very, very disappointed. 1. Transportation - this was one of the only pluses to this overall experience. We were picked up and dropped off door-door for this tour. The van that we were in was comfortable and clean. It was equipped with water bottles (one of two souvenirs) and snacks. We were charged a driving fee based on our distance - an extra $82. 2. Guide - our tour guide, George was very nice and well-informed. He clearly had passion and experience. The BEST part of our tour was the "off script" stop George made to one of the wineries en route between "planned" stops. This off-script stop was how the entire route should have been. Modern, clean converted farmhouse with gorgeous views, amenities and great vintages. Absolutely tragic that the rest of the stops were NOT aligned to this really perfect place. He was super eager to help us with pictures and answer any and all questions we had with the region and wine in general. Our second souvenir was a really great printed pic he took of our group. Again, one of the only highlights was George. I think the company should absolutely leverage his hospitality experience to help curate better partnerships and stops for the Seneca route. 3. Snacks/lunch - the winter tour advertised snacks, water and lunch was included/provided. The water was in a reusable water bottle (that we got to keep)- fine but I guess I would have expected additional bottles in a cooler. Maybe even some seltzer or soda for the price point. Snacks were just individual serve baggies from Costco - decent variety but again, for the price point not aligned. We expected snacks to be food pairings at each stop. We really only got that with chocolate bites at the first stop. On site lunch - this was a huge disappointment for the price point. At our first winery we had bites of chocolate for a flight pairing. The pairing and chocolate were nice. The second stop we had three cheeseboards to split between 5 of us - again, fine but no meat (so no significant protein) and we each got a bowl of soup. That was it. That was lunch. For a 7 hour tour this was simply not enough. And we aren't big eaters generally but definitely expected way more for a 7 hour alcohol tour. This was honestly terrible for the price point. I would have expected cheese/bites pairing at all stops with an actual lunch (at least a full panini or sandwich). 4. The wineries - this was where it really all fell down. We stopped at three places on Seneca. First stop was Damiani. We were NOT brought to the tasting room but rather the barn where the wine was made. Let's just say having your first stop pull up to a metal barn when you've paid ~$400/pp is NOT the best first impression. The wine itself and the staff member, Noah, were actually the best of the three stops. But the aesthetic of it was again, not it. Second stop was red newt - this was at least a more "expected" tasting room set up. We were brought to the back and had our flight/tasting there. The wine was OK at best - sadly we did buy a bottle with our "wine bucks" to have with lunch (again not great considering the price point that lunch didn't just come with a complimentary full glass) and one of us in the group got a whole mouth full of legitimate sediment (like straight grit she had to spit out). It was off putting to say the least especially since we had to buy this to have with "lunch". The pours themselves at ALL the stops was exactly that - a tasting pour. It wasn't more "generous" - just a standard 1oz pour and no one was pouring more. When we had "time" at the end we weren't offered more or even a half glass - we instead felt very pressured to buy bottles (and sadly, none of the vintages were really purchase a whole bottle worthy). Again, not expected for the price point - we thought with the "curated" experience and "lasting partnerships" the tour has with these stops we'd at least get heavier pours or extras. Def did NOT happen. The last stop was Flatt Rock - again, sold as a farm/mom and pop shop - that's what it was. The tasting room was not aesthetically a vibe. The wine was also not great and we were told they had a great champagne style drink - we didn't get any. Overall, we were looking for an all-inclusive. No one in our group wanted to plan the itinerary because we didn't want to invest the time but I think it would have been much more worth it to just do that. The three "on route" places we were brought to were old and just not what we expected for the price point. Maybe their public tours on other lakes is better but I can say with confidence the Seneca lake, private winter tour is NOT the vibe for the price per person. read more

What a nice experience! Laura was a wonderful tour guide. She owns the company and is just so passionate about all things wine and the Finger Lakes. it was such a relaxing day filled with good wine and good food. Our tour included three winery stops, tastings at each winery, lunch at one winery and some cheese pairings at the other two. We didn't book a private tour but got really lucky because our hotel was an included pick up / drop off point. We spent a good amount of time at each winery and learned alot from all of the wine makers and Laura. If you want to spend a day drinking wine without worrying about driving or having to think about where to go / what to taste then this tour is definitely for you. Leave it to the experts, relax and have a good time and eat and drink well. You can't go wrong! read more

There are not enough stars to express how incredible Laura Winter Falk is. My husband and I love wine and planned a trip to the Finger Lakes, and all the amazing reviews led us to Experience! The Finger Lakes. Previously, we had been on a few wine trips to California but never to the Finger Lakes. From start to finish, we were beyond impressed with Laura and Experience! The Finger Lakes. We had 2 full days of tours, and I learned an incredible amount and came back with a bunch of amazing bottles. Laura is the perfect person if you want the upgraded experience. Her knowledge is unparalleled, and she helped ensure that every experience was not only enjoyable, but also a learning experience. She is also the best kind of teacher, providing just the right amount of knowledge at every step in the trip. To top it all off, she learned our palettes in a day and took an already curated experience and further curated it. Last but certainly not least, she's just truly a fun person to learn from. I would recommend Experience! The Finger Lakes to you for any wine trip to the Finger Lakes. I am confident you will leave with a new appreciation of the region, as I know I most certainly did. read more

Excellent experience. The service was first rate. The selected wineries were top notch, and we were made to feel very special. Highly recommend! read more

Angela was the BEST tour guide ever. My girlfriends booked this tour for my Bachelorette party and it was so much fun. They had snacks and water on the bus which is a plus. We stopped by three places (Finger Lakes Cider House, Sherpherdess Cellar, and Bandwagon Brewery). Finger Lakes Cider House and the tour was my personal favorite. Before Angels dropped as off at home, she also took us to a beautiful waterfall. She was so friendly and knew so much about Ithaca. She took all our group photos and even got a photo printed for each of us to bring home. It was so memorable. If you're ever in the area, please book this tour with Angela. She was amazing and super friendly!!! read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Angelia the best tour guide ever !!!'n - Tours Near Me

Emma was our tour guide and she was great! She was fact full and funny. She had a great personality and made us feel welcome! We got snacks and water which helped after each winery. If you can request a tour guide ask for Emma! Great wineries and trip! The wineries they chose were great. Hosmer Winery had a great set up. Their pairing was paced well and very informative. Sheldrake Point winery was another great winery. Friendly staff and great wine. Close to the lake. read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Tours Near Me

Today was my first trip to the finger lakes area of new york ., And I must say , after doing some research before I got here on what was the best tour operator and I went with the company . Today when arriving I found we had the owner of the tour company ,Laura doing our tour personally , and let me tell you , it was the most amazing experience ever . Laura is so knowledgeable on wines and the area she made this such a incredibly fun and amazing how experience You will not go wrong , TAKE THIS TOUR !!!!! read more

We took a 2 hour waterfalls and gorges tour with Liz. It was the perfect way to see four beautiful sights and to be guided by a thoughtful, well-informed, and helpful person. Nothing could have been better. read more

We booked a girls glamping weekend package through Experience! We had a fabulous time "glamping" at Firelight, hiking, hanging by the fire with some cold drinks. Add a spa day and a winery tour in a very beautiful place, who could ask for more??!! We did the East Seneca Lake tour, which included stops at 4 different wineries and lunch. Emma was our tour guide. She is exceptional!!! She was extremely knowledgeable about the area, the wineries and wine in general. She made the educational part of the tour fun and had us laughing a lot. The tour was over 7 hours long but it flew by and I would absolutely do it again! If you do this tour, ask for Emma to be your tour guide--you won't be disappointed! read more

I found a list of tours on a Google search and USA Today article popped up. After reviewing a few of the websites, this company seemed like the best bet. I signed up for the tour just 4 days before it. I signed up for the $115 Culinary Wine Tour on Cayuga, which seemed like the best bet also I know nothing about wine pairings so this seemed like a good way to learn. We promptly got picked up at the holiday inn in downtown ithaca. There were people from as far away as Ohio. We loaded up into the van once we all signed the waiver. I was pleasantly surprised to find snacks and filled up water bottles which we got to keep. Our tour guide for the day, Chris, was really awesome and knowledgeable about the areas and each of the wineieries we went to. We went to three wineieries during the day: Sheldrake winery for the first course, Cayuga Ridge Estate for lunch, and Americana Wines for our dessert. I probably tried close to 20 wines over the course of the day. Everything was delicious. I ended up buy 6 bottles over the course of the day and my boyfriend bought 7 bottles. Chris was awesome and carried and stored our bottles for us for each location. Chris was really awesome and took us to see an awesome waterfall at Taughannock Falls State Park in Ithaca on our way back. We even got a framed picture which was taken at our first wine stop. Learned so much about wine that I haven't been able to get just from going to wine festivals which are always packed with people. I loved the wine tour at the 2nd location where they showed us how they make the wines. Price seems steep to most but definitely worth the money and its the best way to travel around the Finger Lakes. read more

We had a great time on the Vinifera Varieties wine tour on Seneca Lake. I hesitated to book a tour because we typically like to do wine tasting at our own pace, but I'm really glad we decided to do this as a guided tour. I will recommend this tour to friends. Laura is a great guide. She is very knowledgeable and provided a lot of interesting information about the area. She took the time to learn everyone's palate and provided personalized recommendations. The cheese and chocolate pairings were delicious. I had never been a huge fan of Finger Lakes wine, but Laura chose the best wineries that really showcase the region. I'm a convert! read more

We loved our experience on "Experience! TheFinger Lakes." Tammy was our guide and she was a nice blend of laid back and knowledgeable. The van was new and clean. We visited 3 vineyards: Buttongrove, Hosmer, Sheldrake..all had informative staff and tasty wines. Each location was in a beautiful setting. We would absolutely do this again! read more

I cannot express how amazing this tour was! We went on the Southwest Seneca your in early October and were blown away. We were lucky enough to have the owner Laura as our tour guide. Not only was she friendly and accommodating, her knowledge of wine and the area enhanced our experience. I definitely learned a lot about how wine is made, and was able to sample a breadth of delicious wines. We even had a fantastic lunch at the FLX Wienery (seriously amazing food- gluten free onion rings!). Laura clearly cares about how people enjoy the tour, and I hope you get the chance to go on it! read more

This was a fantastic wine tour! We also did the Seneca / Vinifera tour with Laura and it was absolutely the best wine tour I've ever taken. Better than any tour operator we've ever used in Sonoma, Napa, or Russian River Valley. Each of the tastings was personalized for us and included appropriate food parings. The lunch at Red Newt was wonderful, as were the wines. At every winery we visited, we felt like we had VIP treatment - usually a separate area for our tasting and some "extra" wines that weren't available in the regular tasting room. Next time we're in Ithaca, we'll definitely do another tour. I'd recommend this to friends as well. read more

Emma was an amazing tour guide! She was very enthusiastic, informative, and a ton of fun. Best way to tour the wineries on Cayuga lake! read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Tours Near Me

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This was an awesome bachelorette experience! We had Laura (the owner) as our tour guide. She knew all of our names and quickly figured out our separate tastes in wines. She was so personable and friendly it really made the tour for us! The Wines were all amazing and the lunch at the red newt grill was so yummy. read more

While I've never done a tour with another company, I have to say that if I do that the bar has been set very high! We were lucky enough to get Laura, the owner, as our guide and we had an amazing time. She is beyond knowledge and gave us such a great education in wine all while ensuring that we had a fun time along the way. I highly recommend Experience! and hope to tour again with them! read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Tours Near Me

Michael was an amazing tour guide!! Super friendly and informative throughout the day. He was very timely and on top of all current CDC recommendations for COVID-19 precautions. We had an amazing time and so glad we chose this tour company! read more

Perfection!!! We had a group of about 12 who were picked up from Hotel ithaca on time at 11am. Laura was our guide. Everyone on the van was greeted with a cold water bottle and as we traveled we played games for candy etc. Laura was amazing. She was super knowledgeable, funny, and had a great spirit. We did the spirits, wine and beer tour which was a great mix of various liquor types in different locations around the lake. The entire tour was 7 hours but never a dull moment. Every stop (including lunch) we were greeted with a diverse set of cocktail choices and pairing options. Laura even snuck in an extra wine stop along the way. The group we had was also really amazing. Everyone bonded and became good friends by last stop. We even organized an outing together after the tour was over. In general, this tour exceeded my wildest expectations and if your looking for an amazing guided wine tour of the finger lakes region this is it. @illmaticwes81 read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Group photo from our last tour stop. Amazing group and great tour. - Tours Near Me

My husband and I had an amazing day on the Spirits, Wine and Beer tour. Our tour guide, Steph, was great! She knew so much about the area and we loved that added tidbit of info while touring around Seneca Lake. read more

Experience The Finger Lakes - Last stop of our Spirits, wine and Beer tour. Wagner Brewery.. Yum! - Tours Near Me

Emma picked my wife and I up right on time from La Tourelle in Ithaca. Inside the van was a waterbottle and wine tour info for our day. The van was comfortable and clean. We picked up 5 more couples on the way to the wineries. All were great people and we were friends by the days end, sharing stories and experiences. We visited Standing Stone, Red Newt, and Damiano wineries. All are good. The story of Standing Stone was excellent. Their ice wines and reislings are wonderful. Red Newt is the best of the three. Heather, our wine expert at Red Newt is highly educated on wine, wine production, and regions world wide. We all learned a lot and we all enjoyed her animated style and story telling. Damiano was more subdued coming at our days end. We tasted wine and chocolate. The chocolate kicked ass and took names. The wine that I truly appreciated there was the Cab blanc and its reserve partner. I highly recommend this wine tour. Congratulations Emma on your promotion. We loved the tour. Good luck in the future. We hope to see you again soon. Cheers. read more

What a great day Laura S. guided us on. We visited 3 wineries and a stop at the Weinery for lunch. Laura S. was friendly, knowledgeable and well prepared. We have been on a few winery tours in Napa, Australia and New Zealand and this tour/day was as good as any we have been on. Bellangelo Winery was our favorite stop of the day. read more

We enjoyed the "SWaB (Spirits, Wine and Beer) tour. We're typically plan-it-ourselves travelers but thought we'd try something that would allow for more tasting without worrying about driving. Chris was our tour guide, and he was fantastic. Always enthusiastic and good mannered, Chris ensured we had first-class treatments at all the stops. The water bottle, snacks and commemorative photo were nice touches, but we were there for the tours, drinks and food. All were excellent. read more

We took a tour today with Chris and had an amazing time. The whole day was wonderful. We will definitely be back.

Let's put it this way, their tour was so good, we did another the 2nd day! Our first tour was the Vine, Wine and Dine tour, we got to visit 4 wineries and have lunch at the 2nd stop. It was perfect, we got special tastings for being on this tour. Everything was already set up for us when we arrived and we were tasting with the owners of each winery. Such a neat experience that we would of never gotten on our own. Got to learn about each wine, harvesting of the grapes and the area. Even got up close to the grapes and vineyards. Lunch was incredible, at the Red Newt, very tasty and fresh. We bought a bottle of wine at each winery (2 at one), it was neat trying to find our favorite and being able to purchase it. They keep the van stocked with snacks and they give us each a cool water bottle (with ice cold water) to take with home as a gift. The tour guide, Chris, was great. He had a real passion for wine and very knowledgeable about the area. The icing on the cake for this tour, was they take your photo at the first winery (GORGEOUS views) and at the end it's printed in another take home gift with a frame. AWESOME touch! At Experience! The Finger Lakes they have nailed it for tours and how to make us tourists HAPPY! The 2nd tour was the Fabulous Falls Tour of Ithaca we did with Laura. I would of have been so disappointed if we didn't do this tour. One- Laura is so incredibly knowledgeable about Ithaca and the Finger lakes, she was a student at Cornell and loved it and never left. You can tell she has a lot of pride in the area which in returns gets you really excited about the area as well. Two- This tour takes you around the university and see these AMAZING waterfalls and gorges from glaciers that are all through the university. We would have never known about these or where to even find them, very hidden gems. Truly breathtaking. This tour is another can't miss, again they had our waters and snacks in the van for us. Little driving, everything was very close. Can't say enough great things about Experience! The Finger Lakes - Made our trip worthwhile! Thanks! read more

This was an AMAZING experience! From the moment we met the bus EVERYTHING was taken care of! We were provided chilled water bottles and delicious snacks in our spacious and air-conditioned motor coach. We were even provided brochures in the coach to help us to remember the wineries. Our guide was educated on the wineries, informative and entertaining. The selection of wineries was varied in terms of side and specialties and the food throughout the tour was delicious. read more

My fiance and I did the Seneca Lake tour with Chris this past weekend & I cannot say enough good things about this tour! From the convenience of getting picked up at our hotel, to the special touches (water bottles and snacks on board the bus)--our tour guide Chris made this trip! He was awesome!! So knowledgeable of the region and the wine itself, offering us dining suggestions for after the tour. Chris thought of everything to make this day special and comfortable for us. He even dropped us off in town & took our purchased wine back to our hotel for us. If you are on the fence about which tour to do--do yourself a favor & book Seneca Lake wine tour immediately!!! read more

I booked the vine, wine, and dine tour based on the positive reviews on Yelp! Thank you reviewers for leading me in the right direction. Our tour guide Rachel was helpful, informative, and super friendly! She selected a diverse group of wineries that offered a wide range of tastings with either the owner or the wine maker. It gave a unique insight to wine making in the finger lakes! The lunch was tasty too! I would highly recommend buying this tour! read more

A group of nine females took a half day tour with Angela for a Bachelorette trip. Our tour guide was Angela who is one of the sweetest persons I've ever met. She had so much knowledge and a great personality. She picked us up at our house! We went to the Finger Lakes Cider House and received a tour by Melissa. It was super interesting and we all learned so much!! Everything here was delicious! We did get to try the pickled asparagus which we loved. Other than that there were no other snacks served here which I think was in error because we spent way too much time asking Melissa about farming! We had circled back after the winery. The winery portion of the tour was at Shepherdess Cellars. I do not recall the he name or the woman who was taking care of us but there were not really any introductions, tours, or explanations and we did not like the wine that much. Angela served us curried cashews and chocolate here that were delicious. Our third stop was at Bandwagon Brewery (I definitely don't remember the two guys names but they were great). The beer was delicious. The property was adorable. The tour was very awesome and they loved conversing with (very drunk) us about beer! Angela even made time to stop at the falls to see the most beautiful falls I've ever seen. I wasn't expecting it to be that beautiful and my drunk emotions caused me to (happily) cry at the waterfall! Angela is a saint for dealing with happy and crazy drunk people! She was great and this tour was great! Thank you so much! Price is 100% worth it (it's not even that much!) read more

We booked this trip as part of a bachelorette weekend. We loved our tour guide Antoinette. The tour as a whole exceeded our expectations with lots of little surprises along the way. We would absolutely book again. We had a blast! read more

We got picked up in Watkins Glen. Emma was a tour guide for the day (we did the SWAB tour) she was super friendly, took the time to learn everybody. And made sure through out the whole day everyone was doing ok. The van was large and comfy and all the stops were expecting us. It was informative and fun! Would definitely recommend!! read more

I was asked to put together a wine tour for some people visiting from several states. I chose Experience! The Finger Lakes and I'm glad I did. We had a wonderful time! The guide, Chris, was entertaining and educational. Each of the wineries added their own specialties and friendliness. I would recommend tese tours to anyone who wishes to relax, and sample fine wine and food. read more

Rachel was so happy and fun! It poured cats and dogs but we did not care the tour was a great thing to do on a rainy day! Experience thought of everything! Water bottles to keep hydrated, snacks and Rachel kept our bottles of wine together and boxed up ready to go when the trip was over! We did this for our 25th wedding anniversary and I can't wait to go back with my girlfriends! read more

This was a wonderful trip. Hubby and I really enjoyed it. Definitely worth the money.

Just returned back from a weekend in Ithaca which we booked the Ultimate Bachelorette Package through Experience The Finger Lakes and we loved it!! We had Liz as our tour guide and she was awesome and knowledgeable. We visited Silver Thread Vineyards, Red Newt and Damiani -- all of them were great! I will definitely be looking to book another trip package in the future. read more

Experience! The Finger Lakes is an amazing way to get acquainted with all that the Finger Lakes have to offer as well as learn more about the area vineyards. Our guide, Angela was absolutely amazing! She is cheerful and extremely knowledgeable. She taught us a lot, and was a joy to talk to during the tour! She went above and beyond by giving us some more recommendations of things to do during our stay! Highly recommend doing a tour here, and you are in for a real treat if you get Angela as your guide! read more

My cousin and I recently went on the Farm-to-Table Culinary Wine Experience. It was fabulous! We would definitely recommend this tour to everyone looking for a fun and up-close-and-personal Ithaca experience. Everyone involved in our day-long tour was very professional but also friendly and extremely knowledgeable and passionate about their work and their community. We felt more like guests than tourists all day. I was especially grateful to Laura from Experience for helping us secure accomodations at no additional cost. This experience was a tremendous value. The wine pours were generous and we enjoyed 2 full meals plus cheese samplings in addition to the wine. Our tour guide, Karen, was a wealth of knowledge about the local food movement and kept us entertained and on schedule as we traveled to each destination. Chef Samantha made us feel incredibly welcome in her home and led an extraordinary cooking class using nearly all local ingredients. Her class was efficient and delicious and she was able to answer all our questions along the way. My cousin is vegetarian and everyone ensured that she was accomodated and able to enjoy the same spectacular experience. I really can't say enough about how much we enjoyed this experience and we will definitely sign up for more tours through Experience! read more

Our tour of the vineyards through out the finger lakes region was incredible. Our tour guide , Laura , was very informative especially when pairing certain wines with foods. She was also extremely petsonable and friendly! At one point she had given each set of group their own photo frames at one of the vineyards. The experience overall was truly one for the books! I highly recommend using this company to get a true understanding of the wine from fingerlakes ! read more

Amazing. Fantastic date opportunity. We were with a few other small groups and couples on the Seneca Vinefera Banana Belt Tour With Rachel. Wines were very good and varied. Parings added a very nice touch. Also out tour guide RACHEL IS SUPER AWESOME. read more

Wow. We spent today with Caren from Experience! and had an AMAZING day. Folks, this is not a wine tour. This is spending an entire day traveling with someone who knows the people who run these vineyards - the people who grow the grapes, make the wine. They spend time with you. You are trying things you're not going to ever be able to try if you came on your own. If I'm going to spend money on a "tour" it better be good. This just blew me out of the water. Absolutely GREAT day, amazing vineyards, food and wine pairings including local cheeses and custom made chocolates - wonderful conversation about everything local. I just can't say enough about how positive an experience today was. I unreservedly recommend Experience! The Finger Lakes. I'm certain each of the guides are great, but if you can manage to spend the day with Caren, you're going to feel like you've spent the day with a great friend. A++ Thank you!!! read more