Practical guides
Practical guides for food and drink travel
The best tasting trips are planned around a few practical realities: tours sell out, harvest changes everything, and bottles are heavy and taxed. These guides cover the details so the trip itself can be easy.
Know before you go
◷ When to goRead these before you book anything. Many decisions, such as dates, routes and luggage, depend on them.
✎ Booking tastingsOur rule: book tastings first, then accommodation, then transport.
↔ Realistic drive timesEach region page lists realistic drive times. As a rule of thumb, add 25% to whatever the map app says for rural roads.
⚑ Getting around without drivingNobody drives after tasting: use a driver-guide, a tour or the train.
Times are approximate, in good conditions, and exclude stops. Check a live route planner and the official sites linked on this page before you book.
Guide · Scotland How to book Scotch distillery tours (and not get turned away) Advance booking, weekend and winter closures, silent seasons and age rules, explained. Guide · Wine country Visiting wine regions at harvest time When the grapes come in, region by region, and what it means for your visits. Guide · Bottles & luggage Getting your bottles home: luggage, shipping and the rules Packing, airline limits, courier options and the import rules to check first. Guide · Customs Alcohol allowances: what you can bring home tax-free A careful, sourced summary of UK, EU and US personal allowances, with a strong "check current rules". Guide · Getting around How to taste without driving: drivers, tours and trains The non-negotiable rule of tasting trips, and the easy ways to follow it.
