Marlborough Sounds and Wine Region

New Zealand'S Largest And Best Known Wine Region, Responsible For The Sauvignon Blanc That Put The Country On The World Wine Map, Spreading Across The Plains Below The Drowned River Valleys Of The Marlborough Sounds, Which The Queen Charlotte Track Threads Along By Foot Or Mountain Bike · Blenheim, Marlborough

Marlborough sits at the top of the South Island, where the Wairau Valley's flat, sun-baked plains run into the drowned river valleys of the Marlborough Sounds. The valley holds roughly two-thirds of New Zealand's entire vineyard area and is the region responsible for putting the country's Sauvignon Blanc on the world wine map, beginning with a single commercial vineyard planted in 1973 near what is now Brancott Estate. Dozens of wineries, from large producers to small family cellar doors, cluster around the township of Renwick a short drive from Blenheim, the region's main town. North of Blenheim, the Sounds open into a maze of forested inlets and bays, sea-level valleys flooded by rising water thousands of years ago, explored by boat, kayak, or on foot along the multi-day Queen Charlotte Track. Picton, a small harbour town at the Sounds' edge, is the South Island's main ferry gateway to Wellington. Greenshell mussels are farmed throughout the sheltered water, and the Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre near Blenheim holds one of the country's best collections of First World War aircraft.

The top of the South Island, around Blenheim and the drowned river valleys of the Marlborough Sounds, Blenheim, Marlborough, New Zealand

Cellar doors across Marlborough vary by producer - most of the larger wineries around Renwick open daily, roughly 10am to 5pm, year round, while smaller boutique operations often open shorter hours or by appointment only outside the busy summer and harvest season. The Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre keeps standard daytime hours, typically 10am to 5pm, every day. Queen Charlotte Track water taxis run to a seasonal daytime timetable with far fewer sailings in winter, and some smaller operators scale back entirely in the off season - confirm a current timetable rather than an old one. The Marlborough Wine and Food Festival runs as a single ticketed day each February, not an ongoing event, and its exact date moves year to year.

Marlborough Sounds and Wine Region on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos