Gourmet Food and Wine Tour with Lunch: an honest review

My verdict: the best-rated thing on this site, and the most expensive day on it once you have paid to get there. Five hours, two boutique vineyards, oysters from Te Matuku Bay, olive oil, a beer and whisky tasting and a family-style vineyard lunch. The crossing is not included, and because the tour starts at Matiatia at 9:45am you cannot use the cheap afternoon fare either. If you are coming from Auckland, budget for the full on-peak return on top. I would still book it. I would just not be surprised by the total.

4.9★★★★★303 reviewsfrom NZ$315

Duration5 hours

StartsMatiatia, 9:45am

Ferry includedNo — it is an exclusion

Real all-in costNZ$377 from Auckland

LunchFamily-style, at a vineyard

AlsoOysters, olive oil, beer and whisky

The ferry is not in this price, and the cheap fare is out of reach

The advertised price is NZ$315. The tour starts at Matiatia at 9:45am and the operator tells Auckland-based guests to take the 9am ferry — which is an on-peak sailing, because off-peak fares only apply from 1pm. So the usual NZ$46.50–62 range does not apply here: it is the NZ$62 return, and the real cost is NZ$377 per person. That is the number to compare against the tours that include the crossing.

What the day contains

Five hours from Matiatia at 9:45am: two boutique vineyards, oysters from Te Matuku Bay, an olive-oil tasting, a beer and whisky tasting, and a family-style lunch at a vineyard. It is the broadest tasting list of anything on this site — wine, oysters, oil, beer and whisky in one sitting — and at 4.9 from 303 reviews it is also the best executed, on the evidence.

Usually included

Two boutique vineyards with tastings
Oysters from Te Matuku Bay
An olive-oil tasting
A beer and whisky tasting
A family-style vineyard lunch
Five hours, starting and finishing at Matiatia

Not included

Ferry tickets — the operator lists them as an exclusion
The off-peak fare, in practice: a 9:45am start rules it out
Anything you drink beyond the tastings and lunch

What 303 reviews say

4.9 is the highest rating on this site and the reviews are unusually specific about why. “Very nice tour with a small group (only 5 in total) and a great and engaged guide Jo.” (Sven). Grant, Jo, Paul and Lydia recur as guides. “The wineries are small and intimate! Really enjoyed the local vibe” (Challis P). And on the food, which is what you are paying for: “the lunch and the wine pairings were superb. the olive oil tasting was informative and delicious.” (kevin).

I have not found a substantive complaint in this pool, which is rare and worth saying plainly. The honest criticism of this tour is not about the tour. It is that a NZ$315 listing is a NZ$377 day for anyone crossing from Auckland, and nothing on the booking page tells you that.

What works

4.9 from 303 reviews — the highest rating on this site
The broadest tasting list here: wine, oysters, olive oil, beer and whisky
A family-style vineyard lunch included
Small groups — one reviewer counted five people in total
Guides named repeatedly and praised for engagement

Worth knowing

Ferry tickets are an exclusion — the real cost is NZ$377 from Auckland
The 9:45am start rules out the off-peak fare entirely
The dearest day on this site by a clear margin once the crossing is counted
Two vineyards, against four or more on tours costing half as much all in
You are on the 9am sailing whether that suits your morning or not

Rating4.9 / 5

Reviews303

PriceNZ$315

All-inNZ$377

StartsMatiatia 9:45am

FerryNot included

Insider tip

Book the 9am sailing the operator names, and be at the Auckland terminal well before it. Leaving Auckland between 10am and 12pm is the busiest window of the day and there is no later option that gets you to Matiatia by 9:45am.

Who it suits

People who came for the food, people already staying on the island, and anyone treating the day as the occasion rather than as transport with wine attached. It is the tour I would book for a birthday. It is not the tour I would book on a budget: at NZ$377 all in you are paying more than twice what the wineries’ tour costs with the ferry pass included. If the food is the point but the total is not, the Taste of Waiheke day includes the crossing, a bus and a two-course lunch for NZ$240 all in. Everything is in one table on the wine tours page.

Fares checked 12 August 2026

Ferry fares on this page were read on 12 August 2026: NZ$62 on-peak adult return, NZ$46.50 off-peak. Fullers360 revised its fares on 16 February 2026 and they are still moving, so check the operator’s own site before you count on a number. Tour prices come from the listing itself, read the same day.

Check gourmet food & wine tour dates

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure on most tours — book now, decide later.

Cheaper days that include the ferry

Best value wine dayFerry pass included

Frequently asked questions

Does the gourmet food and wine tour include the ferry?

No. Ferry tickets are listed as an exclusion. The tour starts at Matiatia at 9:45am and the operator tells Auckland guests to take the 9am sailing, which is on-peak, so the real cost is NZ$315 plus a NZ$62 return — NZ$377 per person. See the fare table.

Can I use the off-peak ferry fare with this tour?

No. Off-peak fares apply to sailings leaving Auckland from 1pm and this tour starts at 9:45am. That is the one case on this site where the NZ$15.50 saving is simply unavailable — the off-peak rule is explained here.

Why is it rated so highly?

4.9 from 303 reviews, with guides named again and again and reviewers singling out the wine pairings, the olive oil and the small groups — one counted five people in total. I could not find a substantive complaint in the pool, which is unusual.

Is it worth NZ$315?

If food is the point of your day, yes, and it is the best-rated thing here. Just price it as NZ$377 from Auckland. For half that, the wineries’ tour includes the ferry pass and four or more vineyards, and it is rated 4.7.