Since it is now a bajillion degrees outside in DC, one of my favorite things to do is round up my girls and head an hour outside the city to beautiful Loudoun County, VA, AKA DC Wine Country. For those of you who aren’t local, there are over 40 wineries in Loudoun County alone. What better way to spend your weekend than to sip on locally grown vino?
I’ve been on a few different vineyard visits in the last couple of years, but over the weekend I finally organized a trip on my own. Here are a few tips if you want to plan a trip for you and your friends.
Pick wineries that are close to each other. Ideally, you should visit 2-3 vineyards in one day. Loudoun County is pretty massive (there are even a couple of wineries in Fairfax and a lot of them in Fauquier as well), so make sure your wineries are no more than a 20 minute drive from one another just to make your trip as smooth as possible.
Pack snacks and water. One thing I didn’t realize about wineries and vineyards is that quite a few of them allow you to bring outside food. My friends and I always like to pack meats, cheeses, breads and spreads. You’re going to need to eat and hydrate yourself after being outside all day, so make sure to pack some food for your trip!
Arrange for transportation. Do not, I repeat, do not drive out to wine country yourself. It’s incredibly easy to arrange for a limo/bus to pick you up from D.C. to get you there! It’s about an hour outside the city and the roads in wine country are your typical country backroads: narrow, windy and kind of dangerous. I’ve tried out a few different transportation providers in the area, but I swear by Reston Limo. My drivers have always been on time, they’re pretty flexible on the pick up location (hello, they picked me up a block outside of my apartment on Saturday) and the entire staff is incredibly friendly and a pleasure to work with. Reston Limo also has public winery tour buses every weekend if you don’t want to arrange for a private trip.
Keep track of your wineries. You’re going to love some wineries more than others. Why not keep track of that? I tried out VinoWine App for the first time this weekend and I loved it! You can mark which wineries you’ve visited, leave reviews for each winery and search other nearby wineries just in case you have enough time to fit one more winery visit on your trip. You can also buy tickets for events and wine festivals through the app as well. A vino lover’s dream!
What winery trip tips do you have?
the nearest winery to me is 6 hours away by plane because I’m from the tropics 🙁 nonetheless, i absolutely love your post and your outfit! Believe me when I say you look stunning x
http://www.chloecake.blogspot.com
I’d love to visit a winery now that I am of age.
I went to Napa with my parents when I was little so I didn’t enjoy it as much as I would now.
Love this post!
xoxo, Jenny || Breakfast at Lillys
First of all, you look gorgeous. Second, this is BEAUTIFUL! You’re definitely making me want to go to a winery!
xoxo
Lauren Ashley
http://www.thefashionistasdiary.com
I definitely want to do this as I begin planning my wedding with my bridesmaids. I think this would be a great type of outing.
http://LivingLesh.com
LOVING your dress! I’ve gone to breweries with the boyfriend–I think it’s about time we go to a winery!
I think wine tours are so much fun! My family lives in Napa Valley so I have had lots of excuses to tour wineries…I still never get bored of it though! (:
I absolutely love this post! Your dress, your tips, EVERYTHING! Who knew D.C. had such a Wine-enthusiast world?? I could’ve sworn these pics were taken in Napa! xx
What a fun trip! Thanks for all of the tips! Your pictures are sooo cute and I love the dress that you chose.
XOXO
Marie H.
Progression By Design
This sounds amazing! I wish that there were more wineries where I live!
XX, SS || A Little Seersucker Sass
This sounds like a fun trip! I absolutely love your outfit!!
Anchors and Pearls
This is reminding me that I need to plan a winery trip!! It looks BEAUTIFUL! (and so much fun!)
Love love love this post!! I am turning 21 in September and I think that a winery trip would be a really fun thing for me to plan as a day trip later in the fall with some of my girlfriends! Will definitely keep this post in mind.
xoxo A
http://www.southernbelleintraining.com
What a fun trip! I just did a winery trip with a few girlfriends last month and it was so much fun! Love the dress you wore too.
You are absolutely gorgeous! I have been wanting to plan a trip to a winery for the longest time since turning 21! This has given me the motivation and maybe I’ll plan one for this fall!
xx. Brittany
Southern Soul
That maxi looks like it was made for you! Seriously, you look #flawless! I’ve never visited a vineyard, but it’s something I would LOVE to do. I love wine. I’ll have to keep these tips in mind for my first ever vineyard visit.