Hunter Valley is a famous wine region about 3 hours drive north of Syndey. There are the main areas/towns that people visit in the wine region (Broke, Pokolbin and Wollombi). We stayed in Broke.

Driving up from Sydney you can take the main Pacific Highway and toll roads, or Putty Road with non-toll roads. There isn’t much difference in the time so we decided for the non-toll road. The main reason we picked it was that it was in between 2 national parks (Wollemi National Park and Yengo National Park) so we assumed the drive would be nice and scenic. It didn’t disappoint, I would drive that way every time, if I was to do it again.

We found a lovely breakfast spot on the way too (Emu Hall Bar and Kitchen : https://goo.gl/maps/QqpYyGxhoQXfa8vj7 ). A nice tstop to break up the drive and fill the belly.

We had planned on visiting Audrey Wilkinson: https://goo.gl/maps/Jtr2ZYhwSEGXeiNd9 . However, you need to book in advance as its very popular. We only decided on the way up what time we wanted to visit and by the time we decided what time we wanted to go it was sold out. We thought we’d take a chance anyway, and go but they told us it was full. We were disappointment but the views were so nice, that we decided to book for the next day.

As Audrey W. was sold out, our Airbnb host recommended Krinklewood Organic Estate https://goo.gl/maps/Pwe4CGbExfYmJHZ78 . which was just down the road from our Airbnb. We went there for a tasting menu 6 wines, with meat and cheese platter. We loved it, and it was a nice little vineyard.

The next day we went back to Audrey W. (and seen numerous others being turned away who hadn’t booked, like us the day before) and enjoyed their amazing deal of wine tasting (13 wines!) and a picnic backet that you could take into their grounds after the tasting to enjoy. The picnic included 1 bottle of wine, chosen from 5 or 6 different options (all of which you had tasted earlier). We loved it and it was such great value for money. Cant recommend it enough. The icing on the cake was when we went to leave they gave us to wine glasses as souvenirs, we didn’t expect that at all.

As we were travelling during Australia Day holidays, there demand for places to stay was high. We settled on an Airbnb in Broke: https://goo.gl/maps/8agchzjqTa5EU8fFA.

It was essentially, a chalet room at the back of some ones house and was great value. The room was separate to the house and we had to walk into the house for bathroom, and shower, but it was literally 10 feet away and just inside the door. They also had a small pool but we didn’t use it. The chalet itself was on a 32 acre farm and the owner made it clear to us that we were welcome to explore it all. We went for several walks around the places seeing numerous kangaroos (our first time seeing them in the wild) so we loved it, and they had some horses too so it kept us entertained. The best thing about the Airbnb was the peace and quiet. The house and chalet were well set back from the road, and the road was very quiet. It was very peaceful and would highly recommend for a couple of days to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.

Tips and Prices

AirBnb 1 night 104 AUD

Audrey Wilkinson 1 sparkling wine welcome drink, 12 wines, picnic basket with a bottle of wine, meat and cheese, and 2 glasses to keep for 2 people 175 AUD

Krinklewood Organic Estate 6 wines and large meat and cheese platter for 2 people 125 AUD