Yarra Valley Foodies Tour with Chandon and Kangaroo Safari!

The real prize here is the sunset kangaroo stop. After a day of wine, cheese, strawberries and chocolate, you head into the lower Yarra Valley to look for wild kangaroos in their natural setting. Sightings are common, and the operator offers a money-back guarantee, though the practical conditions say wildlife can never be fully guaranteed.

I like the 11:30am departure, which leaves your morning free in Melbourne, and the small van, capped at 11 guests in the tour description. I also like the mix of stops: Chandon brings the polished vineyard setting, while Yarra Valley Dairy and the chocolaterie add local food without making the day only about wine.

The main drawback is lunch. It is not included, and Chandon’s lounge menu may feel limited, so bring money and consider packing a snack if you have dietary needs. The day is also not suited to wheelchair users or children under two.

What makes this Yarra Valley tour worth considering

• Sunset kangaroo viewing: The final stop is timed for golden hour, when kangaroos are more likely to be out in the open.
• A late Melbourne departure: You can have breakfast, shop, or visit a museum before meeting the van at Federation Square.
• Four kinds of tasting: The day combines sparkling wine, still wine, cheese, strawberries, chocolate and ice cream.
• Small-group format: The tour is designed around a comfortable minivan rather than a large coach. Published details describe the limit as 11 guests, while the booking information says up to 12 participants.
• Useful local guiding: Recent guides have included Craig, Kurt, Elliot, Tom, Steve and Stephen, with strong attention to regional wine, geography and Australian culture.
• Good value at $123: Transport, guiding and the main tastings are included, but lunch and personal purchases are extra.

Why the 11:30am start works well

Many day trips from Melbourne leave early. This one takes the opposite approach. You meet behind Federation Square, near the corner of Flinders Street and Russell Street, at the NGV rear entrance, then set off at 11:30am.

That late start is a real selling point if you are staying in Melbourne for only a few days. You can enjoy a relaxed breakfast, visit part of the city, or leave your hotel without setting an alarm at dawn. The return is in the early evening after roughly seven hours, so you still have time for dinner in Melbourne.

Look for the white bus marked Yarra Valley Touring. The meeting point is central, but Federation Square has several entrances and busy pedestrian areas, so allow a little extra time to find the coach zone. You will need a camera, a reusable water bottle, and cash or a card for lunch and shopping. The activity information specifically asks you to bring a passport or ID card, especially important if you plan to drink or buy alcohol.

The drive to the valley takes about an hour. A comfortable minivan matters here because the day includes several short rides between stops, rather than one long coach journey followed by a rushed circuit.

Fresh strawberries before the main tastings

The first bonus stop is a strawberry farm, where the group can buy fresh strawberries to share. It is a small touch, but it gives the outing a local-food feel before the formal tastings begin.

Do not expect this to be the main attraction. One account found the stop a little slow, while still enjoying the strawberries. The value depends on the season and your interest in fresh produce. It is best treated as a short palate opener, not a full farm visit.

Chandon gives the day its grandest setting

Domaine Chandon is the most polished stop of the day. The winery is part of Moët et Chandon, and you receive a complimentary glass of sparkling wine while learning about champagne and sparkling-wine production.

The setting is a major part of the appeal. You have time to sit with a view, take in the vineyard surroundings, and visit the boutique. Several tour days have found Chandon to be a favorite stop, and it is easy to understand why. The combination of a well-known name, a scenic setting, and a relaxed tasting gives the afternoon a sense of occasion.

Lunch is available from the lounge menu, but it is not included in the $123 price. This is where you need to plan. One useful tip from the tour experience is to bring your own food if you want more choice, since the menu can be limited. You may also find dietary options narrower in the regional Yarra Valley than in central Melbourne.

The timing is about one hour. That is enough for a drink, some food, a view, and a look through the shop, but not enough for a long winery meal. If Chandon is your main reason for booking, you may wish the visit were longer. If you want variety across the whole day, the one-hour stop keeps the schedule moving.

Yarra Valley Dairy keeps the food local

A short drive takes you to Yarra Valley Dairy, a small family-run producer of soft cheeses made on site. The tasting gives you a change of pace after the sparkling wine and a closer look at one of the region’s farm-based businesses.

This is not a grand cellar-door production. That is exactly its appeal. You are tasting a local product in a smaller setting, and the cheese is served as a dedicated part of the tour rather than as a token bite beside a wine flight. The cheese stop received some of the warmest praise across the tour days, and it is one of the places where the experience feels most connected to the region.

You spend about an hour here, including the tasting and time to look around. If you do not eat dairy, this stop will naturally have less appeal. For everyone else, it breaks up the drinking and gives you something substantial enough to slow the pace.

Yering Station brings the wine lesson

At historic Yering Station, you sample a range of cool-climate wines, including Pinot Noir. The winery is associated with Victoria’s first vineyard, so this is the stop that gives the day its clearest wine-country context.

The tasting is more than an excuse to fill another glass. Your guide can explain how the area’s cooler conditions suit particular grapes, and the group gets a chance to compare several styles. Some visitors particularly enjoyed the Shiraz and Viognier blend, while Pinot Noir is a natural wine to watch for in this part of Victoria.

Yering Station is also a useful counterpoint to Chandon. Chandon focuses on sparkling wine and a large, refined visitor setting. Yering Station gives you a broader still-wine tasting and more regional background. Together, they make the tour more useful for someone who wants a first taste of Yarra Valley wine without committing to a full winery-focused day.

There is a practical tradeoff. With several food stops still ahead, you are tasting rather than settling in for a long lunch or a full cellar-door session. One person would gladly have stayed longer at Chandon and skipped the second wine tasting, so serious wine fans should know that this is a sampler tour, not a detailed wine study.

Chocolate and ice cream add a lighter finish

The Yarra Valley Chocolaterie and Ice Creamery is the sweetest stop, with samples of couverture chocolate and a wide range of flavors. Ingredients are sourced in part from the surrounding gardens, and the shop carries more than 200 chocolate, truffle and ice cream products made on site.

You get time to taste, browse and buy treats. Families often find this stop easy to enjoy, and children can focus on chocolate while adults continue thinking about wine. It also gives you a chance to pick up edible souvenirs that travel more easily than a bottle.

The chocolaterie is not equally important to everyone. One tour day found it fairly average compared with the cheese and kangaroos. That is a fair warning if you are booking mainly for artisan chocolate. The stop works best as part of the full mix, especially after the more serious wine tasting.

You may also want to pace yourself. By this point, you have had sparkling wine, cheese, strawberries, wine and chocolate. The tour is generous with tastings, but it is not a good day for skipping breakfast and hoping the samples will count as lunch.

The kangaroos are the payoff

As daylight begins to soften, the van heads toward a known kangaroo area in the lower Yarra Valley. The exact stop is kept private, and the group gets out to walk as close as conditions allow while taking photographs.

This is not a zoo encounter. You are looking for wild animals in their natural setting, which makes the stop feel less staged. Recent tour days have included large groups of kangaroos, and one particularly memorable sight was a baby visible in its mother’s pouch.

The timing is smart. Kangaroos often rest out of sight during the hotter part of the day, while the golden-hour setting gives you better light for photographs and a cooler time to walk. Your guide may need to adjust the stop based on weather, heat, and animal movement. Guides such as Kurt, Craig and Stephen have been praised for making the wildlife search a priority rather than treating it as a quick final photo stop.

The money-back promise gives you confidence, but read it alongside the practical wildlife warning: animals are wild, and no sighting can be guaranteed in nature. The operator visits a known location at the best time of day, which gives you a strong chance, but you should not expect a controlled wildlife show.

For many people, this is the part that turns a pleasant food tour into a memorable Australian outing. Wine and chocolate are available in many places. Wild kangaroos at sunset are harder to fit into a Melbourne visit.

The small van and the guides shape the day

The tour is limited to a small group, with the published description stating a maximum of 11 and the booking details listing up to 12 participants. Either way, this is much more personal than a large coach tour.

That size lets the guide keep the group together at tastings and adjust the pace when needed. It also makes introductions and conversation easier, which is useful for solo travelers. Recent guides have included Craig, Kurt, Elliot, Tom, Steve and Stephen. The strongest part of their role is not simply giving facts. It is remembering names, keeping the schedule on track, explaining the region during the drives, and making sure the kangaroo stop gets proper attention.

The guide quality matters because the tour includes several short visits rather than one long attraction. If the commentary were flat, the van time between stops would feel like filler. Instead, the best guides add information about wine, geography, local culture and Australian history, turning the drive into part of the experience.

Transport is also highly rated, with 94 percent of published ratings giving it a perfect score. That does not mean the ride is luxurious. It means the practical basics are working: a comfortable van, a central pickup, and a driver who can handle country roads safely.

What the $123 price really covers

At $123 per person, the tour is priced as a full afternoon and evening outing rather than a simple transfer to one winery. Your fee covers the minivan, local guide, sparkling wine at Chandon, cheese tasting, premium wine tasting, and chocolate tasting. The strawberry stop and kangaroo search add variety without separate entry fees.

The value is strongest if you would otherwise pay for transport, several tastings, and a wildlife excursion separately. Hiring a car would also leave one person unable to enjoy the wine. Here, you can taste without worrying about driving back to Melbourne.

The price is less attractive if you mainly want a long winery lunch or serious wine education. Lunch is extra, shopping is extra, and the time at each site is limited to roughly an hour. Think of it as a well-paced sampler of the valley, not a slow luxury food holiday.

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure and the option to reserve now and pay later make the booking less rigid. Alcohol tastings are for people aged 18 and over. Children aged three and above are welcome, but children under two are not, and the tour is not suitable for wheelchair users.

Who should book this experience

I would recommend it to first-time visitors to Melbourne who want to see the countryside without renting a car. It suits couples, friends, solo travelers, and families with older children who can handle a seven-hour food-and-wine day.

It is especially useful if you want your morning in Melbourne. The late departure also works well for people who do not enjoy early starts or who have only a short city stay.

You should think twice if you need a fully accessible vehicle, require a substantial included meal, or want a tour built around detailed wine education. The chocolate stop may feel secondary if you are not interested in sweets, and the Chandon menu may not suit every diet.

Should you book the Yarra Valley Foodies Tour?

Book it if you want variety and a strong final wildlife experience. The best parts are the small van, the relaxed schedule, the local cheese, the two contrasting winery visits, and the chance to see kangaroos as the sun goes down.

Bring money for lunch and purchases, and pack a snack if your diet is restrictive. Keep your expectations realistic about wildlife, then enjoy the fact that the itinerary gives you an unusually good chance to see kangaroos without visiting a wildlife park.

At $123, this is a sensible choice for a convenient taste of the Yarra Valley. It is not the tour for spending half a day at one cellar door. It is for fitting a lot of distinctly Australian pleasures into one well-organized afternoon.

FAQ

Where does the tour depart from?

The meeting point is behind Federation Square at the corner of Flinders Street and Russell Street, near the NGV rear entrance. Look for the white bus with Yarra Valley Touring written on the side.

What time does the tour leave Melbourne?

The tour departs at 11:30am and returns to the Federation Square meeting point in the early evening.

How long does the tour last?

The total duration is about seven hours.

How large is the group?

The tour description states a maximum of 11 guests. The booking information describes the activity as limited to 12 participants, so the exact cap should be checked when booking.

Is lunch included?

No. You have time to buy lunch at Domaine Chandon, but the cost is separate. Food choices may be limited in the regional area, so bringing a snack can be sensible.

What tastings are included?

The tour includes sparkling wine at Chandon, cheese at Yarra Valley Dairy, wine at Yering Station, and chocolate tastings at the Yarra Valley Chocolaterie and Ice Creamery. Fresh strawberries are also purchased for the group to share.

Will I definitely see kangaroos?

The tour visits a known location during golden hour, and sightings are common. Wildlife remains unpredictable, so the practical information advises that a sighting can never be fully guaranteed, despite the operator’s money-back guarantee.

Can children join the tour?

Children aged three and above are welcome. Children under two are not suitable for this activity. Alcohol purchases and drinking at licensed venues are restricted to people aged 18 and over.

Is the tour wheelchair accessible?

No. The activity is not suitable for wheelchair users.

Can I cancel my booking?

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund. The activity also offers a reserve-now, pay-later option.