Malibu's Saddlerock Wine Ranch, Seen From a Vintage VW Bus
This operator is best known for a two mile walk through the same vineyard. The bus covers that ground from a seat, which changes nothing about the view and everything about what you should wear.
Saddlerock Ranch is up Mulholland Highway, inland from the Malibu that shows up on postcards. The estate runs to about 1,100 acres in the Santa Monica Mountains, and most of the road through it is dirt.
The vehicle is a restored Volkswagen bus with a canvas roof that rolls back and windows that drop all the way down. One guide drives, pours, and narrates. There is an aux cord, and the radio is yours. The operator tells guests to check the Agoura Hills forecast before they book, because the ranch sits inland behind the coastal hills. Malibu's beach numbers will not tell you what the ranch is doing. By the operator's own account the temperature up there has run from the 30s to the 100s.
Departures are on the hour and the half hour. Check-in is at a cabin down a flight of wooden steps from the gravel lot, and the tour ends back in that same lot about two hours later. Booking closes four hours before departure and confirmation comes back immediately.
Malibu: Vintage VW Bus and Vineyard TourTwo hours on Saddlerock Ranch with wine and a cheese board, guided in English.www.viator.comThe Rock the Ranch Is Named For
The loop makes two or three stops on the property. The rock formation that gives Saddlerock its name stands over the vine rows, and the vineyard is planted up the slope beneath it.
Animals are part of the drive. The operator lists llamas, miniature donkeys, miniature horses, alpacas and cows, and says they go into the barns at sunset to keep predators off. Guests are not permitted to touch or feed them. An evening departure trades the animals for the light.
What Gets Poured and What Comes With It
Wine is included in the ticket, and so is a cheese and charcuterie board. The tasting happens at the estate's Garden event space, and the pours come from the vineyards on the property.
Four rules travel with that:
- No outside alcohol. The operator will ask you to take it off the premises.
- Your own snacks are allowed, but you carry them.
- Extra bottles are not sold on the tour unless you join the wine club.
- There is one restroom stop on the ranch and a second one at the winery.
The Bus Is the Reason to Bring a Jacket
With the windows down and the top rolled back, the operator's own word for the ride is windy. Their advice is a jacket, a blanket for evening departures, and a hat that fits tightly enough to stay on. Closed-toe shoes are on their bring list.
The operator states that tours run rain or shine. The booking page separately carries a weather-cancellation flag, so the operator keeps that option. Plan on going out in light rain.
Who Can Board, and What You Still Owe
The two sources disagree about age, and the gap shows up at check-in:
- The booking page sells one age band, adult, 21 and over.
- The operator's own site says the VW bus takes guests 8 and older, or anyone at least 57 inches tall.
Book through the card above and the 21-and-over band is the one you get. Gratuity is not included, and the operator suggests 17 to 20 dollars per person on this tour. Bring a valid ID, because check-in is an ID check and a wristband. One reservation covers up to six travellers. The booking page also marks the tour not recommended for travellers who are pregnant, who have spinal injuries, or who have poor cardiovascular health, while rating it suitable for all physical fitness levels.
Book through the card on this page and the cancellation terms are the booking page's: cancel at least 24 hours ahead for a full refund, and nothing inside that window. The operator's own desk runs a different ladder, 50 percent back inside 48 hours and a 20 percent service fee before that. Arrive late and you are charged half the order, because the bus leaves on time.
Two hours later you are back in the gravel lot you started from, with the ranch road still on the paintwork.