Aussie tourists can now take more of our wine back home
Monday, 16 March 2026
Whether it’s a buttery chardonnay or a silky pinot noir discovered at a cellar door, wine-loving Australian travellers often face the same dilemma – how to get it home.
A new campaign promoting the Classic New Zealand Wine Trail aims to solve that problem, allowing visitors to build a case of wines along the route and have it shipped home instead of squeezing bottles into their luggage or going over the weight limit.
The 380km trail runs from Hawke’s Bay through Wairarapa and Wellington and on to Marlborough – regions that together produce about 80% of New Zealand’s wine and include more than 230 wineries and 120 cellar doors.
Now, with $991,000 of funding from the Government’s Regional Tourism Boost Fund, the Wine Trail is being marketed to 4.7million Australian travellers hoping to encourage longer stays and more travel through regional areas.
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As part of the initiative, visitors can add wines they taste along the trail to an online case through the Wine Collective Direct platform, which ships directly to Australia once the order is complete.
The idea is to remove the usual travel headache for wine lovers – deciding which bottles to risk packing in their luggage or leaving behind.
Free shipping is available when a full case is purchased, with up to 15 bottles able to be included in each shipment. The platform features more than 900 wines from producers across the four regions on the trail.
WellingtonNZ general manager of destination, marketing and communications Todd Barberel said the campaign was the first time the trail had been promoted internationally to consumers.
He said it brought together wineries, tourism operators and hospitality providers across Hawke’s Bay, Wairarapa, Wellington and Marlborough to showcase the regions as a single wine and food journey.
The campaign runs until June.
Destination Wairarapa chief executive Anna Nielson said the trail had long been promoted through tourism trade channels but the new funding meant it could now be marketed directly to Australian travellers.
“The Classic New Zealand Wine Trail is a touring route enjoyed by international visitors who love good food and wine,” she said.
Mick Hodson, general manager of Nga Waka Wines, said the past couple of years had been steady but quieter and the chance to get more tourists in via the initiative to market to Australians was fantastic.
Having the opportunity for them to take a few more bottles with them was even better, he said.
Vanessa Paton, cellar door and events manager at Ata Rangi, said they had seen a keen interest from visitors in buying wines and shipping them back free of charge.
Around 50% of purchases had come through the free shipping option.
“Our team has also spent time educating visitors about the convenience of shipping through Wine Collective Direct, which has been well received. It’s certainly a great way for visitors to be able to enjoy quality New Zealand wine once they return home.”