How to Plan an Adventurous Holiday in Hunter Valley

Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia's oldest wine region is where those looking for the good things in life should head to. Approximately two hours by road from Sydney and easily accessed from the coastal city of New Castle Hunter Valley offers a whole lot of experiences for all age groups.

Step 1: Planning the Holiday

The first thing those looking to plan an adventurous holiday out in Hunter Valley ought to do is to visit the Hunter Valley web site that sets out all there is to know about the region, where to stay, how to get about and things to do and see. An app is available for downloading to discover hunter valley and to help make an itinerary. Stay at Cypress Lakes Resort the picturesquely located all villa resort in Hunter Valley that offers a range of excellent onsite facilities making it a destination in itself.

Step 2: Getting There

By car – Visitors can take the A1 from Sydney and connect to the M1 before Hornsby, drive towards Newcastle and take one of the three exists to Hunter Valle. The journey takes about one and a half hours. A shorter route option is to exit the M1 at the B82 exit and follow the road signs to the Hunter Valley. The journey time is about an hour. The shortest route is to exit the M1 at the Calga Interchange and follow the scenic Tourist Drive that will lead to Hunter Valley through the historic town of Wollombi. Hunter Valley can also be easily accessed via Sydney based and local coach tours that offer pickup and drop off services and by coaches that operate services to match train timetables from Morisett Train Station. To get to Hunter Valley by train visitors need to embark from Morisett, Maitland or Newcastle stations. Hunter Valley can also be reached by helicopter and charter plane and domestic flights from Newcastle. This is the only direct flight to Hunter Valley.

Step 3: Getting About

Taking some of the organized tours is among the best ways to get about. Private cars, mini vans, coaches, vintage cars, SUVs, luxury cars are all part of chauffer driven wine country tours. Many include pickups and drop offs as part of the service. Other ways to get around is by horse drawn carriage, on cruiser motorbikes and cycles and self driven vehicles.

Step 4: Best Time to Visit

Autumn is probably the best time to visit as the temperatures are cooler, the wine leaves turning colour before falling for winter add that russet brown tint to the scenery and some of the best annual events take place at this time.

Step 5: Adventure Activities

Although Hunter Valley is famous as a gourmet destination there are plenty of activities in which adventurous visitors can indulge in while enjoying the bounty of the valley.

Mountain bikers can have a great time on the region's fast flowing single track and open x country trails that offer varying terrain and are suitable for almost any age group. Get in touch with local biking outfits to participate in events and make new friends. Guided bushwalks to explore a section of the 250 km Great North Walk that connects to Hunter Valley is another fantastic adventure option. The Hunter Valley section of the walk connects from Congewal and allows hikers to experience the Great North Walk as part of a camping trip, day trips or a week end trip. Hikers can stay at local accommodations and take it in easy stages. Although there is reasonable public transport to access many places along the walk, personal transportation is necessary to access much of the route. Follow sign posts and direction markers to avoid getting lost. Another exciting walk to be experienced is the Gap Creek Falls Walk. This involves hiking through dense rainforests and descending into the creek waterfall. Walking along the narrow unprotected ledge behind the water falls is the exciting part of the trip. Abseiling down the 40 meter descent of the waterfall is another exciting activity that can be combined with the hike. The rainforest and the waterfall can be accessed from the Gap Creek camp ground. Hot air ballooning is popular adventure activity at Hunter Valley particularly at sunset and sunrise. The balloons rise to about a thousand feet and float over Pokolbin, Lovedale, Rothbury and Broke. Balloon flights last around an hour and operators generally offer a gourmet breakfast after sunrise flights. While flights are serene landings can be quite bumpy. Long and short distance trail riding on mixed terrain such as on the Molly Morgan Range overlooking Hunter Valley is another activity adventure seekers can try here.