Mendoza is world renowned for fabulous wine & steak. Currently with the Blue Dollar rate, eating & drinking in Mendoza is dirt cheap for a foreign tourist. However, wine tours don't seem to be following the same prices as the restaurants & bars. Don't worry, Maipu bikes have you covered!!
This guide will tell you everything you need to know to have an amazing budget friendly wine tour to in Mendoza. Maipu bikes is a bike rental company & you guessed it….they are based in the Maipu wine region of Mendoza. This option is by far the cheapest to visit multiple vineyards & is extremely popular!!
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How to get to Maipu from Mendoza
First step is to get yourself a SUBE public transport card from most ‘kiosks’ which costs $ 350 (£0.90/$1) & top it up with enough to get yourself to & from Maipu. The journey currently costs $ 60 (£0.60/$0.70) for the fast bus & $ 40 (£0.11/$0.13) for the slow bus. We by chance jumped on fast on the way out & slow on the way back & both were fine. You don’t need a travel card per person, so if you are a couple or going as a group grab one & just top up enough for everyone & tap multiple times.
Quite a few of the public buses to Maipu leave from Rioja street, between Catamarca & Garibaldi.
You can get on any of these buses
Express Bus – 816, 817, 920 all take around 30 minutes & cost $ 60
Normal bus – 810, 811, 813 take around 45 minutes & cost $ 40
Get off at the bus stop outside Maipu Bikes. Our driver actually asked us on approach if we were going to there, so if tourists are on the bus I think they know where they are headed!
Maipu Bikes opening times & prices
There is no need to book in advance, just turn up as there are loads of bikes. It’s $ 2500 (£6.25/$7.50) per bike for the day. The shop opens at 10am & you need to get your bike back for 6pm when happy hour starts. The guys at the bike shop are super friendly, they give you a map of the vineyards, with prices of tastings at each & you even get a discount at a few of them as you arrived with Maipu Bikes!
Maipu bikes wine tour suggested itinerary
1. Bodega Mevi
We started out going to the furthest away vineyard, Mevi. The ride was about 6km but all flat which we covered at a comfortable pace in around 30 minutes. Here we shared a standard tasting & a premium tasting which were priced at $ 680 (£1.90) (due to 15% discount with Maipu Bikes) & $ 1000 (£2.50) respectively, which allows you both to try 3 wines. They have a great selection of wines on offer with a stunning view of the Andes behind their vineyard. We also grabbed a meat & cheese platter for $ 3500 (£9) which was super tasty!
2. Vina el Cerno
Next up take a stop at Vina el Cerno which is 900m back up the road. Their tour again is $ 680 (£1.80/$2) for 3 wines with 15% discount. The wines were nice, the setting is a little more rustic as you sit at a plastic table & chairs outside their winery, but the setting is still beautiful as you look out over the vineyard.
3. Bodega Tempus Alba
When we were planning our trip to the Maipu region we had planned to stop at Tempus Alba (which is pretty much opposite Vina el Cerno) but didn’t manage to book a table for lunch here (you can just turn up for tasting but their food looked great). We decided to miss Tempus Alba & booked a table for their 5-course tasting lunch (which was fab!) a couple of days later. Realistically if you do fancy the 5-course tasting lunch I would recommend doing it on a different day to the Maipu tour as it took around 2 hours, so would really limit the number of other vineyards you have time to visit. If you don’t fancy their tasting lunch definitely add Tempus Alba to your tour $680 (£1.80/$2) for 3 wines with 15% discount) as they offered the best wines we tried in the Maipu valley!
4. La Melesca
Back to the main street & around the corner is La Melesca. Here they specialise in olive oil & balsamic vinegar. The tasting costs $ 500 (£1.30/$1.50) & you receive a basket of bread with some amazing oil & balsamic. They left the bottles with us so you can have as much as you like. You do also receive a glass of rose with the oil tasting which was nothing special, but perfectly drinkable.
5. La Rural – Rutini wines Museo del Vino
From here you have another 30-minute cycle back up the main road, past Maipu bikes & turn right to La Rural – Rutini wines Museo del Vino. Their tours happen hourly, we did the 3pm tour which irrespective of what it states on the door about being in Spanish & English was very much just in Spanish. After the tour you try a glass of white & a glass of red. The tour cost $ 1,800 (£4.60/$5.50) per person but you walk away with a full bottle of wine as they give you the tour price off a bottle. If you did want to drop one of the places we went to, allowing more time for a leisurely lunch this would probably be the one to let go. The wine we took away was fabulous though 😋
6. Bodega Domiciano
Last stop, before returning our bikes, was Domiciano. Their last tour takes place at 4:30pm & was about 20 minutes long, all in English & very informative. We opted for the premium tasting which was $ 1,100 (£2.80/$3.40) per person, it consisted of 1 glass of fizzy & 2 reds which were all great. Their basic tasting would be $ 800 (£2.00/$2.40).
7. Maipu Bikes (happy hour)
From here you head back to Maipu bikes for happy hour. You get unlimited, very drinkable, red wine for an hour or so & a chance to share stories with the other people who have been out that day.
There are 2 more vineyards which you can factor into your itinerary which are Bodega Trapiche & Bodega Alandes. We chose not in to include them due to the cost at $ 7,500 & $ 2,500 respectively! If you wanted to factor these in, they need to be booked in advance & it may be a good idea to drop the wine museum to allow time.