Current Rates and Schedule
Individual Tours (2-12 Guests):
Half day (1:00 pm - 4:30 pm) tours cost $75-85/adult, $55/child (5-16 years old) (minimum of 2 guests, lunch not included) Additional $35 fuel fee for groups of three or less.
Full day (10:00 am - 4:00 pm) tours range in cost from $95-120/adult, $75/child (5-16 years old) (minimum of 4 guests, optional picnic or restaurant lunch).
Group Tours (Over 12 Guests):
We offer a wide variety of guided tours and/or step on guide service. Any size group can be accommodated, please call for more information and rates.
Each tour includes pickup and return at your hotel or residence, (individual rates include transportation in a comfortable 14 passenger van, group rates include van or bus transportation), expert guide service and commentary, wine tasting fees, entry fees, winery tour and vineyard walk. A cooler of cold drinks is available and maps and literature for each guest is included with each tour. Ag Venture Tours & Consulting is a full service tour operator with 16 year's experience that can organize any tour that you may be interested in. We are flexible with the tour schedule and will customize the tour to meet your interests. All tours are designed to be fun and educational. Foreign language interpreters can be arranged on request.
Carmel Valley Wine Tasting Tour
Wineries can include Bernardus, Boekenoogen, Boete, Caraccioli Cellers, Carmel Ridge, Chateau Julien Vineyards, Chesebro, Cima Collina, Chock Rock Vineyard, Cowgirl Winery, Dawn's Dream, De Tierra, Heller Estate, Figge Cellars, Galante, Georis, Holman Ranch, Joullian Vineyards, Joyce, Manzoni, McIntyre, Morgan, Parsonage, Pierce Ranch, Scheid, Sylvestri, Talbott Vineyards, Ventana and Wrath. Tour one winery to observe the wine making process. Observe Carmel Valley agriculture including Earthbound Farms organic produce stand, flower nurseries and a short vineyard walk. Full day (visit 4 wineries) and half day (visit 2-3 wineries) tours available.
Salinas Valley Wine Tasting Tour
Wineries can include Boekenoogen, Hahn Estates/Smith & Hook Winery, Manzoni Vineyard, Marilyn Remark, Paraiso Vineyards, Pessagno, Scheid Vineyards, Sycamore Cellars, Talbott Vineyards, Ventana Vineyards and Wrath. Tour one winery to observe the wine making process. Observe Salinas Valley agriculture including vegetable harvesting, strawberries, organic farming and a short vineyard walk. Full day tours only (minimum of 4 guests, visit 3-4 wineries).
Santa Cruz Mountains Winery Tour
Wineries can include Alfaro Vineyards, Bargetto, Beauregard, Bonny Doon, Burrell School, Byington, David Bruce, Hallcrest, Hunter Hill, Loma Prieta, MJA Vineyards, Nicholson, Pelican Ranch, Poetic Cellars, Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard, Silver Mountain, Soquel Vineyards, Storr's, Regale, Villa del Monte, Vino Cruz and Windy Oaks. Tour one winery to observe the wine making process. Observe central coast agriculture including artichokes, vegetable harvesting and beautiful redwood forests. Full day (visit 3-4 wineres) and half day (visit 2-3 wineries) tours available.
Salinas Valley Agricultural Education Tour
Learn all about the Salinas Valley agriculture industry otherwise known as the "Salad Bowl of the World". Observe field harvesting, irrigation, planting, organic farming, etc. (lettuce, broccoli, artichokes, strawberries, grapes, etc.). Over 40 different crops, experienced knowledgeable guide to answer your questions. Learn where your food comes from! Full day and half day tours available.
Monterey Peninsula Sightseeing / Wine Tasting Tour
Tour includes sightseeing in Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach (17 Mile Drive), Carmel, Big Sur, in addition to wine tasting in Carmel Valley (Boekenoogen, Chateau Julien Vineyards, Heller Estate, Joullian Vineyards, Morgan, Parsonage, Talbott Vineyards or Ventana). A fun combination of history, beautiful scenery and wine tasting! A stop for shopping or a visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium can also be included. Full day and half day tours available.
Salinas Valley / National Steinbeck Center Tour
In addition to visiting two of the Salinas Valley wineries and touring the Salinas Valley agriculture, this tour includes a stop at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas to visit this museum dedicated to John Steinbeck. Full day tours only (minimum of 4 guests).
Horseback Riding / Wine Tasting Tour
After a beautiful one hour horseback ride in either Big Sur, Moss Landing, Pebble Beach or Carmel Valley, this tour is complete with visits to two wineries in Carmel Valley and includes a delicious picnic or restaurant lunch. Full day tours only (minimum of 4 guests). Please call for rates.
Family Fun Adventure (Kid Friendly)
Monterey half day tours include a drive along the coast looking for sea otters, sea lions, seals and whales. A stop at Dennis the Menace Park (playground), feeding ducks and geese and tidepooling also included! Full day tours can include attractions like the Monterey Bay Aquarium, National Steinbeck Center Museum, Wild Things Animal Ranch in Salinas, Pinnacles National Park, Elkhorn Slough Safari boatride, Gilroy Gardens Family Theme Park and the Santa Cruz area. Children must be accompanied by adults! Please call for rates.
Options To Include In Your Tour
Winery dinners, gourmet cooking classes, beer tasting, chocolate tasting, olive oil and balsamic vinegar tasting, horseback riding, shopping, kayaking, mountain biking, etc.
Miscellaneous Tours
Gourmet Food and Wine Tour
Monterey Farmers Market Tour
Gilroy Garlic Tour
Pinnacles National Park Tour
North Monterey County Tour
South Monterey County Tour
Wine Tasting Lectures available
Transportation for dinners, parties, weddings and shopping also available.
$95 per hour, 3 hour minimum.
Gift certificates available!
Meet Your Tour Guide
Evan Oakes, owner and tour coordinator for Ag Venture Tours & Consulting. Since 1992, Evan has been working as an agricultural scientist for the University of California Cooperative Extension office in Salinas, California conducting research in vegetable and wine grape production.
He has agriculture degrees from both University of California, Davis and Fresno State University with a specialty in viticulture (grape growing). Evan spent two years in Australia working for a large vineyard and winery before working in Monterey County. He is on the Board of Directors for the Monterey Bay Chapter of the American Institute of Wine and Food. Evan currently lives in Watsonville, California.
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Evan Oakes of Ag Venture Tours speaks out about John Steinbeck's "Pastures in Heaven" at Castle Rock in Monterey. (A Vino Las Vegas LLC Production)
Evan Oakes of Ag Venture Tours talks about the wealth of agriculture produced in the Salinas Valley, "The Salad Bowl of the World". (By Thomas Wilmer/Audio Log)
Video of Watsonville and the Pajaro Valley, CA (Santa Cruz County)
COMMENTS:
"Happy New Year 2013! We came from France to visit the amazing "Salad Bowl of the World" and we were really astonished! Thank you Evan for making us discover this beautiful agricultural landscape. You'll be welcome to see us in Alsace to taste some of our white wine!" Benjamin Lammert and Marie Casenave-Pere, Alsace, France (1/18/13)
"This is my second tour and it was great! I liked it so much the first time I brought my mother with me this time." Patricia, Pacific Grove (11/24/12)
"Best tour in the World - "you are what you eat" - thanks for showing us where all our food comes from - where California began!" U.S. Congressman Sam Farr (10/23/12)
"When you want to know about agriculture or wine in Monterey County, Evan will be the one to answer all of your questions. We had a great time learning, tasting and enjoying our day. Evan was a great guide and we will definitely recommend to others! Thans for a great day!" Mary Beth &Jeff Hogen, Northfield, MA
"Thank you again for that wonderful, educational tour of Salinas Valley and River Road. We've lived in Santa Cruz for 18 years and you and your sightseeing tour really provided us with an expansive view of the agriculture, people, and winery histories that we didn't really know. Thanks so very much for your availability, and we look forward to spreading the word." Dick & Marion Vittitow, Santa Cruz, CA (7/13/12)
"The day out with you will be one of our special memories of a wonderful stay in Monterey! It is indeed a beautiful part of the world and fortunate is he who has such a delightful opportunity to share it with others! We feel lucky to have been able to spend some time with you . . . such cheerful and knowledgeable company! Loved it all . . . right down to the wonderful and tasty picnic lunch at Pebble Beach! No detail was left unattended and we felt pretty special riding along with you as host and guide!
If we are ever in the area again (and I certainly hope we will be . . . ) we look forward to another outing: perhaps to Salinas!
Take care, have a safe, enjoyable and profitable summer season and keep up the good work!"
Janet and Gene Smith, Coronado, CA (6/9/12)
Ag Venture Tours & Consulting
P.O. Box 2634
Monterey, CA 93942
831-761-8463 Phone
831-761-5461 Fax
TCP 22683 S
evan@agventuretours.com |
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