Nestled in the beautiful Yass Valley region of New South Wales, Murrumbateman offers a perfect mix of farm life, food and wine, and is an ideal destination for families looking to get away and enjoy some fresh country air!
Murrumbateman is located only half an hour from Canberra and about 3 hours from Sydney, making it a great spot for a long weekend. We stayed at the Abode Hotel Murrumbateman which you can read about here, as well as our favourite places to eat.
Wineries
Murrumbateman is renowned for its wineries, and a visit to some of the local vineyards is a must, so I’ll start with our favourites:
With its playground, giant jenga and lots of outdoor space to run around, we found the set up at Tallagandra Hill to be the most family-friendly. I’m honestly surprised that no other wineries had a playground!
They offer wine tasting of 4 wines with matching cheese and charcuterie for $40 per person and we loved that they served kids platters as well for $14 each, with cheese, salami, hummus, crackers, dried and fresh fruit and mixed nuts.
They asked if our kids would like a juice popper, which I assumed was included in the $14 price, but was surprised when we got our bill that they charged us $5 each for these, which I thought was a bit steep.
They have high chairs available, and if you would like a kids platter, they ask that you let them know in advance.
They are open each Saturday and Sunday from 11.45am to 4pm with food service until 3pm.
Dionysus is also very family-friendly, making it a great winery to go to with your kids. They have a play area and a selection of outdoor games that you can use on their lovely lawns, as well as colouring and indoor activities in case the weather isn’t great.
They have various packages of wines that you can taste, including with pairing these with cheeses or chocolates.
One of the highlights for kids is their chocolate and milk tasting! This unique experience offers three flavoured milks matched with chocolates for $10 per child, making it an interactive and fun time for the whole family.
They are open each Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 4pm.
The Vintner’s Daughter has a small tasting room looking out over their beautiful farm, but the main appeal for families is their awesome farm tour!
You can join them on their morning feeding time and feed emus, chickens, turkeys, peacocks, goats, cows, deer and babydoll sheep. These are held on Fridays at 11am, Saturdays and Sundays at 9am and you can book on their website.
It costs $10 for children and $40 for adults (it includes a wine tasting for the adults) and children under 3 are free.
If you would just like to visit the cellar door, you can still see the emus and deer, and they have highchairs and a digger toy at the back of the carpark.
They are open Friday to Sunday 10am-4pm.
There are many other wineries in the area, and some are good for families, despite not having any specific things for kids:
Four Winds has a big undercover outdoor seating space (as well as their lovely indoor wine tasting room, but we prefer outside with our noisy kids!). They serve delicious woodfired pizzas, as well as really delicious wine tasting flights.
Their opening hours are:
Monday to Friday: 11am – 4pm (pizzas available noon – 3pm)
Saturday and Sunday: 11am – 5pm (pizzas available 11.30am – 3.30pm)
Eden Road as a nice big indoor space as well as an area for running around outdoors.
Although they don’t have any games or anything, they can set the kids up with drawing and they have highchairs available.
They are open Thursday to Sunday 10am - 4.30pm.
The Shaw Estate winery is set in a huge modern building, with plenty of indoor and balcony seating. We loved the balcony, with a view of the lake.
They have lots of great art to check out, and delicious cheese platters.
They don’t have anything specifically for the kids, but we felt very welcome.
They are open Thursday to Sunday, 11am to 5pm.
Other family friendly things to do in Murrumbateman
As well as the wineries, there are a couple of other places that you need to check out in Murrumbateman:
About ten minutes’ drive from Murrumbateman, this farm was so much fun! We did the Hand Feeding Tour ($25 per person), where we got to spend about half an hour with the alpacas, feeding them and learning more about them. They are so cute and friendly, it was such a fun and unique thing to do.
They also run a farm hour (1.5 hours, $40 for adults, $30 for kids); a private interactive tour, where you are given your own alpaca to have a walk around the farm for 45 minutes (price depends on the size of your group); a private Alpaca picnic, including a walk with the alpacas, feeding them and a fancy picnic ($220 for 2 people); as well as other experiences that you can book online.
They have a café onsite as well as a little shop where you can buy alpaca wool and alpaca themed things. They are open 10am - 4pm, Friday to Sunday.
No visit to Murrumbateman is complete without visiting the Chocolate Company! Set on a beautiful farm about ten minutes from town, it is a lovely spot to spend a morning.
Inside you can buy their incredible hand made chocolates which are like little piece of art, and they also have a selection of cakes and hot drinks. We got a mocha, which included a huge chunk of delicious chocolate, which melted as I drank it! It was the best coffee I’ve ever had!
They run chocolate tasting sessions ($15 a person), and they have a special tasting for children at $12 each, which includes milk, white and dark chocolate tasting discs and a milk chocolate sprinkle lollipop.
They have lots of seating outside, with a big grassy are heading down to a lake, and outdoor games to play with. It was a beautiful place to relax and enjoy our chocolates in the sunshine.
They have a baby change table in the bathroom and highchairs, as well as some farm animals that you can see. They are open Thursday to Saturday, 11.00am to 4.00pm.
The Murrumbateman Village Market runs every fortnight on a Saturday from 9am until 1pm, and is a perfect spot to get breakfast, lunch and food supplies.
They have lots of different stalls, when we were there, they had alpacas to pat and a band playing. In terms of food, there are bakery stalls, a BBQ selling bacon and egg sandwiches etc, a guy making fresh crepes, as well as a couple of different coffee options.
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From exploring the little town, soaking in the fresh country air and enjoying all the amazing food and wine, we absolutely loved Murrumbateman! It is a perfect place to get away from the city and have a wonderful family holiday. We left with full hearts, happy bellies, and such great memories!
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