June to August in the Yarra Valley means fog in the mornings, bare vines, open fires and cellar doors you can have almost to yourself. It is the season locals prefer and visitors overlook.
The Yarra Valley in summer is busy, hot and full. In winter it is none of those things. Temperatures in Dixons Creek regularly sit in single digits overnight and the low teens through the day, the vineyards are bare, and there is often mist sitting in the valley until mid morning.
Why come in winter
- Cellar doors are quiet. The people pouring have time to talk to you, which is the whole point of visiting a cellar door rather than buying a bottle.
- The landscape is better. Bare vines and fog make far better photographs than green rows under a flat summer sky.
- Everything is easier to book. Restaurants, rooms and tours that need weeks of notice in February are available at short notice in July.
- Rates are softer. Long stays and midweek bookings are worth asking about, and any discount we apply will not exceed 15%.
What to actually do
Cellar doors, but slowly
Two a day, indoors, near a fire. Fergusson Winery is about a five minute walk from De'Vine Escape, and Immerse and De Bortoli are within a few minutes' drive. Winter hours are shorter at some venues, so check before you set out.
The Black Spur in fog
The road north of Healesville through mountain ash and tree ferns is good in any season and extraordinary in winter fog. Drive it slowly. It is narrow, winding and often wet.
The Redwood Forest
Near Warburton, and at its best in winter when the ground is damp and the light comes through the canopy in shafts. Flat, easy walking.
Healesville Sanctuary
Fifteen kilometres away and much quieter than in the holidays. Many of the native species are more active in cool weather than in summer heat. Healesville Sanctuary is open year round.
Doing nothing at all
The fire pit, a bottle from whichever cellar door you liked, and a room with reverse-cycle heating. This is the actual reason people come out here in July.
What to pack
- A proper coat. Evenings here are colder than in the city and the property is open on all sides.
- Boots or shoes you do not mind getting wet. Gravel, grass and mud are all in play.
- Layers rather than one heavy thing, because the cellar doors are warm and the car parks are not.
Where to stay
De'Vine Escape is at 68 Wills Rd, Dixons Creek, on ten acres with a lake and a fire pit. Every room has reverse-cycle air-conditioning and heating, an ensuite, a private patio and free Wi-Fi. There are 22 rooms: 3 Queen, 3 King Spa and 16 Twin. The King Spa Rooms, with a private spa bath, are the ones people ask for in winter.
We are pet-friendly on request, and there is free parking. Check in from 2pm, out by 10am.
For longer winter stays, ask about our Long Stay Package. Rates depend on dates, room type and length of stay.
Stay in the middle of the valley
De'Vine Escape has 22 rooms on ten acres in Dixons Creek, about a five minute walk from Fergusson Winery and an hour from Melbourne.