King Valley Walking & Wine Retreat 

Why the King Valley? 

Three and a half hours north-east of Melbourne, tucked into the Victorian Alps, the King Valley is one of Australia’s represents a piece of Italy in Australia’s high country. Italian immigrants settled this valley in the mid-twentieth century, and their descendants never left. The result is a wine region that feels genuinely, unhurriedly European. With small family producers, generational recipes, wood-fired hospitality and a pace of life that politely refuses to hurry. 

Prosecco, Sangiovese, Pinot Grigio, Barbera are the major varieties grown and reflect the heritage of the families who planted them. The Pizzinis, the Dal Zotos, the Chrismonts are not corporate wineries. They are families who will pour your wine, tell you the story behind it, and probably insist you stay for another glass. 

We’ve built a trip around the best of it. Gentle walks through eucalypt forest and pastoral farmland. A hands-on Italian cooking class in the Pizzini kitchen. A long lunch at Chrismont with Sicilian flavours and valley views. The kind of trip where the food and wine are as good as the scenery, and the scenery is very good indeed. 

The Walking 

This is a Gentle Adventurer trip. Accessible, enjoyable, and designed for women who want to move through a beautiful place without it being a test of endurance. Walks run up to four hours per day and cover a mix of bush tracks, vineyard trails and open farmland. Some sections are untracked, with a small amount of “paddock bashing” that adds to the adventure without adding to the difficulty. 

What the trails are like 

On Day 1, you’ll walk a primarily gentle 5 km track through the Warby Rangers to Kwat Kwat lookout. Day 2 takes you 8km along Coopers Lane and the heart of Italian wine growing country with a local guide who knows every corner of the region. Day 3 begins at Powers Lookout for a 5.5 km walk through serene eucalypt forests to a generational winery producing French wines in an otherwise Italian valley. 

The landscapes shift as you move through the valley: open pastoral farmland gives way to cool eucalypt forest, vineyard rows stretch toward mountain ridgelines, and every walk ends somewhere worth arriving. 

Distance and fitness 

Walking days average 5–8 km at a relaxed, social pace. You don’t need hiking experience, you just need to enjoy moving through beautiful places and not minding the occasional uneven paddock underfoot. Our guides set a pace that keeps the whole group together. Nobody gets left behind, and nobody feels held back. 

The Pizzini Experience 

This is the moment women talk about most when they come home. We’ve worked closely with the Pizzini family at their generational King Valley vineyard, and what they’ve created here is genuinely special. 

On Day 2, you’ll step into their kitchen for a hands-on Italian cooking class where someone who grew up making this food teaches you how to make it properly. Classic Italian dishes, proper technique, generations of family knowledge passed across a kitchen bench. 

Afterwards, you sit down to eat what you’ve made, paired with wines from the Pizzini cellar. A short stroll around the property serves for digestion and admiration in equal measure. 

GirlsTrek have been bringing groups to the Pizzinis for years. Every time, it feels like arriving into Nonna’s kitchen. That’s not an accident; it’s exactly what they’ve built. 

“They make us feel as though we are arriving into Nonna’s kitchen every time we visit. We know you will feel the same.” 

Food, Wine & Local Produce 

The King Valley’s food and wine story is inseparable from its Italian heritage. The varieties grown here include Prosecco, Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, and Barbera. These wines were chosen by Italian immigrants who knew exactly what they were doing, and the families who tend them today have had decades to perfect the craft. 

Our Day 3 winery lunch at Chrismont is one of the trip’s great pleasures! A sumptuous long lunch at the Cheshunt end of the valley, where Sicilian and Northern Italian flavours reflect the family’s heritage. The kind of lunch that leaves you very pleasantly sated and quietly reluctant to move. 

On Day 3 we also visit a winery producing French varieties in this otherwise Italian valley. A “meet the farmer” experience with a family business now in the hands of the granddaughters, paired with a tasting that gives you a sense of how much range this single valley holds. 

Food is woven through the entire trip: meals at charming local restaurants and pubs, breakfast in the cottages, a grazing table on the final King Valley evening. Nothing rushed, everything considered. 

What to Expect Day by Day 

Day 1 — Albury: Arrival & first walk 

GirlsTrek meets you at Albury Airport around noon, dressed ready for an afternoon walk. After a pre-ordered lunch, you transfer to the Warby Ranges above Wangaratta for the walk from Wenhams Camp to Kwat Kwat Lookout. The views from the top give you a sweeping first impression of the King and Ovens Valleys laid out below. Dinner that evening is at a charming local restaurant. 

Day 2 — King Valley: Coopers Lane & Pizzini cooking school 

An early breakfast, then a short drive into the heart of Italian wine-growing country. Your 8 km walk along Coopers Lane is followed by the cooking class highlight at Pizzini Winery: Italian dishes, family kitchen, matched wines, and the warmth of a welcome that feels entirely genuine. The afternoon settles into charming private-room cottages in Whitfield, and a hearty pub dinner completes the day. 

Day 3 — King Valley: Powers Lookout, wine tasting & winery lunch 

The day begins at Powers Lookout where the Strathbogie Ranges stretch out before you and the stories of Harry Power, mentor to Ned Kelly, give the landscape a bit of extra texture. A 5.5 km walk through eucalypt forest leads to the meet-the-farmer wine tasting. Then you freshen up and head to Chrismont for the long lunch. The evening is yours with a grazing plate at the cottages and as early a night as you want. 

Day 4 — Beechworth & Albury: Farewell 

An early departure takes you to Beechworth, one of Victoria’s most beautiful heritage towns, for a leisurely brunch at a local café before the transfer to Albury Airport. You’ll arrive at the airport around mid-day. Women consistently tell us the final morning is when they feel it most; the change of pace, the reset, the reluctance to leave. That’s exactly how it should feel. 

Is This Trip Right for You? 

The King Valley Walking & Wine retreat is our most loved trip for women who are: 

• Drawn to food and wine as much as to walking as this trip holds both equally 

• Looking for something genuinely warm and unhurried rather than polished and corporate 

• Interested in regional Australia’s real producers, real families, real stories 

• Travelling solo and wanting a welcoming, like-minded group to join 

• Celebrating something such as a birthday, a milestone, a hard year behind them 

• Trying a GirlsTrek trip for the first time and wanting an accessible, beautiful introduction 

The walking is genuinely manageable. The experience is not. Women who come for the wine tend to leave talking about the people. That’s the King Valley at its best. 

Practical Information 

Getting there 

Albury Airport is your arrival and departure point, with regular flights from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. GirlsTrek meets you at the airport around noon on Day 1; we’ll share logistics details and carpool connections in your pre-trip information pack. 

What to bring 

Comfortable walking shoes or trail runners (some uneven and untracked terrain), layers for cool mornings and evenings, one slightly nicer outfit for the winery long lunch, and a small daypack. A full trip-specific packing list is sent with your booking confirmation, with expert advice and discounts at Paddy Palin Outdoors and LNDR activewear. 

Weather 

The King Valley can be walked year-round. Autumn (March–May) brings spectacular foliage and ideal walking temperatures. Spring (September–November) is wildflower season with long, warm days. Summer can be warm in the valley; walks are planned for the cooler parts of the day. Winter departures have their own quiet magic — fewer visitors and the kind of low-angled light that makes vineyard photographs look effortless. 

Ready to join us in the King Valley? 

Our King Valley Walking & Wine retreats sell out quickly as spaces are strictly limited to keep the group intimate. View upcoming departures and book your place at girlstrek.com.au/upcomingtrips 

Questions? Our travel advisor is available at hello@girlstrek.com.au or 1300 360 184