Winery tourism connects tasting-room visits with travel, hospitality, retail, and direct wine sales. Recent figures from Arizona, Australia, the United States, Rioja, Mendoza, and the Great Wine Capitals network show the scale of that connection, from individual visitor purchases to regional economic output.
Contents
- The economic scale of winery tourism
- Who visits wineries and festivals
- Travel patterns and visitor spending
- Cellar doors and direct-to-consumer sales
- Rioja winery tourism in 2023 and 2024
- Wine capitals and destination infrastructure
The economic scale of winery tourism
Arizona provides a detailed view of winery tourism’s regional effects. The Arizona Wine Tourism Industry Survey Key Findings 2023 estimated $351 million in total economic output from Arizona wine tourism in 2023. The activity supported an estimated 2,430 jobs, generated $115 million in labor income, and produced nearly $40 million in total taxes. The same source reported $10 million in state taxes and $7 million in local taxes.
The long-term change is substantial. Arizona wine visitor spending rose 677%, from over $31 million in 2011 to over $241 million in 2023. Economic output increased 588%, from over $51 million to over $351 million across the same period. Wine-related employment increased 500%, from 405 jobs in 2011 to 2,430 jobs in 2023, while labor income rose 539%, from over $18 million to over $115 million.
The national U.S. picture is broader than winery visits alone. WineAmerica’s Economic Impact Study reported $276.07 billion in total economic activity for the U.S. wine industry in 2022. The industry included 10,637 wine producers in all 50 states and 119,520 acres of vineyards. It directly employed 1,007,459 people and ultimately supported 1.84 million jobs. Average annual wages and benefits were $51,800.
Wine-country travel is a major part of that national footprint. America’s wine-country regions generated 49.18 million tourist visits and $16.69 billion in annual tourism expenditures in 2022, according to WineAmerica. The study also reported more than $22.83 billion in total business taxes and $8.15 billion in state and local business taxes from the U.S. wine industry.
Who visits wineries and festivals
Arizona survey results show a visitor base with strong repeat behavior. The Arizona Wine Tourism Industry Survey Key Findings 2023 collected 692 surveys from winery, tasting-room, and vineyard visitors, plus 997 surveys from wine festival attendees. Among winery visitors, 80% had visited a winery more than once during the prior 12 months. About 46% of winery visitors in the sample came from out of state, and Arizona wine tourists traveled from 36 states.
Visitor satisfaction was high. Ninety-six percent of Arizona winery-tourism respondents said their experience met or exceeded expectations. Within the visitor responses, 67% said the experience was better than expected and 29% said it was exactly as expected. Among wine festival attendees, 94% said they liked or loved the festivals they attended: 66% said they loved the event and 28% said they liked it. Another 94% said they were likely to recommend an Arizona wine festival to a friend.
The audience also had a notable age and income profile. About 60% of Arizona wine-festival attendees were aged 55 or older. About 91% of Arizona wine-tourism respondents identified as middle-income or upper-income. These figures describe the respondents covered by the 2023 Arizona study and should not be treated as a universal profile for every wine destination.
Travel patterns and visitor spending
Arizona winery travel often combines a tasting experience with an overnight or wider regional trip. The average winery travel party included three people. About 40% of Arizona wine-tourism respondents took a day trip, while about 30% stayed for two or three nights. Over 70% of winery visitors and festival attendees bought wine during their visit.
Purchasing differed by experience type. Wine festival parties bought an average of 2.25 bottles per party, compared with an average of 1.89 bottles per winery party. About 35% of Arizona respondents used wine festivals as an opportunity to visit other areas, extending the potential economic reach beyond the festival venue.
Festival trips had several distinct durations. About 65% of Arizona wine-festival attendees made a day trip. About 20% extended the trip by one day, about 12% extended it by two to four days, and about 4% extended it by five days or more.
The Arizona Wine Tourism Industry Survey Key Findings 2023 also reported different average nightly spending levels by destination. Verde Valley visitors spent $109 per night on average. Willcox visitors spent about $70 per night, and Sonoita visitors spent about $70 per night.
| Arizona winery-tourism measure | Reported figure | Measurement period |
|---|---|---|
| Total economic output | Estimated $351 million | 2023 |
| Supported jobs | Estimated 2,430 | 2023 |
| Labor income | $115 million | 2023 |
| Winery visitor repeat visits | 80% | Prior 12 months, 2023 survey |
| Average winery travel party | 3 people | 2023 survey |
| Wine bought by festival parties | 2.25 bottles | Average per party |
Word of mouth and social media were important discovery channels in the Arizona findings. Word of mouth accounted for 36% of awareness of Arizona wineries, while social media accounted for 34% of awareness of Arizona wine festivals.
Cellar doors and direct-to-consumer sales
Australian data illustrates how winery tourism relates to direct-to-consumer revenue. Wine Australia’s Wine direct-to-consumer survey report found that direct-to-consumer wine sales represented an average of 18% of a winery’s income in 2021. Overall DTC wine sales grew 17% in value during 2020–21, while online wine sales grew 23% in value. Cellar door sales accounted for 44% of DTC sales revenue in 2021.
The visitor side moved in the opposite direction during that period. Visitor numbers to Australian cellar doors declined 4% across 2020–21. Wine Australia surveys over 2,000 wineries each year for its DTC report, providing a large industry survey base for those measures.
Wine Australia’s The direct route to increasing profitability reported around 1,600 cellar doors in Australia, with about 80% of Australian wine businesses operating a cellar door. Fifty-three percent of Australian regular wine drinkers had visited a cellar door in the past 12 months, and three-quarters of cellar-door visitors purchased wine at the cellar door. Club sales accounted for 14% of Australian DTC revenue in 2018, and Australian wine club members spent an average of $569 on wine club purchases in that year.
Earlier Australian figures show the disruption in visitation more clearly. Wine Australia’s How have wine DTC channels fared in Australia in 2019–20? reported that average cellar-door visitor numbers fell from about 15,000 per year in 2018–19 to 12,000 per year in 2019–20, a 23% year-over-year decline. In the first half of 2020, average cellar-door visitors were down 47% versus the prior year.
Despite that decline, Australian DTC sales reached an estimated $1 billion in 2018–19 and represented 17% of total Australian wine sales value, according to Wine Australia’s Direct-to-consumer wine sales grow 9 per cent to reach $1 billion. Cellar door sales made up 53% of Australian DTC revenue in 2018–19. The share of Australian wineries charging tasting fees rose from 29% to 52% between the 2018 and 2019 survey results, while the share reimbursing tasting fees through a purchase or club sign-up fell from 85% to 70%.
Rioja winery tourism in 2023 and 2024
Rioja’s annual reports provide a destination-level view of winery visits, visitor mix, spending, and experiences. The DOCa Rioja Annual Report 2024 recorded 912,438 winery visits in 2024 and an economic impact of €197,225,483. International visitors accounted for 36.37% of visits, average spending in winery shops reached €40.05, and the region had 214 visitable wineries.
The DOCa Rioja Annual Report 2023 recorded 879,423 winery visits and €185,938,645 in wine-tourism economic impact. International visitors represented 32.70% of visits, average winery-shop spending was €37.89, and Rioja had 204 visitable wineries. The report stated that 2023 winery visits were up 17.5% from 2022.
| Rioja measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Winery visits | 879,423 | 912,438 |
| Wine-tourism economic impact | €185,938,645 | €197,225,483 |
| International share of visits | 32.70% | 36.37% |
| Average winery-shop spending | €37.89 | €40.05 |
| Visitable wineries | 204 | 214 |
Rioja visitors included both wine-focused and food-focused travelers. In 2023, 80.5% were amateurs or interested in wine, 66.23% were wine lovers or enthusiasts, and 45.45% were gastronomic tourists. In 2024, the corresponding reported shares were 79.27% curious or amateur wine enthusiasts, 69.51% wine lovers or connoisseurs, and 40.24% gastronomic tourists.
The visitor offer also included experiences beyond a standard tasting. In 2024, special tastings were offered by 61.46% of Rioja wineries, culinary experiences by 45.83%, and seasonal activities such as grape harvests and grape treading by 33.33%.
Wine capitals and destination infrastructure
The Great Wine Capitals Members Data Report 2025 covered a network spanning 11 countries. Its territories had a combined population of 24.43 million people and received 56 million tourists in 2024. The report listed 13,558 wineries in 2024, compared with 13,357 in 2022. Wineries open to tourists increased from 1,533 in 2022 to 2,236 in 2024.
Mendoza accounted for a substantial share of the reported wine-tourism activity. It received 3.6 million total tourists and 636,000 wine tourists in 2024, while total visits to wineries reached 1,590,567. The same report listed 43,828 beds across the Great Wine Capitals territories, 228 hotels in Mendoza, 1,764 restaurants, and 4,802 registered gastronomy venues.
Napa Valley’s reported digital audience illustrates another way destinations build awareness. The Great Wine Capitals Members Data Report 2025 listed 3.1 million annual website visits, 71,000 email subscribers, 1.2 million partner referrals, and 32 million impressions. Napa Valley had more than 450,000 followers.
Taken together, these figures show several measurable layers of winery tourism: visits to wineries, purchases at cellar doors and winery shops, overnight spending, festival travel, direct-to-consumer revenue, and the wider jobs and tax base. The measurement periods and geographies differ, so each figure is best read within its named source and location.