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FAQ'S
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What is a general description of
your tours?
My Chauffeur is a
small boutique wine tour company offering the highest level of
luxury service and quality in wine and culinary travel. As wine
educators, we try to make our programs educational while keeping the
atmosphere light and fun. Our primary goal is to make the world of
Oregon wine and cuisine accessible, understandable and enjoyable for our
guests, while providing a private, relaxing, luxurious, and authentic
experience of traveling in Oregon. And we mean REAL luxury. Only the
finest cuisine and the best estates we will visit if you wish. And a
roomy, deluxe, air conditioned limousine stocked with refreshments (not
a 9 passenger minibus for 8 guests and a driver - that's not our idea of
luxury or comfort). At all the estates we visit, you'll receive a warm
welcome and a personalized tasting. In some cases, you will tour the
technical facilities (vat room and aging cellars) in addition to your
tasting. Many times, we go out into the vineyard and the estate
representative will discuss vineyard management and harvesting.
Whenever possible, the tour is led by the cellarmaster, enologist, or
owner of the estate. Our guests often marvel at how unique each
estate visit is. At one estate, you might see an ancient wine
brotherhood display; at another, there will be beautiful gardens; at a
third, possibly a special art exhibit. The tasting can be extensive and can
include barrel samples* of the latest vintage and/or bottles of recent
or older vintages. We sometimes taste in the aging cellar, sometimes
in the winery itself, and other times outdoors. The estate
representative will lead you through the tasting, helping you identify
aromas, tastes and overall quality. We will pick you up and drop you
off at your residence or hotel. We'll include 3-6 wineries
depending on the length of tour you choose, a lovely lunch if desired, and a
visit to a local sight of interest if you wish - your day will be
customized to include exactly what you want.
*
usually reserved for the Thanksgiving Day weekend.
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What are your vehicles like?
All of our vehicles (except the
standard full size tour bus) are top-of-the-line luxury limousines
designed for your groups comfort, plain as that. The best way to
get an idea of our vehicles is to visit our
vehicles page.
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What are the wineries expectations (i.e. rules)
for large groups (8+ ppl)?
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In general for groups of 8-10+, reservations ahead of time need to
be made, and is required. Each winery has distinct rules
regarding this.
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Wineries prefer, but not require, that the tasting fees are paid on
a single tab.
This can be cash,
check, or credit; the idea is to get the group in as quickly and
easily as possible, so that they can start tasting wine and enjoying
themselves. Otherwise, they see a lot of milling around trying to
figure out who is paying what, and then lining up to pay
individually. As you might imagine, it can get pretty crowded in
the busy season, and nobody likes to wait in line for wine. My
Chauffeur can also often take care of the tasting fees for the group
during the tour and add it to the final bill, just ask.
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The wineries reserve the right
(and in fact it is the law) to refuse service to any group or
individual that appears intoxicated, via OLCC regulations. This
applies to any sized group. If your group has had one too
many, they will refuse you service. Your chauffeur also will advise
the tasting room staff if they feel any individual appears too
intoxicated. If the group in general appears too intoxicated,
he or she will end the reservation. We want everyone to
be safe, legal, and happy in wine country, and we appreciate your
help in meeting that goal. I can’t tell you how much wineries
appreciate that.
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How do I book one of your tours?
It's easy! Take a look at the
reservations
for options, or phone us at 503-969-4370 or toll-free 877-692-4283. Very quick & easy. We'll send you confirmation of your reservation within
24 hours of receiving your request, along with information about the
tour. We take care of all planning. Your balance payment is
due on your tour date. If your tour request date is within the
next 48 hours, please call us at
the # above.
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What exactly does the per person price cover?
Are tasting
fees included or separate?
The cost covers the tour, the vehicle, chauffeur/tour guide, chauffeur/tour
guide gratuity, and all other tour/planning related services. It
does not cover lunches, winery tasting fees or winery facility tours
if requested, which are at additional cost.
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Why do you have a pick-up location
charge?
Even though your pick-up
location may be closer to the wine country, because of the extra
expenses for our Company associated with the travel time to your pick-up location, we
must institute this hourly rate charge. But
because you may not have a significant amount of time traveling to your
destination, you can usually choose a shorter length tour, which would
be less costly, and which
mostly negates this extra charge.
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Are the vineyards open year-round?
Almost
all of them are, but many are only open during special holidays or by
appointment.
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Do you offer other tours besides
wine tours?
Wine tours remain our specialty, but we do offer several other very
interesting tours. Examples include the Portland City Tour,
Mt. Hood Tour, and the Columbia River Gorge
Tour. For a complete list, go to
www.tourportland.com.
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Can I buy
wine during the tour? Will the estate ship it home for me?
You are welcome to purchase wine during the tour. All estates sell at the estate.
Also keep in mind, many of the estates we visit only sell at their
winery, available nowhere else. Whether the estate can ship it to
your home state depends on the state which you live. You may
check with the specific winery, or check the
shipping laws. For clients from
other countries, it is sometimes possible for the estate to ship your
wine to your home with an additional shipping charge. In any case,
you always have the option of bringing wine home with you in the
airplane. You may have to pay some amount of duty on your wine when
you go through customs, if applicable.
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Do you
choose the wineries, or can we pick them, and how many wineries
do you typically go to?
O ur
service is very flexible, and your group may pick your wineries if
you choose to.
Your private tour has infinite possibilities and is yours to do with it as you wish. In
this circumstance, we will be on-hand to give advice about
the wine country, individual wineries, their wines, their availability etc., if
you desire. We can supply any needed information to make your tour a success.
If you're not sure of which wineries to go to, My Chauffeur will be
happy to assist. Note - some wineries are
only open by appointment. For a standard 6-hour tour, you will
probably go to 3-6 wineries.
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Yes, and there are no additional charges.
However, the minimum person
charge requirement may be higher, instituted on the following
holiday weekends:
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Memorial Day weekend |
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Thanksgiving Day weekend |
On other holidays, the wineries may be
closed. 20% surcharge may apply on all other major
holidays. |
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We welcome Visa, MasterCard, Amex, and Diners Club, . If you prefer to
pay with cash, we request a credit card to secure the reservation.
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We do not offer billable accounts.
We offer credit card accounts only for companies and
individuals.. For
additional information, please call us at 503-969-4370, or go to
credit card accounts.
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We
can accommodate up to 14-15 in a single limousine, or 53 in a single
tour bus. We also offer multiple limousines which can
accommodate up to about 40-50 persons. Call 1-877-692-4282 or 503-969-4370 for a
rate quote and availability.
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Click
here for wine tour rates.
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We offer wine tour transportation from the Greater Portland/Vancouver area
and the wine country. In
addition, we travel to Salem, areas in-between, and the Columbia
River Gorge. Other outlining areas on request. Please call
1-877-692-4283 or 503-969-4370 for cost and information about
pick-ups from these and other areas.
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Our service is available 7-days per week, 365 days per year. Our office
hours are Monday - Friday from 7am-8pm, and Saturday from
8am-6pm. A reservation agent is available during office hours.
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Do you offer credit card accounts?
We offer
Corporate and Personal Credit
Card Accounts for ease in payment and to limit the exchange of
sensitive information. For additional information, please call us
toll-free at 1-877-692-4283 or from Portland at 503-969-4370.
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What types of discounts do you
offer?
We offer 25+ person tour bus discounts of 20% off.
We also offer senior and youth discounts of 25% off. Children under
12 are free. Minimum tour costs apply.
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Can we bring children on the tour?
According the the OLCC (Oregon
Liquor Control Commission), you may bring children of any age on a
wine tour. You may even consume alcohol in the vehicle when children
are present. The winery tasting rooms also welcome children.
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We are going to enjoy a family
outing with children, do you have any options for this?
We can recommend the
Evergreen Aviation Museum in
McMinnville to supplement the wineries; it is fun for the whole family
and a convenient wine country stop. Or, you may view our
activities page.
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Do you offer mixed group tours, or
only private tours?
With 1 or 2 people many people ask if a mixed group
tour is possible for companionship or to save costs. We normally
only book our tours as private. Although, if you leave us your
name and phone # we will contact you if a mixed group tour is
possible.
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Do you
charge our credit card right away after the reservation is made?
If you
choose to use a credit card for payment, we do not charge your credit
card until after the tour is completed. We do authorize your
card on file shortly before the tour to ensure the card is in good
standing.
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Do
you have 'overage' fees?
Any
reservation that extends beyond the scheduled time period will be
billed additional fees based on our next tour level pricing, or
regular hourly rates, if applicable. Overages may be billed up to
14 days following drop-off.
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If you
have any other questions, please don't hesitate to
contact us!
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