Everything is better with a glass of wine, so even by this very low standard, news of the launch of the world’s first winery airline should be good news. But Invivo Air is an entirely different kind of flying experience – and it’s now ready for its maiden flight.
Invivo Air is the latest initiative from New Zealand-based winery Invivo and was officially announced at the end of last year. Invivo is one of the country’s most famous and acclaimed producers of wines and spirits, and they count on an international production network and collaborations with the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker and Graham Norton, both of whom are shareholders, and spearhead successful wine lines.
Invivo knows a lot about good wine, be it a Rose, a Pinot Gris, or a Sauvignon Blanc. So taking said wine experience to the skies must’ve felt like a most natural step: this is how Invivo Air came to be.
The idea with the world’s first winery airline is to offer oenophiles an unforgettable luxury experience, which combines wine-tasting at high altitudes and then on terra firma, while in the company of like-minded individuals and the Invivo founders themselves, Tim Lightbourne and Rob Cameron. They’re the two gentlemen in captain’s uniforms in the rather badly photoshopped photos in the gallery. Bad photoshop aside, their idea is one that deserves attention.
Photo: Invivo Air
Invivo Air takes off on its maiden flight on January 31, 2023 as the world’s first winery airline. That’s the good news. The bad news is that tickets for this flight sold out in a record amount of time, within hours of becoming available. The other piece of good news is that Lightbourne and Cameron are planning more flights on their very special, wine-dedicated airline, both nationally and internationally, but are yet to set any dates for them.
So what’s the Invivo Air experience, after all? Think of it as a cruise-like experience, where you’re picked up from Point A and ferried to Point B, during which time you’re treated to the best possible. In this particular case, this includes an eight-course wine-tasting onboard the 34-seater Saab 340A plane chartered from Air Chathams, which will take off from Auckland International on North Island, destination Queenstown, South Island.
The guided wine tasting at 18,000 feet (5,486 meters) will be led by the same founding gentlemen, and will also include a selection of local Kiwi snacks and a choice of low or no-alcohol beverage options. As refreshers, one assumes. For the two-hour flight, onboard entertainment will be provided by means of a curated playlist, courtesy of Cameron, who is also the lead guitarist of the local band Razorback Road.
The Invivo Air is described as “a unique experience for wine lovers,” and this relatively short flight is just the start of it. Once the plane lands in Queenstown, one of the world’s most beautiful airports, guests will be taken on a tour of the Central Otago vineyard, which is Invivo’s oldest, and treated to a fresh tasting of the Pinot Grises made here.
Photo: Invivo Air
Dinner will be held at the Botswana Butchery in the center of the city and will be a winemakers’ one, hosted by the company’s founders and including a four-course chef’s meal with Bluff Oysters paired with Invivo wines, among other treats. Guests will spend the night at the five-star Hilton Queenstown Resort & Spa in lakeside rooms, where they will enjoy access to all the facilities on site, from the indoor pool to the day spa and the fitness center. In case they might feel the sudden urge to burn all those empty calories from the wine.
Jokes aside, the Invivo Air escapade promises to be an unforgettable overnight experience dedicated to discerning wine lovers and customers of the Invivo brand. Tickets went on sale on December 15 and were sold out almost immediately, which isn’t that much of a surprise if you keep in mind the fact that only 34 were available in the first place. Pricing was set at NZD$1,149, so roughly US$721 at the current exchange rate, and included transportation on the itinerary, the hotel stay, all meals, and of course, the round flight ticket.
Recent studies have brought to light the necessity to stop relying on flying for transportation, particularly for the world’s rich to stop flying private and to ditch unnecessary flights. Active measures to reduce carbon emissions are necessary, and flying with the purpose of tasting a selection of fine wines (or getting plain drunk in the sky) might seem… not at all conducive to that. If your conscience can’t reconcile the desire to take part in one such luxury experience with the desire to do right by the planet, Invivo is trying to help out: the company will offset carbon emissions for every guest, at least on this maiden flight.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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