What is Door Explorer?

Door Explorer is a platform for discovering and booking wine tasting experiences at cellar doors across Australia — bringing together Australia's best wineries and cellar doors into one place, so you can easily plan group tasting trips to any of Australia's wine regions.

Whether you're planning a relaxed afternoon or a full day of tastings, Door Explorer helps you build the perfect itinerary. Start with a winery tour in the morning, enjoy a picnic in the vines for lunch, then wrap up with a premium tasting and cheese pairing — it's easy to plan and book your whole wine tasting trip in one place.

Started by George and James, two mates who love visiting wineries, the platform began as a way to share recommendations with friends. Today, it connects thousands of guests with cellar doors every month. The aim is simple: make it easier to explore wine regions, skip outdated top-10 lists, and book directly with wineries.

Door Explorer is built to support both guests and wineries — helping visitors plan better trips and making it easier for cellar doors to connect with new guests.

Read more about us here.

How does Door Explorer work?

Door Explorer helps you find and book wine tasting experiences at cellar doors across Australia. Browse by Australia's Wine Regions or use the interactive Wine Region Map to explore what's nearby. Filter by features, read guest reviews, and compare tasting experiences.

When you're ready to book, choose an experience, add any booking extras, then select a date and time to check availability. Your booking will either be confirmed instantly or sent as a request to the winery for manual confirmation, depending on how they manage their calendar. Learn more about how bookings work.

If you booked directly with a winery that uses Door Explorer, you'll still enjoy all the perks — like editing your booking, inviting your group, getting reminders, and keeping track of past visits.

Use Trips to group your bookings into a single itinerary. You can invite friends, manage guest details, and keep your day running smoothly.

After your visit, we'll invite you to leave a review of your experience. Your feedback helps other guests choose the right experience, and helps us recommend better tastings for you next time.

How do bookings work?

Booking with Door Explorer is easy — just choose your group size, select an experience and add any extras, pick a date and time, and enter your contact details. If payment is required, you'll add that too.

Behind the scenes, each winery manages their bookings a little differently. Depending on how they handle availability and confirmations, you'll see one of three booking types:

Instant Bookings

Wineries that use Door Explorer to manage their calendar offer instant bookings. This means you can see real-time availability, select a time, and get an immediate confirmation — no need to wait for approval.

You might make an instant booking while browsing Door Explorer, directly from the winery's website, or the winery might create one on your behalf after a phone or email enquiry. Either way, your booking is powered by Door Explorer, giving you access to easy booking management.

If plans change, you can manage your booking directly through your account. You'll be able to:

• Update your group size
• Change the start time (based on current availability)
• Switch to a different experience
• Add extras like cheese boards or winery tours (if available)

If a tasting fee applies, payment is taken at the time of booking, and you'll receive an email confirmation straight away.

Booking Requests

Some wineries prefer to manually approve bookings. When you submit a request, it's sent to the winery for review. Most respond within 48 hours, and you won't be charged until it's confirmed.

Booking requests are still managed through Door Explorer, so you'll benefit from the same features as instant bookings — your plans stay organised, your group can be managed in one place, and everything fits neatly into your trip itinerary.

While a booking is pending, it's not yet confirmed — the winery hasn't responded and the time isn't held. You can still make changes during this stage, like updating your guest count or picking a different time. We'll send any updates to the winery automatically and let you know once they respond.

Once confirmed, your booking is locked in and payment is taken (if required). If plans change later, you can submit a request to update your booking — and we'll notify you once the winery approves the change.

If your booking is less than 24 hours away and still pending, it's best to contact the winery directly to confirm availability and avoid disappointment.

External Bookings

Some wineries manage their bookings using their own system. When this happens, you'll be redirected to the winery's website to complete your booking directly with them.

Because these bookings happen outside of Door Explorer, we don't receive any details — so we can't track availability or confirm your booking status. If you need to make changes or have questions, it's best to contact the winery directly.

If you're planning a trip using Door Explorer, you can still manually add external bookings to your itinerary. This helps you see all your stops in one place and plan the rest of your day around them.

How do I edit or change my booking?

If you need to make a change to your booking — like updating your guest count, changing the time, or switching to a different experience — you can manage it directly through your Door Explorer account or by clicking the Manage Booking link in your confirmation email.

• Instant Bookings — You can make changes instantly based on the winery's live availability. Your updates will be confirmed straight away.
• Booking Requests — You can request a change, but it'll need to be approved by the winery before it's confirmed. We'll notify you once they respond.
• External Bookings — These bookings are managed by the winery, so you'll need to contact them directly for any updates.

If your update increases the total booking cost (e.g. adding more guests), you'll be prompted to pay the difference. If your update reduces the price, you may be eligible for a partial refund — as long as the change is made before the cancellation window closes. Changes made after this time are not eligible for a refund. Learn more about how cancellations and refunds work.

The earlier you make a change, the more flexibility you'll have — and the easier it will be for the winery to accommodate your request.

If you're not sure how to make a change, you can always contact the winery directly. They'll be able to help you with any updates or questions you have.

How do Cancellations and Refunds work?

We understand that plans can change. That's why each winery on Door Explorer selects a cancellation policy that works for their team while keeping things clear for guests.

The policy is based on the original start time of your booking — even if you update the time later, the cancellation window stays the same. The available policies are:

• Flexible — Cancel at least 1 hour before your original booking start time for a refund
• Standard — Cancel at least 24 hours before your original booking start time for a refund
• Firm — Cancel at least 72 hours before your original booking start time for a refund

If you cancel after the cutoff — or don't show up — the booking is no longer eligible for a refund.

Refunds apply to the tasting fee only. Payment processing fees aren't refundable, as these are charged by the payment provider even if a refund is issued.

When you book a tasting, the applicable cancellation policy is clearly shown before checkout and again in your confirmation email, so you're fully informed.

For external bookings managed directly by the winery, Door Explorer is not involved in any payment. You'll need to contact the winery directly to request any changes or a refund.

At Door Explorer, we aim to keep the process fair and transparent — for both guests and wineries.

How do Reviews work?

Leaving reviews helps you get more from Door Explorer — the more feedback you share, the better we can personalise future recommendations to match your taste and help plan your next trip. You'll also benefit from reading reviews left by other guests when deciding where to book

Your reviews support the wider community too. They help future guests make informed decisions and give wineries insight into what’s working well — and what could be improved.

Whether your visit exceeded expectations or left room for improvement, we encourage thoughtful, honest feedback that reflects your tasting, service, and overall experience.

How to leave a Review

After your visit, you'll receive an email inviting you to leave a review. You can also log in to your Door Explorer account at any time, view your past bookings, and leave a review from there.

Each review includes:

• A rating out of 5 stars — to reflect your overall experience
• A short comment — to share what you enjoyed, or what could have been better

Your review will appear on the winery's listing page to help future guests decide where to book. All reviews are moderated to ensure they meet our review guidelines.

Review guidelines

We welcome honest reviews that focus on your tasting experience, service, and overall visit. Your feedback should be respectful and constructive — whether you're highlighting a great moment or sharing something that didn't meet your expectations. Keep it helpful, relevant, and kind.

• Be specific — Describe the experience, service, and venue in a way others can relate to.
• Keep it balanced — Share what worked well, and where there may be room to improve.
• Write for others like you — What you would've found helpful before your visit.
• Reflect on the listing — Did the winery's listing match the experience you had?

Minimum standards for all reviews

To keep reviews useful and trustworthy, all submissions must follow a few basic standards:

• Be respectful — Avoid personal attacks, aggressive tone, or inappropriate language.
• Be honest — Only review places you've actually visited and provide a truthful account.
• Stay relevant — Focus on your experience; skip unrelated opinions or speculation.
• Protect privacy — Don't include names, contact details, or private information.

I had an issue with a winery — what should I do?

If something didn't go to plan during your visit, we recommend contacting the winery directly to resolve the issue. Most matters can be addressed quickly and directly.

You're also welcome to leave a review that reflects your experience — just keep it respectful and specific so it's useful for others. Please follow our review guidelines.

What is Door Explorer?

Door Explorer is a wine tourism platform that connects thousands of guests with cellar doors across Australia every month — helping guests discover, plan, and book wine tasting experiences, and helping wineries manage and grow their bookings with less admin.

For guests, it's a way to plan anything from a single tasting to a full day of wine experiences. From exploring Australia's wine regions to building a weekend itinerary with friends, Door Explorer makes it easy to find the right experiences and book directly with cellar doors.

For wineries, it's a set of tools designed to simplify booking management — whether you're running everything yourself or working with a team. Our goal is to make every Australian cellar door easy to find and book, so we've made our core winery booking tools free to use.

Door Explorer is designed to fit the way your cellar door works. You can accept instant bookings, review booking requests manually, or use it alongside your existing tools. With real-time availability, experiences and extras, and optional prepayment, Door Explorer helps you reach more of the right guests — without losing control of how your bookings are managed.

Who's behind Door Explorer?

Door Explorer was founded by George and James — two mates with a shared love of wine tasting and visiting cellar doors.

We come from tech and startup backgrounds, each with over a decade of experience building websites and apps for some of Australia's leading tech companies.

Door Explorer began as a side project to keep track of the wineries we loved and recommend them to friends. Today, it's a growing platform dedicated to helping cellar doors offer better tasting experiences and attract more direct bookings — without relying on generic booking software or overpriced industry tools.

Find out more on our about us page.

How do I claim my Winery's listing?

To manage your profile on Door Explorer, you'll first need to claim your listing by creating an account. Once claimed, you'll get access to your winery dashboard — where you can update details, set availability, and manage bookings.

There are a few ways to get started:

• Use the claim form — Start here and we'll send in invite email to verify ownership.
• Check your Booking Request — we include a claim link at the bottom of the email.
• Contact us directly — Email [email protected] from a winery-branded address (e.g. [email protected]) and we'll help you get set up.

Once you've claimed your listing, we'll guide you through setting up your dashboard — including updating your profile, adding experiences, and configuring availability and payments. If you need help at any point, our team is here to support you.

How do I add a new winery to Door Explorer?

If your cellar door isn't on Door Explorer yet, you can submit an enquiry to request a new listing. We'll review your submission and get in touch with next steps.

How do Bookings work?

Door Explorer gives you a simple way to manage your bookings — whether they come from your website, a phone enquiry, or from a guest discovering your winery on the platform. All bookings flow into the same calendar and, based on your settings, are either confirmed instantly or submitted as a request for you to review.

From the guest's side, booking is also simple. They enter their group size, select an experience, add any extras (like a cheese board), before selecting the date of their visit.

If instant bookings are enabled, guests choose a time with enough availability for their group. Otherwise, they can request a booking during your regular opening hours. We then confirm their contact details and take payment (if required) before submitting the booking.

On your end, you control how availability works. Set your opening hours, manage capacity, apply group limits, and define how much notice you need. Whether you accept instant bookings or prefer to review booking requests, Door Explorer gives you the tools to customise your calendar, reduce admin, and stay in control.

Booking Details

These details appear in your dashboard, calendar, and booking emails — giving you the right context to prepare, manage service, and personalise each visit.

• Contact - Guest's name, email, and phone number.
• Group Size - Split by tasters and non-tasters, so you can plan seating.
• Experience - The main experience booked such as a tasting or tour.
• Extras - Add-ons like a cheese board; priced per person or per unit.
• Date & Time - Selected from your pre-set availability or opening hours.
• Comment - Optional guest notes (e.g. special requests or occasions).
• Payment - If enabled, shows payment method and status.
• Source - Where the booking came from (website, manual, referral).

Booking Types

Every winery runs differently, so we offer two booking types — both designed for cellar doors (not restaurants). Choose the option that best fits your team, service model, and level of flexibility.

• Instant Bookings — Guests book immediately based on your real-time availability
• Booking Requests — Guests submit a request for you to review and approve

Both types are managed from your Door Explorer dashboard and feed into the same calendar. Learn more about how each option works below.

Instant Bookings

Enabling instant bookings allows guests to see your real-time availability and confirm a time without waiting for approval. This setup is ideal for cellar doors with consistent staffing and clear guest limits — ie. a maximum of 24 guests at a time, or a maximum of 6 groups, whichever limit is reached first. Learn more about how to set your availability.

As soon as a guest submits the booking, it's confirmed on the spot. If you require prepayment, the tasting fee is collected at the time of booking. You'll receive an email with the booking details and it will appear in your booking calendar automatically.

Guests can also make changes after their booking is confirmed — such as updating their group size, switching to another experience, or adding extras — as long as the new details still fit within your calendar's availability settings.

Booking Requests

If you prefer to review bookings before confirming them, you can switch to booking requests. Guests still go through the same booking form and submit all the same details — but instead of being confirmed immediately, the request is sent to you for review.

You'll be notified by email when a request comes in and can accept or decline it from the dashboard. No payment is taken until you approve the request, and guests are clearly shown that their booking is pending until confirmed.

This setup also works for wineries that haven't claimed their listing yet — and may be how your profile is currently configured. It lets guests request a booking and add it to their trip, even if you aren't using the booking calendar, without disrupting your day-to-day operations.

Booking Sources

Tracking booking sources helps you understand where your bookings are coming from and how they're performing. This information is useful for understanding your marketing efforts and identifying which channels are most effective for your winery.

Direct Bookings

Direct bookings are made by guests who find your winery through your own marketing, word of mouth, or past visits. They include online bookings from your website, phone or email enquiries your team enters manually, and bookings from tour groups you have an existing relationship with.

These are always free — no referral fees, no commissions. You've done the hard work to earn the booking, so we don't think you should pay just to record it in a calendar.

Referred Bookings

Referred bookings are made by guests who discover your winery on Door Explorer while planning a trip to your wine region. Every month, thousands of people use Door Explorer to explore wine regions, compare cellar doors, and book tastings that fit their itinerary.

We list every Cellar Door in Australia, so to stand out and maximise referred bookings, we recommend that; your listing includes high-quality photos, is tagged with relevant features, and has experiences setup for easy booking. Enabling instant bookings also increases the chances that guests will confirm on the spot rather than waiting for approval.

We charge a referral fee for the value we provide in bringing you new guests — but only when the booking is pre-paid. In that case, we retain $1 per guest, automatically deducted from the payout. It's a simple, transparent marketing cost for a confirmed booking from someone who may not have discovered your cellar door otherwise.

How do payments work?

Payments are securely processed using Stripe.

When you enable payments on Door Explorer, you'll connect your business to Stripe using a Stripe Connect account. This requires a quick approval from one of your business directors, and we're happy to help if you need guidance — either through the dashboard or over a call.

Once connected, you'll be able to accept pre-paid bookings and receive payments directly into your nominated bank account.

Stripe, like all payment processors, charges a payment processing fee that varies based on the guest's selected payment method. To make sure this doesn't affect your earnings, we add that fee on top of the tasting price — so the guest covers it at checkout.

How do refunds and cancellations work?

When setting up payments, you'll choose one of three cancellation policies. These give guests clarity, while allowing you to manage your bookings effectively:

• Flexible — guests can cancel up to 1 hour before for a refund
• Standard — guests can cancel up to 24 hours before
• Firm — guests must cancel at least 72 hours before

The cancellation policy you choose is shown clearly to guests before they confirm a booking and in their confirmation email.

Refunds apply only to the tasting fee. Processing fees are non-refundable.

You can update your cancellation policy at any time, but changes will only apply to future bookings — existing bookings will follow the policy that was in place at the time of booking.

What if a guest doesn't show up?

If a guest doesn't attend their booking and hasn't cancelled within your selected cancellation window, they're considered a no-show. You'll still receive payment, and no refund is issued to the guest. This policy is shown clearly during the booking process.

If it's free, how do you make money?

Our booking tools are completely free to use for direct bookings — specifically those made via your website, or from phone or email enquiries. We don't charge subscription fees, because we see these tools as core to building a platform that benefits both guests and wineries.

Door Explorer isn't just a booking tool — we also help guests plan their trip to wine regions. If a user on our platform discovers your winery on Door Explorer and makes a pre-paid booking, we call that a referred booking — and we charge a simple, flat referral fee of $1 per guest.

You can read more about how bookings and referrals work above.

Transparently, Door Explorer is still growing, and we're building it ourselves — without the big overheads of an expensive engineering team — which allows us to keep our costs low and pass that value on to wineries and guests.

To support the platform long-term, we plan to offer optional premium tools that solve real problems cellar door teams face — and deliver enough value to be worth paying for. These features will be shaped by feedback from wineries like yours, so if you have ideas or requests, we'd love to hear from you.

If you have questions, suggestions, or feedback: [email protected]

What support do you offer Wineries?

If we can help, we will.

We're here to help you get the most out of Door Explorer — whether you're just getting started or already managing bookings through the platform. If you have a question or run into an issue, feel free to reach out. We'll do our best to help.

We work closely with wineries and their guests every day, so while we don't pretend to know all the nuances of running a winery, we have a solid understanding of what makes a great cellar door experience — and we're happy to share what we've learned.

Website and Technical Support

We've built Door Explorer in-house and have years of experience designing websites and growing digital products. If you're having trouble with your website — or just need a second opinion — we're happy to take a look. We can often help directly or point you in the right direction.

Marketing and Business Support

If you're facing challenges at your cellar door — with guests, bookings, or anything else — we're always up for a chat. Sometimes a fresh perspective helps. And if we hear the same challenge from other wineries, it might just turn into a feature on Door Explorer.

If you'd like to chat please get in touch via [email protected].