Alaska Airlines and the Walla Walla Valley Wine Alliance have announced a new promotion for wine lovers and travelers to Walla Walla wineries.
The “Taste and Tote” promotion offers two benefits to Alaska Airlines’ passengers traveling to the Walla Walla wine region, including tasting fee waivers for more than 70 Walla Walla wineries, and waived baggage handling fees for the first case of checked wine. The airline also allows customers to check one free box of up to 12 wine bottles on flights departing from Santa Rosa, California. There are two daily nonstop flights between Seattle and Walla Walla Regional Airport with Alaska Airlines, as well as one-stop connections from the West Coast.
Duane Wollmuth, executive director of the Walla Walla Valley Wine Alliance, said, “In the past, air travelers were required to pay tasting fees at many wineries and also pay a $20 baggage fee to transport a box of wine on outbound flights. We heard time and again from visitors that they either traveled by car to the valley or did not buy wine when they flew, simply because they were not willing to pay the additional fee to transport wine home. The Taste and Tote program will be a huge plus for generating inbound air travel to Walla Walla and make wine purchases more affordable for out-of-town visitors."
Walla Walla Valley will be celebrating its Holiday Barrel Tasting Weekend from December 2 through December 4, 2011. Alaska Airlines will also be featuring its winter fare sale with one-way tickets between Seattle and Walla Walla starting at $50. A seven-day advance purchase is required and tickets must be purchased by December 5, 2011. Travel can be completed from December 8, 2011 through March 7, 2012.
Visit www.alaskaair.com or www.wallawallawine.com