Things to Do in Naramata (2026 BC Local Guide)

Naramata is a small town along Okanagan Lake. The town itself didn't put it on the map. It's known for the surrounding region called the Naramata Bench, a long plateau that sits high above the lake. With ideal climate conditions, the plateau is covered almost entirely in vineyards and orchards, and it's beautiful to look at, drive by, or bike through.

Nearly every winery, cidery, and brewery up there has a customer-facing storefront and a patio. The town itself is a charming little community built around a single main street tucked against the lake, with most of the residential areas right along the water. Here's the full list of what's worth doing, between the town and the Bench.

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Last updated 2026-07-13

Wander The Town

A multicoloured signpost points out in many different directions at several random destinations around the world, with a large building in the background with a mural painted on the facade that reads ‘Small Town Big Mood Discover Naramata’

Naramata isn't a big place. It's mostly one street, with the waterfront a few blocks down and a thrift store a block over, and beyond that it's cafes, a general store, and a handful of shops along the main strip. You can see most of it in twenty minutes, but it's worth doing slowly, and it could take around an hour if you give each shop a good peruse.

Get Coffee and Breakfast at Just Baked

Two iced coffees in glass mugs with straws sit on a polished wood table on a patio with several tables and umbrellas behind it.

Blooming flowers frame the foreground, with a large patio with several picnic tables and round tables with umbrellas making up the midground, with a fence running through with a sign hung on it reading ‘Just Baked Naramata Street Coffee’

Just Baked is the main coffee shop in town with great outdoor seating and an impressively large spread of sweet and savoury baked goods, so whatever mood you're in for breakfast, they've probably got it covered. Grab a coffee, take your time, and let the day start slow.

Grab a Smoothie From Frankies

A quaint white building with a few small tables set up in front of it with a sign that reads in pink letters ‘Frankie’s Beach Provisions’

If you didn't fill up too much at Just Baked, swing by Frankie's. They make some really good smoothies, and they travel well if you're planning to walk one down to the waterfront or around town with you.

Do a Wine and Cider Tour of The Bench

A man sits in a red Muskoka chair in an orchard holding a glass of white wine next to a table with a hot dog and wine slushie on it.

Two glasses of cider sitting on a wooden table with a lush orchard stretching behind them all the way to a large blue lake

There's more wine, cider, and beer along the Bench than fits in one afternoon, so where you prioritize comes down to what you're after.

JoieFarm Winery is the least pretentious winery in the area (in my opinion). They have great outdoor seating overlooking the vineyard, a tasting similar to what you'll find elsewhere, but they also have a low-key backyard bar doing its own thing entirely. That's where you'll find their house wines, a wine slushie made from their bubbly, and a rotating lineup of culinary fusion hot dogs. Fun, relaxed, and a good pick if you want wine tasting without the fancy vibe.

Bench 1775 is the other end of that spectrum. More upscale, and honestly one of the more quintessential Naramata winery experiences you'll find. Sweeping views over the vineyard, a tasting people rave about, and the kind of high-end service that matches the reputation. There is no strict dress code, but I didn't see anyone showing up in dusty cycling outfits here.

Creek and Gully is hands down my favourite spot on the Bench. Partly because I'm a bit more partial to cider than wine, but mostly because I'm secretly just here for the patio and the views. It's a family-run, woman-owned farm and cidery making some of the best handmade cider in BC, second maybe only to Merridale on Vancouver Island.

Where they categorically beat Merridale is the patio. It's one of the most gorgeous patios I've seen in the province; it's a smaller and more intimate space overlooking their orchard as it slopes down into a sea of vineyards and then further down into the deep blues of the lake. It's a scene straight out of the Italian countryside, but with an even better lake. The cider is amazing, and they offer a few small bites, though not really a full meal.

Two full pints of beer in glasses set on a plastic red table surrounded by plastic red Muskoka chairs, all shaded by low-hanging branches of a large tree

Manicured grass and a stone pathway lead to a white barn building with green ivey growing across its wooden panels

Abandoned Rail Brewing is the most low-key option, and one of the most fun. It sits right on the KVR biking trail and leans right into that aesthetic. Most of the seating is outdoors, a lot of it in plastic Muskoka chairs that get constantly rearranged around the property. They have a solid beer offering, plus typical brewery food like wood-fired pizza, burgers, giant pretzels, and The Real Big Pickle, which is exactly what you think it is: a pickle, but real big.

There's no pretentiousness here. Half the patrons or more are fresh off a bike ride down the KVR trail in tight, dusty biking shorts dripping with sweat. Service is still top tier, the hospitality matches the rest of the bench, and the vibe is wonderfully laid back.

There are many more wineries beyond these four, and I've only been to a handful myself. The tastings were honestly a bit lost on me since most of the wines for me came off as very wine-forward with a similar grape-ish tang across the board. For a more refined view on the wineries here, I'll point you to one of the best guides available, from Best Ever Guide.

Hike or Bike to Little Tunnel

A woman riding an E-bike along the gravel KVR trail heading into a dark tunnel known as ‘Little Tunnel’ with the striking blue of Okanagan Lake far below the path to the left.

A man rides out of the darkness of ‘Little Tunnel’ and into the light cast on the trail and the massive sea of forest below the trail.

If you're wanting a bit of exercise and a rewarding view of the whole Bench, the lake, and Penticton looking tiny in the distance, go for Little Tunnel. It's exactly what it sounds like: a small tunnel cut through rock, originally built large enough for a train to fit through. It's short enough that it never goes fully dark; you can see both ends from the middle, but it's still long enough to cool the air down a good 10 degrees from the hot air on the trail.

The easiest way in is from the Smethurst parking lot. The path is wide, even, well-maintained, and the incline is steady; since it used to be a railway, it can't be more than a 2 percent grade by rule.

But it's a consistent grind up nearly 5km to the tunnel, and it's exposed and hot the whole way, so pack more water than you think you'll need. The trail is well maintained and popular with bikers too, so if you've got your own bike you can cut the time down significantly and fit in a few more winery stops instead.

The hike takes a bit over an hour each way, but the payoff is worth every drop of sweat. On either side of the tunnel, the views open up over the Naramata Bench, back toward Penticton, and across the full width of Okanagan Lake.

Add on the Lady Bug Trail

A woman stands on the edge of a massive rocky cliff at the end of the Lady Bug Trail near Little Tunnel with Okanagan Lake stretching as far as the eye can see below.

Just past Little Tunnel, there's a small trail called the Lady Bug Trail. Keep an eye out for a sign on the left. It's labelled as family-friendly, but that's based on a very BC definition of family-friendly.

The trail is uneven, requires climbing up some rock faces, and you'll want to watch for rattlesnakes. For typical BC families, it's still a great walk. It's short, about 10 minutes each way, and takes you off the main KVR trail out to a cliff that looks up to Little Tunnel and down to the lake and the sea of vineyards. There's a little bench at the end, and the view is stunning, though very similar to the view from the far side of Little Tunnel.

Head up to Adra Tunnel

Framed by leaves of a tree in the foreground, a man walks along a flat and wide gravel path into a rectangularly cut tunnel.

A man stands in a dark tunnel lit by a chandelier hanging from the ceiling and lined with large wooden reinforcements.

If you're wanting something a bit adventurous and truly unique, head up to Adra Tunnel. It's the more interesting of the two tunnels in my opinion. It's much longer, and its length combined with the horseshoe shape means it gets properly dark throughout. Getting there requires either a ride up a rough, steep forest road followed by a short steep hike, or the equivalent on foot. Once you arrive, you're met with a few oddities: creepy motion sensor lights, a very out-of-place chandelier, and wild programmed sounds that echo throughout the tunnel in erratic directions off the rough-hewn stone walls.

Adra Tunnel could easily be the highlight of your trip, but you want to know what you're getting into with this one, since the way up is questionable and the experience itself is far stranger than it seems on the surface. I recommend giving our dedicated Adra Tunnel guide a quick read before you make your decision.

Catch the Wednesday Farmers Market

Several picnic tables are set up on a grassy area next to a paved pathway that leads past several food trucks at the Naramata Farmers’ Market.

Rows of market stalls line a grassy area in Naramata selling a wide variety of farmers’ market goods.

If it's a Wednesday, there's a farmers market from 4 to 7 pm at Manitou Park, and it's worth building your whole day around catching it. It's a bigger market than you'd expect, with a full row of food trucks covering everything from a sweet treat to a proper meal.

Beyond the food, there are real produce stands from local farms, local artists selling their work, representation from the area's breweries, cideries, and wineries, and even a converted Kei truck selling pet treats.

The market sits right in the park on the water, so the move is simple: grab something to eat, walk it down to the beach, spend some time by the lake, then stock up on vegetables and souvenirs on your way out.

Get Pizza Delivered at Manitou Park

A full pizza inside an open cardboard box lying on a picnic blanket set up on a dock that is suspended above the water of Okanagan Lake.

A large drooping willow tree casts shade along the small sandy beach that runs next to the calm waters of Okanagan Lake.

Any other night, get pizza from Real Things Pizza and take it down to Manitou Park instead. It's a small takeout spot that does simple pizza and does it properly. The price is right, the quality is there, and the only real downside is the wait.

This place is popular enough that lines at peak times can run up to 40 minutes, so call your order in before you head over if you can. It's worth the wait either way. You can pick it up yourself or have it delivered straight to the beach, and they've got solid vegan and veggie options too. Either way, taking it down to the water is the move.

FAQ

What is the Naramata Bench?

The Naramata Bench is a long plateau above Okanagan Lake, near the small town of Naramata, covered almost entirely in vineyards and orchards. Nearly every winery, cidery, and brewery along the Bench has a customer-facing storefront and patio, making it one of the most concentrated wine touring areas in the Okanagan.

What is the best winery to visit in Naramata?

It depends on the experience you want. JoieFarm Winery is relaxed and unpretentious, with a backyard bar serving wine slushies and fusion hot dogs. Bench 1775 offers a more upscale, classic tasting with sweeping vineyard views. Creek and Gully is a family-run cidery with one of the best patios in the province, and Abandoned Rail Brewing is the most casual stop, sitting right on the KVR bike trail and popular with cyclists.

What is the difference between the Little Tunnel and the Adra Tunnel?

The Little Tunnel is shorter and never goes fully dark, since both ends stay visible from the middle, and it's reached via a roughly 5 km hike or bike from the Smethurst parking lot along the KVR rail trail. The Adra Tunnel is longer, curves in a horseshoe shape that blocks daylight throughout, and requires a rougher approach involving a steep forest road and a short hike. Adra also has motion-sensor lighting and sound effects installed inside, making it a stranger and more memorable stop.

Is there a farmers market in Naramata?

Yes, Naramata hosts a farmers market on Wednesdays from 4 to 7pm at Manitou Park. It includes food trucks, produce stands, local artists, and representation from area wineries, cideries, and breweries, and it's worth timing a visit around if you're in town on a Wednesday.

Where should I eat in Naramata?

Just Baked is the main coffee and breakfast spot in town, with a large spread of sweet and savoury baked goods. For dinner, Real Things Pizza is a popular takeout spot with solid vegan and vegetarian options, best enjoyed down at Manitou Park by the water. Lines can run up to 40 minutes at peak times, so calling ahead is recommended.

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