Orange

Orange sits at around eight hundred and sixty metres on the slopes of Mount Canobolas, an extinct volcano whose basalt soils and altitude give the district a genuinely cool climate, unusual in inland Australia. The result is a wine region built on chardonnay, pinot noir and cool-climate shiraz, orchards of apples and cherries, and a restaurant scene that has drawn attention well beyond the region. The city itself was laid out with wide streets and public gardens and is planted heavily with deciduous trees, which turn in April and May. Mount Canobolas above town is a reserve with walking tracks and a summit road, and the F.O.O.D Week festival each April is the district's showcase.

What you actually see

• The cool-climate wineries - chardonnay and pinot on volcanic soils.
• The autumn streets - deciduous planting turning through April and May.
• Mount Canobolas - the extinct volcano with tracks and a summit road.
• The orchards - apple and cherry country around the city.

When to go

Autumn from March to May for colour and harvest, including the April food festival; spring from September to November for blossom. Winter is cold with occasional snow on Canobolas. Summer is warm but drier and less interesting for the district's appeal.

Honest expectations

Wineries are scattered around the district and many open only at weekends, so a car and some planning are needed. Restaurant bookings are essential on festival weekends. Winter here is genuinely cold, and visitors expecting mild Australian weather are caught out.

Nearby

Millthorpe and Carcoar are preserved villages nearby; Bathurst lies east.