Wedding Venues · McLaren Vale / Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia · Visit in person

Magpie Springs

About

Overview & Vibe

A small vineyard, cellar door and art gallery on Brookman Road at the top of Willunga Hill, between the Adelaide Hills and McLaren Vale. It is a dry-hire venue and says so on every page — you get the garden and the wine, and you build the rest yourself.

Setting & Style

Gardens, a cellar door with a pergola, vine rows, and a dam at the bottom of the property, all off the beaten track. The venue is also a working art gallery for the painter Avril Thomas, which is unusual company for a wedding.

Ideal For

Couples who want to design everything themselves, bring their own suppliers, and are happy to serve the estate’s wine.

The Need-to-Knows

Dry hire, stated three times over. “We provide the venue and the Wine and everything else is a blank slate. Bespoke/ DIY.” And plainly: “We aren’t wedding planers.”
Their wine is a condition, not an option. “We expect our boutique wines to be included on the day” and “Our delicious Magpie Springs Wines are to be used for your event.”
You can hire part of the property rather than all of it — but then you share it. “If you have chosen to book only a portion of the property at a time and we are open for business we may have other customers coming through.”
Nothing is priced and no capacity is published, for any of the spaces.
Bring a jacket, in any season. The venue’s own warning: “It gets chilly, on the top of Willunga Hill and when the sun goes down the temperature drops fast. Make sure all your guests know to bring a jacket even in summer.”
Site visits are by appointment and the cellar door is open weekends 11am to 5pm, most public holidays, and otherwise by arrangement. The entry is opposite Bridle Road.
A supplier list — caterers, celebrants, hire companies — is provided once you book, but the venue is explicit that they are independent and you may use your own.

Standout Feature

A blank hilltop vineyard with an art gallery attached, and no house style imposed on your day.

Amenities

Boutique Vineyard
Cellar Door
Pergola
Gardens
Dam Surrounded By Vines
Whole Property Hire Available
Partial Property Hire Available
Dry Hire
Bring Your Own Suppliers
Recommended Supplier List
Estate Wines Included
Art Gallery On Site
Avril Thomas Studio
Artist Workshops
Paint And Sip Classes
Wine Tastings
Gift Vouchers
Willunga Hill Elevation
Off The Beaten Track

Ceremony Setting

garden
vineyard
outdoor
lawn
pergola

Dietary Options Supported

No details available.

Nearby Landmarks

Willunga Hill – The ridge the vineyard sits on top of
Willunga – Historic town below the hill
McLaren Vale – The wine region to the north-west
Adelaide Hills – The range the property adjoins
Fleurieu Peninsula – The region the property belongs to
Aldinga Beach – On the coast west of Willunga
Adelaide – About an hour north

On Site Accommodation

No details available.

Price Notes

Pricing is provided on enquiry. Enquiry and a site visit are the only route: 'Bookings essential for site visits call us to book.'
This is a dry-hire venue and the site says so repeatedly: Magpie Springs provides the garden and the wine, and everything else is a blank slate for you to design. It is not a function planner, and it supplies neither food nor a kitchen.
The estate's wine is a condition of hire: 'We expect our boutique wines to be included on the day.' And: 'Our delicious Magpie Springs Wines are to be used for your event.' A couple planning their own beverage list needs to read that before booking.
Partial hire means shared use, which is unusually honest: 'If you have chosen to book only a portion of the property at a time and we are open for business we may have other customers coming through. Please be respectful of everyone who is here to enjoy the property.' Whole-property hire is available as the alternative: 'book out the entire property for a private function.'
Suppliers are recommended but independent: 'We have an extensive list of wonderful event providers who have been onsite before which you will recieve once booked in. Choose ours or choose your own.' 'We aren't wedding planers but we have a list of caterers, celebrants and hire companies who have been here before so we know they do a great job... They are independent from us - these are providers other couples have chosen.'
A weather warning from the venue itself, worth heeding: "It gets chilly, on the top of Willunga Hill and when the sun goes down the temperature drops fast. Make sure all your guests know to bring a jacket even in summer."
Opening hours constrain site visits rather than the wedding: Saturday and Sunday 11am–5pm, most public holidays, and otherwise by appointment. The entry is opposite Bridle Road.
The property is also an art gallery. It runs the Avril Thomas gallery, artist workshops and plein air painting groups, and paint-and-sip classes, alongside the cellar door. Date availability is worth checking against that program.