Hive Tours
Book a private hive tour for yourself and your family or friends!
Private hive tours give you and your chosen group a hands-on beekeeping experience, complete with a cheese and honey pairing after you've completed a hive inspection. You will also take home a small chunk of honeycomb that you can use however you like, though I suggest putting it on a cheese & charcuterie board with other tasty delights, and inviting some friends over to enjoy it with some wine!
Timeline of activities:
Bee Talk: ~30 to 40 minutes - Learn about the different types of bees in the hive and what they do, how honey, wax, pollen and propolis are made + a few minutes of safety instructions before we move on to inspecting hives.
Hive inspections: ~1 hour - Gear up in a bee suit and walk through a hive inspection with the beekeeper and then use what you’ve learned to try to find the queen, drones, pollen, honey, eggs, and larvae on your own in another hive.
Beverages + Cheese & Honey Pairings: ~20 minutes - Bee suits can get quite hot on a warm summer day! Cold water will be provided along with some cheese and honey pairings. Ask any final questions or learn more about the ways you can use honey and hive products in your everyday life! You will receive your honeycomb chunk pre-prepared in a jar during this time. Note that food preparation is done safely in a home kitchen - if you have any allergies please let us know!
Tours are $180 + HST and will run for around 2.5 hours including the cheese and honey pairings, though I prefer not to keep an eye on the clock and they sometimes run into 3+ hours with larger groups or lots of questions. Tours can be booked June through August, and I will work with you to arrange a date and time that suits both of us. You can include up to 9 adults and 3 children - suit sizing is listed below, and I require you to bring (or wear) jeans, long socks and close-toed shoes to add to your personal protection.
Huckleberry Hives has a small stock of protective gear in the following sizes:
- 3 x children's suits (age 5-12)
- 1 x adult small suit
- 3 x adult large suits
- 3 x adult large bee jackets w/ veils (you will need long socks & jeans)
- 1 x adult 3XL suit
- 1 x adult 4XL suit
- assorted gloves to protect hands