The objective of this research was to identify how winery tasting room visitors use internet platforms, apps, and computing devices to plan their trips. Consumer Behavior Theory and Consumer Purchase Decision Model guided the theoretical framework for this research. An online survey was completed by winery tasting room visitors who were intercepted at 20 wineries in Wisconsin and Minnesota. Findings were organized into three tourism planning stages of online trip planning: pre-travel, during-travel, and post-travel. Results indicated that tasting room visitors used smartphones almost as much as laptops/desktop computers to plan and book their travel. During the trip almost half of all travelers posted to a social network site about their trip and/or winery visit. Lastly, tasting room visitors who found online reviews important to planning their trips, spent more money overall and visited more wineries than those who did not. Relevant managerial recommendations for mobile devices, social media, and internet access were developed from these results and are presented based on these findings.
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