The Wine Country

Pros: Ride on Wine Train, Still some small wineries left.
Cons: The well-known wineries turn it into a tourist trap.

Content:

1. Bed & Breakfast Places
2. Wineries
3. Restaurants
4. The Wine Train
5. Other Activities
Other web resources


1. Bed & Breakfast Places

I found some B&B phone numbers...

Pros: Lots and lots of good wine and pleasant places to drink it.
Cons: Expensive, can get a bit redundant.  Disappointing, overpriced meals.

Napa Valley is a popular leisure destination in north-central California made famous by its constantly flowing supply of wine and the terrible movie Sideways.  The valley area stretches from approximately Napa at the south end to Calistoga at the ...

Pros: gorgeous area
Cons: I didn't have enough time to explore EVERYTHING!

Review Topic:  Sights & Attractions

Review Topic:  Sights & AttractionsCalifornia has a well-earned reputation for it's wines. The Napa Valley is the largest area in California known to produce several of the...

Pros: Beautiful Scenery
Cons: Too much to see/You will need some time!

Review Topic:  Overview

Review Topic:  OverviewNorthern California is known world wide for the Napa Valley and the wineries it hosts. Napa Valley is a place of beauty, where you can relax, take in its splendor, eat, drink...

Pros: Beauty magnified exponentially
Cons: Off the beaten path - and that's a good thing

Review Topic:  Sights & Attractions

The Silverado Trail in the Napa Valley is one of the most beautifully evocative day trips a person can take in their lifetime. It offers a combination of taste, smell, vision and...

Pros: Beautiful countryside, from ocean to vineyards
Cons: None, as long as it resists the commercialization that has ruined Napa

I've spent a fair amount of time doing the Wine Thing in Napa and Sonoma Counties. For my money, Sonoma has it all over Napa in every category.

The major wineries in Napa are in the towns that are strung along Rt. 29. These are the Big Guys...

Pros: The most relaxing experience I've ever had...
Cons: ...if little weird

A few years ago, while staying in a B&B in Santa Rosa, I asked the B&B Lady for a recommendation for a really nice spa - I wanted to surprise my husband with a new experience. She said that the most unique place she knew of was called Osmosis,...

Pros: The food was out of this world.
Cons: None

Recently my husband surprised me with a romantic weekend getaway to the Napa Valley. We stayed in a lovely bed and breakfast overlooking the valley and spent an evening on the Napa Valley Wine Train. I had always wanted to ride on the Wine...

Pros: Beautiful scenery, great wine, fewer crowds than Napa!
Cons: Farther north than Sonoma/Napa, need reservations for restaurants

Although Napa Valley has more vineyards/tasting areas than the Healdsburg area...if you enjoy a more tranquil experience with some great wines Healdsburg may be your best bet! Overview Many people have told me that Sonoma today is like Napa ...

Pros: Nice scenery, good food, plenty of good wine!
Cons: A bit too country, not enough to do besides wineries.

As an onophile, I had looked forward to a California Wine Country trip for a long time. This year, I finally had occasion to take just this trip. I enjoyed it, largely because it was so relaxing, but ultimately I was a little disappointed in what I ...

Pros: All the wine country perks without the crowds and commercialization of Napa
Cons: Smaller, fewer wineries, less of a "spa" town

My husband and I recently returned from a two day trip to Sonoma Valley. Although we have visited "California's Wine Country" several times in the past (and by that, I mean Napa Valley and not the Central Coast, which is in fact where most of California...

Pros: The COPIA is a wonderful and surprising museum in downtown Napa.
Cons: You just might not have time to do it all.

COPIA--The American Center for Wine, Food & the Arts--is a different kind of museum--one that you can smell, taste, and touch--in addition to see and hear. In just the short period of time since it opened in late 2001, it is carving out a place for...

Pros: Beautiful grounds, wineries, food, EVERYTHING!
Cons: Can get crowded, a few tourist traps

I am from the East Coast, and back when my husband and I were DINKs(dual income no kids) we traveled to the Napa/Sonoma area every year. When we decided to have a baby, we figured that was the end of our annual trip. However, this year, when my ...

Pros: beautiful scenery, friendly people
Cons: if you look young and have an out-of-state license, good luck trying to buy alcohol- they tend to not except out-of-state licenses

I just spent a week in Sonoma County and had many wonderful experiences. Even if you don't know anything about wine (I didn't know much but I think I know a little more now), you can learn about it or you can ignore the fact that you're in wine country...

Pros: Food, Wine, culture, art, scenery, quite, can be seen in 2-3 days, ultimate CA feel
Cons: can be pricy for food, no other cons

I am from Michigan, lived there all my life until my job moved me to CA. After living in Northern California, I have visited most major sites (SF, Monterey, Highway 1, Pebble Beach, Lake Tahoe, and I can go on and on....). I can say that this city...