How to plan a trip to Napa

Planning a trip to Napa when you have never been can be overwhelming. There are over 400 wineries that offer tastings just in Napa, let alone the wineries in Sonoma valley.

Here are some key questions to consider when planning:

• Is there more to do than just wine tasting?

• Can you just stop into a winery without reservations?

• Should I rent a car or use Lyft/Uber?

• Can you walk from winery to winery?

• How many wineries can you hit in a day?

• How do I choose? There are so many wineries.

I will answer all of those questions below.

How do I choose?

Here is my recommendation to help you choose which wineries to visit.

1. If there is a bucket list wine brand you have wanted to try, this is the place to do it.

The cost of a tasting is always less than what you would pay for just one bottle of that wine retail. Generally, most tastings give you 3-5 different wines. Dave wanted to sample a variety of Opus One wines. They have a pretty high price point and are not something we would purchase at home. So that went on our list.

2. It is not all about wine tasting. Don't miss out on all the other experiences Napa wineries offer.

Do different experiences with your tastings. So many wineries offer something unique. Do an olive oil tasting, a cave tour, library tasting, and food pairing. If you are a cab lover try a cab from each of the different Napa Valley regions and find out which one you like the best.

3. Sometimes it is all about the availability. We will talk about scheduling next.

4. Can I do both Napa and Sonoma?

Yes, you can. But just keep in mind there is a rather large set of mountains between the two valleys. So I would not book across both valleys on the same day.

scheduling

Here is my biggest tip! You have to pre-book tastings.

Other than Cliff Winery tasting room that I spoke about in my other Napa blog post. All o the other experiences we attended were pre-booked.

Also, the wineries are not walkable. And it takes a bit to get from winery to winery and area to area. There are two- 2 lane highways (with traffic lights) that go from downtown Napa up through the various regions of Napa Valley. It is not a quick drive to get from place to place.

The main wineries are spread out on in Napa Valley between 4 core regions.

• Oak Knoll (closest to downtown Napa) Keep in mind SF is about 65 miles south of downtown Napa.

• Yountville

• Oakville

• Rutherford

• St Helena

• Calistoga

Oak Knoll to Calistoga is about 25 miles on that same 2-lane highway with lights.

We had a handful of wineries we wanted to visit that we just could not fit into our schedule. I wanted to visit Caymus because that is a wine we commonly order when dining out. I wanted to see if there were specific vintages that I liked better than another. It is so much easier to try them side by side. However, after I selected the various experiences I wanted the time slots for Caymus that were avail did not fit our schedule. Many experiences are only offered a couple of times a day. So time slots are limited.

It is critical that you start booking your trip in advance. At least 3 months in advance.

It is also important that you leave enough time in between each experience to enjoy, walk the grounds and be able to get to your next experience. My best recommendation is to leave 45 min to 1 hour of a gap between the ending of one tasting and the check-in time for your next tasting.

Also, plan your tastings in sequential order on a map.

If you are going to be in Oak Knoll, don't make your next tasting in Calistoga and then the last one for the day in Rutherford and dinner in St Helena. Start in one direction and then keep heading north or south if possible. Of course, that does not always work out schedule. See how far away the wineries are from each other if you do have to backtrack.

Here is what I did for our trip. It took me about two weeks to fully schedule. I went back and forth a bit debating and discussing with Dave to finalize. We swapped out a few things too. As I mentioned before there were a couple of experiences I wanted but were completely booked by the time I went back to finalize. So don't wait.

Also note, that you will have to pre-pay for most of your experiences at the time of booking. The website of the winery will let you know if you just have to provide a credit card at the time of booking to reserve your spot or if they want you to pre-pay. This is because the spots are limited and they want to make sure you are coming. To keep it fair to others that want to visit.

Rental Car vs Ride Share

We chose to use Uber or Lyft for our entire trip instead of renting a car. Can you rent a car? Absolutely. Each winery has plenty of parking and it is very easy to navigate your way around as most of the wineries are off one of the two main roads in Napa Valley.

We also wanted to enjoy drinking at the wineries without having to worry about having a DD and just relax and be in the moment. And other than one time we struggled to find a driver, it was fairly smooth. We even pre-scheduled the rides a couple of times when we knew we had to be there. Especially when we found a driver we really liked and kept his information for the rest of the week.

Dining

Napa is known for its exquisite wine, not necessary for dining. The choices are limited and there are not a ton of restaurants. California options are different than you may be used to in other cities. You are going to find a lot of farm-to-table dining options. There are a couple of Michelin star restaurants in the area, such as French Laundry. They were already booked by the time we started looking but that will be a must when we return. I loved all of our breakfast spots. I spent so much time looking for wineries that dining became secondary and I missed out on a few key reservation opportunities. The only dining spot we had that I would highly recommend was Harvest Table in St. Helena. We dined outdoors on their patio and everything we were served was fabulous!!

I was not a fan of Bottega, what we ordered was just alright. Long Meadow Ranch had promise and it was extremely busy and very popular. I ended up getting sick the night we ate there. So I attributed it to the meal, whether it was or not, it was not a good evening for me. We did not make it to Gotts roadside. But it was very popular and reminded me of an upgraded Swensons (if you are from Ohio). But you eat at picnic tables or dine inside.

The Final Schedule

I could probably give you a few other tips, but these are the biggest ones. Plan ahead and give yourself time in between and make sure you are not backtracking too much.

The biggest takeaway is that what we talk about most of all to our friends and family is the experiences and the scenery more than the wine. So take advantage of different experiences. They are memorable and will enhance your trip!

Yes, I do offer trip planning packages if this is something you are interested. Contact me to find out more.

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Cheers,

Lisa