A Quick Trip to Napa Valley

Napa Valley is a world-class wine region, known for its incredible vineyards, award winning wineries, and Michelin-rated restaurants. When planning a trip, it can definitely get a bit overwhelming with the vast options and the multiple dollar signs. However, with a little planning, you can create an itinerary that is perfectly curated to your desires. 

It can take almost 2 hours to reach each of Napa Valley’s 4 constituent towns: Napa proper, Yountville, St. Helena, and Calistoga. For this post, I am going to focus on Napa proper and Yountville. These are the towns closest to San Francisco and it only takes about an hour drive to get to either. Napa and Yountville are perfect day-trip excursions from San Francisco, which I find myself doing quite often.

Where to Stay in Napa Valley

Napa has countless options for hotels, bed & breakfasts, Airbnb’s and more, but they can get pretty pricey. When I make a trip from San Francisco and don’t want to drive home that evening, I’m looking for an affordable, clean, and cozy spot to rest my head. On my recent trip I finally discovered that spot, the Chardonnay Lodge. 

The Chardonnay Lodge is located in Napa proper, about a 5 minute drive from downtown and less than a 15 minute drive from numerous award winning wineries. It’s a relaxed hotel with Tuscan and Parisian style rooms that are thoughtfully designed by Kay P.

Kay is a business owner and artist who loves to combine her passions for travel, wine, and art to custom craft each room at the Chardonnay Lodge. She has lived in Napa Valley for 40 years and is extremely knowledgeable about all the must visit spots in town! Kay also designed the beautiful garden and small vineyard area for guests to have spots to relax and unwind after a day of wine tasting or exploring. She is also a very talented photographer and can offer guests portrait shoots on property. Be sure to follow them on Instagram to stay up to date with the Chardonnay Lodge!

Best Wineries in Napa Valley

Napa Valley has over 375 wineries and tasting rooms. I’ve been to over 70 and have rarely had a bad experience! Here are a few of my favorites that I highly recommend exploring. 

Far Niente A historic and incredibly gorgeous winery that has a fairytale-esc vibe you will fall in love with! They’re known for their award winning Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnays. 

Ashes & Diamonds A newer winery with unique mid-century architecture and wine that combines modern and old school flavors! 

Black Stallion Winery Once home to Napa Valley’s equestrian center now stands a gorgeous winery that loves to experiment with state of the art wine making equipment such as cement eggs used during fermentation. 

Robert Biale A winery made for Zinfandel lovers that has an interesting history which includes code words used during Prohibition. 

Hopes Vineyards A family winery in pursuit of perfect wines and sharing their passion for organic farming. On property they also have an animal sanctuary where you can see and peta variety of farm animals. 

Foley Johnson A world class winery that focuses on both delicious Bordeaux wine varieties, as well as unique, small lot bottling from renowned wine makers.

Where to Eat in Napa Valley

After all that wine tasting, you’ll need some delicious food and Napa Valley is definitely not short of that!

Ace & Vine Is a new restaurant and casino in Napa you need to check out. We stopped in for their buffet brunch and they had unlimited and amazing options. From lobster tempura and oysters, to French toast and lemon crepes!

Bouchon Bakery From the Michelin-rated chef Thomas Keller comes Bouchon Bakery. A classic French style bakery with an assortment of breads and classic desserts. I highly recommend stopping here for breakfast. 

Sky & Vine Lastly, end the evening at the luxurious rooftop bar in downtown Napa for a delicious cocktail or a final glass of wine!

Be sure to follow me on Instagram for all my other wine country recommendations!