cicale

My fiancé and I have decided to go to San Francisco for our honeymoon between 10/8/17 to 10/15/17. We will fly in early on the 8th and leave early on the 15th most likely. We will have a rental car, can someone suggest an itinerary for our trip? We have never been to the west coast. We aren't sports fan so not interested in that. We are interested in nature, food and alcohol. We know we want to go to Napa Valley, Yosemite and South Lake Tahoe. Please suggest amount of days/nights spent in each city. We will fly in and out of San Francisco most likely.

november_moon

With 6 full days, i would pick 2 (maybe 3) of your suggested locations. So maybe SF with a day trip to Napa and then a couple days in Yosemite or Lake Tahoe before flying home.

janisj

Six days is not enough for SF, Tahoe, Yosemite and napa.


October is really off season at Tahoe - too late for summer activities and too early for winter/ skiing. I spend a couple of weeks at Tahoe almost every October, but would not recommend it for a first time/ honeymoon visit. I go then because I live not far away and tbere is nothing going on - just time to veg out.

So I'd either do SF and Yosemite or SF and Carmel / Monterey .

DebitNM

Don't rent a car until you are ready to leave San Francisco. you don't need or want one in the city. There are rental car companies that don't charge one way drop off fees and are right in downtown SF so it's easy to get the car as you head of town to go to your other location(s). We use Dollar but check around. If you belong to Costco, check out their deals for car rentals, they sometimes have great prices. They use agencies, just watch for one way drop off fees where ever you rent.

I love SF and could easily spend the entire trip there; but agree that Carmel/Pacific Grove/Monterey would be nice if you wan't 2 locations. Seven Gables Inn in Pacific Grove is our favorite; beautiful rooms, location is ideal and their breakfasts are excellent. They also have wine and munchies in afternoon and cookies and milk at night!

DebitNM

Also consider flying into Oakland or San Jose if prices are better. Southwest often has good prices if your home airport has Southwest as a carrier.

StuDudley

I'll just ditto the recommendations by others - just plan on 2 locations for your 6 days. Otherwise, you'll spend 1+ of those "too few days" driving on the very ugly freeways. And if you are not familiar with our traffic problems here - you might get caught in horrific traffic jams.

Janis indicated that Oct is not the best time for Tahoe. If we have our normal dry summer next year, it also might not be the best time for Yosemite because the fantastic waterfalls might be somewhat dry. However, October is the best time of year for visiting San Francisco, and also the Carmel/Big Sur area. All the summer tourists will have gone home and you'll encounter locals re-gaining SF and also fewer people in Carmel. So I recommend 4 nights in San Francisco and 2-3 nights in Carmel. Visit the Carmel Valley Wine area for your Napa replacement. Perhaps fly into SFO, rent a car, and start with Carmel. Then back to SF, dump the car, and spend 4-5 nights in SF.

Here are some ideas of things to do & see:
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...mendations.cfm

Stu Dudley

topeater

Since you like food and wine, I would suggest taking 3-4 days and going to Yountville. I would stay at Bardessono. It is an incredibly beautiful small hotel, close to everything and is very laid back. Most weddings are wonderful occasions, but can be stressful. Bardessono would be a wonderful place to really relax and shake off all that stress plus their body work is great. You can have massages in your room and they will draw a bath for you with essential oils and a bottle of champagne. It's pricey, but how many honeymoons do you get?

You are close to some great wineries, some that you will need to make reservations. I particularly like Pride and also Porter. Both have the most breathtaking views. At Porter, the tasting is done in a candlelit cave. The grounds at Pride are perfect for buying a bottle of wine and having a picnic.

The great thing about staying in Yountville is you have some of the best restaurants all within walking distance.

I agree with the poster above that trying for 3 different places in your short period of time just would be too rushed. You can always come back to the area. Honeymoon time IMHO shouldn't be spend in the car driving around a lot. While I love the Carmel/Big Sur area, I found the drive there from the airport takes longer and is more stressful than to drive up to Yountville. Of course, we hit a lot of construction that might be over now.

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage. Have a great time.

StuDudley

We've lived next to SFO airport for the past 35 years. Before that - we lived in San Francisco for 7 years.

The drive to Carmel with minimal traffic takes me 1 3/4 hrs. The drive through SF to Yountville also take me 1 3/4 hrs - but I know how to dodge the commute traffic through San Francisco. Mapquest has you going over the Bay Bridge to get to Yountville - something I would never, never do on a commute day or not.

There really isn't much to do in Yountville except eat at fabulous and mostly expensive restaurants. IMO, Healdsburg is the most interesting city to stay in while visiting the Wine Country. St Helena is second. Sonoma third.

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

PS. My wife & I were married in 1971 and lived in Laguna Beach in Southern Calif. We went to San Francisco for our honeymoon. Four years later we moved to San Francisco. Beware - it is an interesting and wonderful place to live - if you can afford it!!

Stu Dudley

travelgourmet

Mapquest has you going over the Bay Bridge to get to Yountville - something I would never, never do on a commute day or not.

It depends a bit where in SF you are starting, but if you are going to Yountville (really anywhere in Napa), from pretty much anywhere in the Eastern or Southern part of the city, it is easily the fastest way (save maybe the depths of rush hour). Going through Marin adds at least 20 minutes, unless you are starting from Northwest of Golden Gate Park. Coming back to the city can be different, depending upon traffic.

To the OP: I'd do just two places and I would do SF and Napa, staying in either St Helena or Yountville.

StuDudley

I lived in the Noe Valley ( just off 101 in southern SF) for 7 years in the late 1970s/early '80s. I drove over the Bay Bridge to work each day for 5 of those years. I now live "south" of SF (35 years) and can take 101 or 280 to get me into The City. I've been retired since '99 - so we go "north" of SF dozens & dozens of times each year to visit friends, and just to "explore" also.

Driving to Yountville over the Bay Bridge, puts you on Hwy 80 from the Bay Bridge to Vallejo - which has been honored for the past 6 years as the "most congested freeway in the Bay Area". It also gets my award as the "ugliest" stretch of road in the Bay Area. I would much rather drive past the Presidio, over the Golden Gate Bridge, through Marin with lovely views of the Bay, and then 37 & 121 through grasslands, vineyards, wineries, the Bay, and "Clo" (dairy farm) to get to Yountville.

Stu Dudley

MichelleY

For the week, to make your honeymoon romantic and fun, choose 2 locations. SF and Monterey/Carmel. Or, SF and Yosemite. You cannot go wrong with theses choices. Just pick a clan and enjoy !

Ackislander

I agree with Stu Dudley's suggested towns, and I agree with his route unless you are flying into Oakland.

In that case, I would think about renting the car there, going to Napa-Sonoma first, then finishing the trip in SF, getting rid of the car on arrival.

I would try very hard to get to Point Reyes while driving between the wine country and San Francisco.