Fodor's Expert Review Carneros Resort and Spa

A winning combination of glamour, service, and pastoral seclusion makes this resort with freestanding board-and-batten cottages the perfect getaway for active lovebirds or families and groups seeking to unwind. The several bars and restaurants on property and the Town Square's lawn games area and Pavilion open-air lounge provide numerous opportunities for socializing, but when it's time to power down, the cottages and suites deliver the utmost in privacy. Natural light floods the cottages, whose French doors lead to private gardens, some with fire pits and outdoor soaking tubs. Fireplaces, ethereal beds topped with plush linens, and spacious bathrooms with heated slate floors and large indoor-outdoor showers may make it difficult to summon the will to head to the hilltop infinity swimming pool and hot tub, where the vineyard views never fail to astound. The cottages are spacious, but even larger are the one- or two-bedroom suites, some of which have fully stocked kitchens (Viking appliances) and washers and dryers. The Hilltop dining room is open to guests only, but Farm and the Boon Fly Café, both public restaurants, are popular with visitors throughout the Wine Country.