Milliken Creek Inn & Spa

1815 Silverado Trail, Napa, California 94558, USA
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Why We Like It

A horticulturist who owned this riverside property around the turn of the 20th century planted some of the live oaks, Japanese maples, magnolias, and other trees that provide shade and color and contribute to the inn's rustic appeal. Milliken Creek feels totally "country," yet it's just a short drive to downtown Napa tourist activities and, in the other direction, Silverado Trail wineries. Gracious service, plush furnishings, and the spa and its serene setting count as additional pluses.

Fodor's Expert Review

Wine and hors-d'oeuvres receptions at sunset set a romantic mood in this hotel's intimate lobby, with its terrace overlooking a lush lawn and the Napa River. Perfect for a couple's weekend or midweek frolic, this secluded getaway with luxurious rooms is only a mile from the Oxbow Public Market and the Culinary Institute of America's Copia campus, and 1½ miles from downtown Napa's dining, shopping, and nightlife.

You Should Know The experience at the inn is geared more toward couples and romance than family travel.

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Room

Chic rooms take a page from the stylebook of British-colonial Asia, with a khaki-and-cream color scheme and gauzy canopies over the beds in some rooms, alongside hydrotherapy spa tubs and some of the fluffiest mattresses in the Wine Country. Most rooms have gas-burning fireplaces. A major remodel of the inn's spa building, scheduled for completion by the end of Spring 2018, will add two new Luxury level accommodations, bringing the inn's total room count to 14.

Tip All the rooms feel tastefully grand, but the ones in the Luxury category are larger and have stand-alone spa hydrotherapy bathtubs. Some Luxury rooms have a private terrace or deck.

Bathroom

Bathrooms have hardwood floors, spa soaking tubs, and contemporary fixtures and are supplied with L'Occitane bath products. Counter space is more than adequate, and the towels are high-density.

Lobby

The Main House, whose ground floor includes the reception area and lobby, served as a stagecoach stop in the mid-19th century. The original staircase, an 1860s living-room fireplace, and some of the oak flooring are among the remaining elements from the home's early days.

Pool

The inn has no pool but provides guests with passes to the Synergy Wellness and Fitness Center. A 5-minute drive away, the center has a lap pool.

Spa

A major remodel of the inn's spa building is scheduled for completion by the end of Spring 2018. Guests have always been able to enjoy spa treatments in their rooms and will continue to do so during the renovations. In good weather, the favorite place for massages, including the popular one for couples, is an outdoor cabana overlooking the river.

Gym

There's no gym on-site, but guests receive free passes to the full-service Synergy Wellness and Fitness Center, which has cardio equipment, weight machines and free weights, and a lap pool. The center offers a full slate of classes and has a sauna and a whirlpool.

Dining

The only meal the inn serves is a full breakfast, delivered to guests' rooms or elsewhere on the grounds. Eggs prepared several ways, frittatas, Belgian waffles, homemade granola and yogurt, and bagels with lox are among the choices. The coffee is drip or French press. After 3 p.m., freshly baked cookies are available in the lobby.

Drinking

The inn has no bar but does host a complimentary late-afternoon reception in the lobby, where representatives of local wineries pour wines and hors d'oeuvres are served. Premium ports are available in the lobby each evening.

What's Nearby

Getting Around

Driving your own car is the most convenient way to get around, though the inn is close enough to downtown Napa that calling a cab or ride-sharing service works well for trips there. The nearest VINE bus stop is more than ¼ mile south of the inn.

Restaurants

For a casual meal in the Oxbow Public Market (3-minute drive) try Kitchen Door for multicultural comfort food (and silky cream of mushroom soup), LiveFire Pizza for Italian sandwiches and wood-fired pizzas (check out the pie with San Daniele prosciutto if it's on offer), and C Casa for inventive tacos. Even closer to the inn is the Restaurant at CIA Copia (3-minute drive), where the chefs prepare shareable mostly small plates. For a splurge head to La Toque (5-minute drive) for chef Ken Frank's prix-fixe several-course French-influenced meals.

Bars

Blue Note Napa (5-minute drive) and Silo's (5-minute drive) both present live music and have full bars. You can sample the beers of the Berkeley-based Fieldwork Brewing Co. (3-minute drive) in the Oxbow Public Market. Patrons of the hip-casual Cadet Wine + Beer Bar (6-minute drive) sip carefully selected wines and beers to an all-vinyl soundtrack.

Quick Facts

HOTEL INFO

Phones: 707-255–1197