We are looking for a very nice inn where we could have a wedding reception and have alot of our guests (perhaps all) stay over -- maybe make a weekend of it. We are thinking along the California coast or Sonoma Valley, but are flexible. We are also flexible as to the date (probably fall 2001 or spring 2002). We have alot of suggestions on the East coast for places like this, but none in CA. Can anyone help?

Last year we stayed at the Elk Cove Inn in Elk, California. It's below mendocino and is an absolutly lovely place. They also do weddings. Their website is:www.elkcoveinn.com

Wow -- No other suggestions? This sort of thing seems more like an East Coast thing. We are still searching and open to suggestions. We are focusing on Sonoma Valley right now.

Tell you right now, planning a wedding for the fall of 2001 is nearly impossible. (Heck, Spring of 2002 is cutting it close...) If you can do it, I'd be very, very impressed! Most popular wedding sites are booked months, if not a year in advance.

You could go to a search engine and type the words "Destination wedding California" and see what you get.

Okay, I found a site that has destination wedding sites on the west coast....!
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~kzaruba/destsite2.html

I highly suggest the Meadowood Resort
in Napa. It is just fabulous. The
grounds would be a terrific place for
a wedding. I hope you find the perfect
place. Weddings in Napa and Sonoma are
beautiful.

On our honeymoon we stayed at a couple inns that would by perfect for a wedding location. In Sonoma, The Kenwood Inn. They have about 13 rooms. The courtyard is absolutely gorgeous for a wedding setting. The inn & surroundings is Tuscan. Very unique, elegant, and pricey. Another location is in Santa Barbara Wine Country at Fess Parkers Wine Country Inn & Spa. A rustic lodge location would be Cambria Pines Lodge on the Central Coast. All the above have websites. Your idea of a destination getaway wedding is an excellent idea. We married at Sunstone Winery in SB Wine Country and our guests raved about the whole "weekend" getaway for themselves. Congrats!

A couple other inns that come to mind: if you wouldn't mind to go as far as San Diego, check out L'Auberge in Del Mar. There is a website called Coastal Inns of Distinction that have a few very beautiful inns in the Carmel area.

While you can't stay there on-site, if you want a fun, beautiful setting for a wedding in California, consider having the wedding at Hearst Castle. Your guests could stay at a hotel in San Simeon or just down the street in Cambria.

Take a look at the Madrona Manor ourside of Healdsburg. They have a website - www.madronamanor.com. The first time we stayed there we drove up just in time to see a wedding in progress - it was beautiful.