Yes - they are good for business because so many clueless parents were bringing their children along. It is either provide romper room so mommy and daddy won't leave w/o buying.

Like I said -- chicken or egg??

If you can't find someone to watch your kids, then you can't go. It's that simple. It's called being a responsible adult. I don't have kids because I WANT to go to adult places. When I do have kids, my priorities and expectations about where I can and can't go will have to change.

American society is very pro-children and pro-family, which I think is good. However, what is with the trend in the last 10 years or so that people's children are welcome EVERYWHERE? I've seen parents get mad b/c their small children are not wanted at weddings, I've seen parents let their kids cry on and on in church (especially Easter) and at rated R movies. Haven't we gone too far as a society?

<<If you can't find someone to watch your kids, then you can't go.>>

LOL! It seems like quite a few of us already have. It's that simple.

<<A winery, restaurant or hotel are all welcome to hang a no children allowed sign.>>

Do you live in the US? There are anti discrimination laws that prohibit what you suggest. CA is the most litigious state in the Union. Can you even imagine what would happen if an establishment tried to hang a sign like that?

Frankly I wish they'd put up a no children allowed sign at Disney World. It would be so much more enjoyable. . .

Author: wtm003
Date: 04/23/2007, 06:13 pm
<<If you can't find someone to watch your kids, then you can't go.>>

LOL! It seems like quite a few of us already have. It's that simple.

I think that sums up the divide on this thread. Some feel that, if the kids are well-behaved, then it's okay to take them to an adult venue. Some would like adult venues to remain "adult". Clarification - I am not speaking specifically to wineries or wineries in certain parts of certain states, but in general. Some folks who have made arrangements for a special getaway without kids would like to arrive at that getaway without others' kids there - no matter how well-behaved. The only way to do that I guess is for the business to state "no children under x yrs of age". A remote cabin suggested on this board today made that distinction on their website.

When I drive half way across this nation for a vacation trip I take my kids along. If I decide to visit a winery, the kids will have to be accommodated or I don't get to go. If the winery makes me feel unwelcome because I have my children along, I don't buy from them.....ever. And I mention their coldness to my friends who also make it a point to avoid that winery's ware. Excluding children can be a very dangerous practice as a lot of people have them. Word of mouth can be wonderful advertising or horrible, depending on how you have treated your customers.

Well, since the OP has posted that she has decided not to visit any wineries, I won't address that-

but the wineries providing kids areas -
then they've decided they either want to encourage families or they didn't have the you-know-whats to say No Children Allowed -

There are plenty of resort and hotel destinations that do not allow children,that haven't bended their rules, so the wineries can do it if they want to -
maybe some of them want families, maybe some of them need the business, their choice.

I have kids and love kids, but if I am planning a visit to wine country, I would like to think there are enough adult only wine tastings - I wouldn't plan a trip like that to have to see 'kids play areas' and kids making noise, even if it is happy, laughing noise - if I planned a wine tasting vacation I am assuming it is an adult vacation

rm's response is a perfect example of why wineries have started catering to people who want to bring their kids - because if they try to keep it an adult venue, then there are more and more folks who will boycott them.

But then, I don't have kids, so please disreguard my opinion on this matter - LOL.

I'll start out by saying I've never been to a winery -- I'm deprived, I know. I wish that winery owners and restaurant owners would read this thread. It is clear from the postings that there is a market for both child friendly and non-child-friendly wineries and restaurants. But I think it's the wineries and restaurants that should take a stand and declare themselves to be one or the other. People who are trying to get away from kids for an evening or a few days, could choose a restaurant or winery and be confident that the bucolic experience will not be marred by someone else's rugrats. There is nothing wrong with declaring one's establishment to be adults only. Even in California. They do it with bars and strip clubs, don't they? Then on the other side, you could have the more "family" wineries and restaurants that have patios, and a little space to run around. The policies and signs should be up front and visible. If everyone knew what they were in for at the beginning, there would be a lot less misunderstanding.

I feel as if I'm in a parallel universe. We are talking wineries. Alcohol. One must be 21 years old to consume the product. Wineries.

We aren't talking about apple orchards or crayon factories. We are talking about businesses who produce and sell wine. Alcohol.

For that reason, I expect the visitors of the tasting rooms to be of an age to taste the product. For that reason, I would expect the attendees to be adults.

For that reason, I've never considered a winery a vacation destination while traveling with children. I really am surprised that others do.

Just shows that I'm out of the loop, I guess.

BTW, on visits to wineries in California and Georgia I have never noticed children in the tasting rooms.

I'm pretty sure my kids didn't taste last time...

Our children were allowed into the tasting rooms so they could learn about the wine and wine tasting. They were NOT allowed to taste.

Sipping a glass of wine with your meal is not the same as going to the bar and getting drunk. In many parts of the world, wine is a normal part of eating a meal. It enhances the food and the camaraderie that goes with a nice meal.

Once again, my kids have only been welcomed in child-friendly wineries in NC. Please read the entire posts prior to picking out one line to comment on. Yes, I am probably better than average wine-educated. No, this has never been an issue in any winery when I have been present. Like I said before, I've never had them out to Napa/Sonoma but I feel they would be very welcome in many Sonoma wineries that we frequent. I don't even feel welcome in many Napa wineries. Starrsville - you wouldn't notice my children either...

m_mn - exactly..part of the problem in the US is a total lack of educating your children to consume responsibly. I'll have no such problem. Europe handles alcohol so much better than we do. Which is mainly to keep them in the closet & then turn them loose when they go to college. Last time I was in Paris I seem to recollect children being present in nearly all the cafes that I visited.

SAnParis, I might notice your children even if others don't. Especially if they are well mannered and polite. I like to notice that.

While I come from a family where wine was served at meals and one did not have to wait until 18 (at that time) to try some, - and everyone makes different decisions based on their children and their family history - it is often heard in the US that Europe does not have the problems we do with alcohol and specifically with teenage alcohol and this is not the case - I worked for years on teen alcohol statistics - both US and internationally - and France, as well as many other european countries, has a significant problem with alcohol involvement in teen illness, mental health problems, auto accidents and deaths - not unlike the US -
as well as adult w/ custodial and domestic violence among adults which is stretching their health care dollars and available care -
it is a misnomer that because European countries do not impose the same restrictions as the US that they have less of an alcohol or drug problem with their teens.

Sometimes I think it's a matter of "time spent" at the venue. Someone spending 15 minutes in the tasting room to select some wine to purchase is not that irritating (unless the child is running around, whining - not wining, etc.). However, someone spending 2+ hours in the tasting room with their child getting more bored every minute is going to be irritating.

P.S. Bars and strip joints are barred by law in California from allowing anyone under 21 in the premises. Tasting rooms and restaurants are not under that restriction - although the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control recommends that children not be seated at the bar in a restaurant (and likewise at the tasting room counter).

I feel like I need to redirect attention again to where the original poster is going to wineries. Not wine country per se, but as a stop on a road trip in the Central Coast. It's a lot different than taking a kid on a wine tour in St. Helena. And it really isn't that different from stopping at a farm or a deli.

Wow, now people who have never even been to a winery are opining. Free country, indeed. But a winery isn't a bar or even a restaurant. Starrsville, using your, um, logic, kids shouldn't go to restaurants where alcohol is served, because if they can't sample EVERYTHING on a menu, they shouldn't go in?