We definitely need some assistance in planning a summer trip to N. California. We're planning on four nights, four days in N. California. We want to take day trips to visit Napa/Sonoma, SF, San Simeon with one day spent either relaxing (beach/golf) or possibly in Carmel.

As these sites varry in location, our initial thought was to simply identify one centrally located area (Half Moon Bay) to serve as our base. However, upon consulting map, the drive from HMB to San Simeon seems a bit excessive -- at 220 miles each way. A central location it is not.

Is one "base" unrealistic given the distance between the various points (283 miles between Yountville and San Simeon)?

If not, where do you recommend as far as lodging and location (higher-end, please)?

If the two "bases" approach is more realistic, what do you recommend? We love both Carmel and Sausalito; would that make sense?

Thanks for the recommendations and suggestions!

I agree that Carmel and Sausalito would make good bases. I love Half Moon Bay - my husband and I are spending our anniversary weekend there in a couple weeks - but the drive from HMB to San Simeon and back would be horrendous. The only way I could see even attempting it would be to take Hwy 101 down and then you would miss the most spectacular scenery in existence on Hwy 1 south of Carmel.

Thanks for the insight. That's what I thought...

J_Correa -- As for HMB, where do you recommend staying?

We are staying at the Zaballa House for our anniversary. It's a nice little B&B, not fancy or upscale, just a casual little place in the middle of town. They make a nice breakfast too. The web site is www.zaballahouse.net. We spent a weekend there once before several years ago and really liked it.

I am not familiar with any of the other hotels or B&Bs in the area though. We live just over the hill in San Jose so we usually just go to HMB for the day.

Two bases, definitely, and the two you picked are very nice.

Depending on your taste and preferences, The Ritz Carlton, Landis Shores and the Beach House are upscale and each unique. I love staying at all three.

The Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur, is heaven on earth. Their Sierra Mar dining is the perfect complement to the fabulous, accomdations. And the hot infinity pool at night, looking over the Pacific is unbelievable! Romantic,peaceful pampered luxury!

I think I would spend one night in Napa/Sonoma, one HMB, one Carmel and one in Big Sur, to get the most experence of each area in only four days, and enjoy rather that loose time driving back and forth. Are you already in CA or flying in?

We'll be flying in as we live in Chicago.

The Ritz in HMB seems quite nice, but the expected weather for that area/time of year doesn't seem too much like "beach weather." Of course, we're familiar with N. Calif. climate so that shouldn't surprise us.

Any recommendations in Salsalito? The Inn Above Tides is booked and we stayed at the Hotel Salsalito last time we were in the area.

What about any great places along the shore in Marin or Sonoma Counties?

Thanks.

Speaking generally here are some suggestions: In Sausalita try the Casa Madrona. You might also consider Mill Valley which is a small town about 10 minutes on nice surface roads from Sausalito. The Mill Valley Inn is relatively upscale and Mill Valley is a great town to walk around in. Do you want Point Reyes locations or more Sonoma Coast? I think Sonoma is a great spot from which to explore the wineries and the Sonoma wineries are more to my liking. Check out the Bodega Bay Inn and Spa (or a name close to that)in Bodega. Folks have recently stayed here after discussions on this forum and had great reviews. It was also reveiwed in the sunday section of the NY Times within the past month. The Farmhouse Inn in Forestville keeps getting good reviews here and was recently(their dining room) listed in the SF CHronicle as one of the 100 best restaurants in the Bay Area. If you stay here you will have good access to the Russian River Valley wineries. I also recommend Healdsburg as a spot to stay. Check out the Camellia Inn. You will be about 1 1/2 hours from SF. I would recommend you consider increasing you time in the Monterey-Carmel area and think about the San Simeon trip as part of that. It's IMO alot to do in 4 days especially if you are hoping to relax at all. If you stay inland(with close access to the coast) as in Healdsburg or Forestville you will have more summer and less fog. Any chance of cutting out San Simeon this trip?

I'm from Lake Forest and Palatine! Love Chicago!
I would use Oakland airport over San Francisco, and maybe fly in one and out another, an airport closest to each end of your trip, to save alittle driving time. Also,I like to drive very early morning or evening, to stay out of the commute gridlock.

Thanks for all the input!

It looks like we'll be consolidating the trip -- not days, but hotels.

Instead of lodging in Salsalito or Carmel, we're instead looking at Napa. (The Mill Valley Inn looked great but my wife would prefer to be in Sonoma/Napa)

Right now, I'm considering the Vintage Inn or the Villagio. Both look great and have posiitve feedback on the site. Thoughts??

I'm not a huge fan of the Vintage Inn -- it felt a little "business-ey" to me when I stayed there, sort of like a planned community. Not my cup of tea for a romantic Napa getaway (but great if you are actually there on business). Our room was nice, though, and very spacious (think it was a mini-suite). Noticed that some of the rooms face over the road -- avoid those if you stay there.

I think Villagio is the sister property to the Vintage Inn.

Not sure of your price range (though both properties you mention above are not cheap), but there are several properties in St. Helena and nearby towns which would probably be more charming -- do a search on Expedia to get a list, then go to their websites. Or check out some of the great B&Bs in the area.

TPL -
Thanks for the feedback on the Vintage Inn. Yes, the Villagio is the sister-property to the Vintage. www.villagio.com.

I'll give Expedia a whirl, too.

Burnham--I think the idea of staying in one place is a good one. Here's my one tip:if you are staying in Napa during the summer months for any length of time(5 or 6 days) stay someplace with a pool. There is nothing quite like a dip under the stars on those hot nights. You might also love the opportunity to hang out around the pool taking a break from the wineries. Wherever you choose to stay..look for the pool. I also recommend you check out the bungalow cottages at Indian SPrings in Calistoga.

I've not stayed there yet but it is on my 'must' list, www.meadowood.com
Does anyone know anything about a new Bellagio in the wine area?

Speaking of 'upscale' I just came across this! I can't wait to visit!

www.sthelensroadvinyards.com

Please forgive my error;
Saint Helena Road Vineyards

www.sthelenaroadvineyards.com