I will be a first time visitor to California this weekend. We definitely want to tour the Napa Valley area one day, but need suggestions on other attractions/events as well. Our hotel is located in Santa Clara. How far is San Francisco? Also - any ideas on places to eat? What is the "attire" in Napa Valley? The weather this weekend will definitely create a packing dilemma...
We only have half of Friday, and Saturday and Sunday for "free time."

Jennifer: Santa Clara is very near San Jose and about a 45-60 minute drive to SF (depending on traffic, of course).

The Mustard Festival is currently going on in the Napa Valley and lots of activities planned. Unfortunately, rain is predicted for the entire weekend, so dress accordingly and bring an umbrella. Comfortable, casual dress is always appropriate in the Wine Country.

I'm sorry you won't have more "hospitable" weather for your first visit. Maybe the weather forecasters will be wrong. In any case, I hope you enjoy your trip.

j

Jennifer,

If you are interested in visitind the Napa Valley and SF areas, why are you staying in Santa Clara? Do you also have plans in San Jose as well? If not, the drive to San Francisco could be 1.5 -2 hours depending on the traffic. I would pick a hotel closer to where you will be visiting.

Assuming that you have to be in Santa Clara on business, otherwise, change hotels to move up to the city itself. It's about 50 miles from Santa Clara to SF, but depending on time of day, could take you an hour and a half. There is the CalTrain, but that's not any faster--just allows you not to rent a car. You will most likely want to rent a car to go to Napa/Sonoma. Unfortunately, I too heard about the rainy weekend. It's supposed to begin on Friday--usually starts in the north and moves south. Good luck, we'll be crossing fingers for you.

Jennifer,

I would give yourself about an hour to get up to San Francisco from Santa Clara. Try to skip rush hour, traffic gets pretty bad. Most likely the shortest route will be Highway 101. But, if you're going during rush hour, you might consider taking Highway 280 instead. It's a bit longer, but you can go at least 65 mph the entire way. Back in 1997, I used to drive from SC to SF for work every morning. It took 1 hour door to door on the 101 - not bad as it was a reverse commute, but the traffic has gotten much worse in the past 5 years. Ask someone at the hotel before departing.

As for Napa, it is pretty casual. People wear shorts, jeans, skirts, pretty much anything. I hear it's going to shower a bit this weekend, but don't worry, Napa is lovely even in the dead of winter. The weather here has been strange recently ranging from ski jacket to almost shorts and a t-shirt weather.

Thanks Everyone!

Our flight leaves from Atlanta around 5:00 am tomorrow... so we'll have pretty much 3 whole days (Fri, Sat, Sun) to explore before the "business" trip starts! Our hotel is actually in Sunnyvale, - (In the silicon valley??) how is that town? As you can see - I have no idea where I'm going or what I'm getting into. But we will have a rental car to get around with.

Thanks for the tips on packing! I'm having a crisis here... I wanted to carry on, but it looks like I'll be packing the big suitcase (already has 6 pairs of shoes...)

So - something like black pants or khakis would be appropriate attire? Is it too cold for Capri pants in Napa?

Hi Jen, I live in Sunnyvale, so if you're still awake and need more info, please e-mail me.

Jennifer,

In answer to your question about Sunnyvale, it is basically a suburb of San Jose. Your best bet for restaurants and for sightseeing would be in Downtown San Jose, about a 15 or 20 minute drive from Sunnyvale. www.sanjose.org can give you more info. on things to see in Silicon Valley. Where exactly in Sunnyvale are you staying? If you are anywhere near Light Rail, you would be better off taking that into Center City rather than driving. Parking Downtown can be a hassle.

Jennifer, regarding the driving distance from Santa Clara to San Francisco. A poster above says it will take you 1.5 to 2 hours to drive this distance. This couldn't be further from the truth. Assuming you do have a rental car, drive up hwy 280, it might take you 1 hour at most. It's about a 50-55 mile trip up a very scenic freeway (some say the most beautiful freeway in US) and eventually you'll be in The City, the most beautiful city in the US. Also, since you are considering Napa *and* The City, I'd recommend you consider staying closer to San Francisco, if you can. It just makes sense, otherwise you'll end up driving back and forth to and from the places you most want to see. Since it's your first visit to California, I'd really make sure you get all of the highlights in that the bay area has to offer. The Santa Clara area is nothing more then a business and suberb community with not much to offer for excitement or entertainment. I hope this helps you and have a great trip!

Jennifer, it's a shame you can't spend the night in Napa and SF! Yes, khakis are perfect for daytime in Napa and black pants good for the evening, same goes for SF. Both places are fairly casual, you can really get by with jeans all the time if you like. You might want to dress up a bit more for evenings in the city, urban gear, black is always good. It will be cold at night and possibly 70 degrees during the day, very changeable, so dress in layers (our NorCal mantra). Six pairs of shoes! Good deal, just be sure you've got your walking shoes in there! Have fun, you will be doing some driving to get from Sunnyvale to Napa (actually Sonoma is a bit closer), but it will take you through some scenic areas, including over the Golden Gate, so not so bad. Bring some CDs, perhaps Tony Bennett or Journey?

Dan,

I don't think that you drive very much, especially during rush hour. I have driven from San Jose (The City) to Palo Alto and spent over 40 minutes for a 20 mile trip. To say that one can go from Santa Clara to the Upper Peninsula (San Francisco) in 1 hour, especially during rush hour, which is now almost all day long during the week, is ludricrous and misleading. I agree with you that Santa Clara does not have much to offer and neither does Sunnyvale, which is where Jennifer is actually staying. As a previous poster already suggested, she would be better off spending time in Downtown San Jose instead. How can San Jose be a suburb when it is the biggest city in northern California and the center of Silicon Valley?

I hate to get in the middle of this, but my husband works in Sunnyvale and drive to SF quite often. There is a carpool lane for part of the way on 280 north, it really doesn't take that long, maybe a bit over an hour. There is more of a traffic problem on the 101 north. If you are driving into SF on a Friday night it will take longer, maybe 90 minutes. Try to avoid the obvious rush hour times and you'll be fine.

Yeah, you're right. I didn't think about that. Rush hour does make a big difference in the Bay area. If you avoid Rush hour, travel times are far less. And you are probably driving on weekends anyway, so this wont be a problem.

Also, as a previous poster said, it's unfortunate that you just can't stay closer to San Francisco, since that's where you really want to be anyway and you are closer to Napa, etc. I'd have to admit, San Jose can't hold a candle to The City. Shrug.

Jennifer:

Obviuously Dan enjoys trashing anybody he does not agree with. Ignore the immediately preceding post by Jim, as I did not post it. As I stated earlier, the drive to SF from the city can take 1.5-2 hrs. during the evening rush from 4-7:00 PM.

Oh, and about 1 hour during non rush hour times.

Jennifer,
The imposter just struck again. 1 hour to SF from the city if traffic is extremely light, which is almost never.

Actually, I meant, San Jose to The City, I just can't seem to get it right even though 99% of everyone in the Bay Area knows that The City = San Francisco.. and yes on the Weekends you'll find zero traffic. Enjoy!

Sorry to say the rain is heavy in SF today. And a jacket is definitely needed. Forget the capri pants!

Regarding the horrific traffic from San Jose to San Francisco, I have a question. If San Jose is the place to be, why is everyone headed out of it and toward The City?

Curious, They're not. We also have what we call "reverse" rush hour. It's miserable here in the Bay area during the morning and evening commutes, no matter whether you're going north or south.HOV lanes help a bit, but I don't think there are any on 280. The folks who think there are I think are thinking about 85 which connects 101 to 280 in the South Bay. Oh well....tomorrow is Saturday. And,the weather is not terrible just cool and rainy. Good for the flowers. Hope Jennifer is having a good time and hope she will post a trip report when back home.