My husband and I are planning a trip to the CA wine country in a couple of months. We have Marriott points we were hoping to use and were looking at the Napa Marriott. We are looking for opininons on that hotel or if there is a better Marriott option in the area. Any advice would be appreciated!

My wife and I stayed at the Marriott in Napa last October. For the price we paid we were a little disappointed (it was peak season and we paid acordingly). The hotel, which promotes itself as a spa/resort (the "spa" is in a separate building in the parking lot), is more akin to a motel, and not much different than countless Holiday Inns. It wasn't terrible, its just that there are much nicer places to stay in Napa.

I totally agree with nohomers. With all the great lodging options in the area, I would never stay there again.

Actually, the Marriott is an old Clarion/Holiday Inn and is over 20 years old. It's right on the main highway and is located near a major construction area.

However, I'm sure the rooms are more than adequate if you are just going to sleep there and if you can get a deal because of your points, it might not be a bad choice. There are no other Marriott options in the immediate area.

I'd rather stay in Sonoma for a wine trip. You can use points at the Lodge at Sonoma which is very nice and the spa is great.

http://marriott.com/property/propertyPage/SFOLS

That Napa Marriott exists to use up points cheaply I think. We were staying at Auberge and I looked at the Marriott thinking about using it for points. We passed.

LMF

LMS the Auberge vs Marriott? LOL!! That's about a 400 buck difference, right? Agree about the Lodga at Sonoma as a better choice. Love the town as well. I would only stay there if I couldn't find a roomelsewhere, honestly.Part of the experience in wine country is a great stay. We love the many B&Bs we've tried- we meet great folks, feel like family, get excellent and personal service.Use your points for another vacation!Have a blast!

Thank you all for your feedback. You'll basically confirming what I've been thinking already.

LLindaC -- Since you mentioned having a great experience at some B&Bs -- which were your favorites?

We just returned from the Grape Leaf Inn in Healdsburg. Fabulous place, breakfast to die for.Great town, too. We love Sonoma valley, not big fans of Napa. Last time we stayed at Camellia Inn in Healdsburg and liked it very much as well. In Napa (Calistoga), we stayed at the Cottage Grove Inn, a little cottage actually. Very very nice, but a lot of traffic, IMO. Lately, my husband and I stay at 2 or more places. We did that in California and in South Africa. We like experiencing different towns and accomodations. Recently, in Lodi, we used HI points, because we were there for the wine fest and to tour area and knew we wouldn't be in room. The rest of the 8 days, we stayed in lovely places. I got a $315 3-night package (Brewery Gulch)in an auction at luxurylink.com! WOW. I also got luxury room at Grape Leaf for 175 at generousadventures.com and an online special at Sonoma Hotel.All in all, I managed a 10 day trip to
3 wine areas for $87/night. WOW! Then we spent thousands on food and wine, LOL.You might want to check out tripadvisor.com for some good reviews of places. And take a look at Mendocino for something completely different!

We just returned from a long weekend in Napa/Sonoma and stayed at the lodge with marriott points. We had a cottage which was very nice with a fireplace, king bed, etc. I'd ask for an upstairs unit unless you don't like climing stairs. We had some noisy folks upstairs the first night (small children who were in bed by 9pm so it was ok). Lovely grounds, spa, complementary wine/cheese every night; great pool, etc. Its not walking distance to the square in Sonoma but that was fine with us. The concierge was very helpful in getting dinner reservations at the last minute as well.