nappa and sonoma activities
 

Can anyone suggest any first class travel activities in NappaValley for example
limos,balloon rides,dinner at a winery.
we are traveling to nappa in September and are staying at the villagio.also can anyone suggest a good place for horse back riding and email me their favorite resturant
other than those posted in this site.I have reviewed them
thanks

when you do a search put only one "p" in Napa Valley to get info.

Obviously....you must TRY to get reservation at French Laundry. We loved Applewood Restaurant over in Sonoma County.
Chateau Soverain for lunch on terrace!

Have fun

A great beginning resourse for the Napa Valley activities etc. is
www.napavalley.com

Hi there... we stayed in Villagio last summer and it is currently my favourite holiday destination - I nearly cried when we pulled up outside it as it was picture perfect and even better than I could have imagined. It was not cheap but worth every penny. In terms of experiences we went went for an early morning balloon ride (concierge organised it for us) It was approx 350 dollars but worth it - it was a real 'once in a life time experience'. The champagne breakfast that was part of the deal was a bit disappointing, so much so that we hightailed it back to Villagio in time to get our breakfast there. Spa treatments at Villagio were too expensive so we gave them a miss. In terms of restaurants, the French Laundry is booked out 3 months in advance (and expensive)... if you like meat we had our best ever fillet steaks in a place called Brix (again recommended by the concierge)... Enjoy your trip... With regard to the vineyards, the one we found most interesting was that owned by the film director Francis Ford Copolla... If you take the more expensive option on the tours there (approx 20 dollars) you get a tour of the movie memorabilia etc as well as all the usual wine stuff... and some great tastings at the end. ENJOY, ENJOY, ENJOY.

oops thank you for pointing out the typo.

How do you make reservations for the winery owned by Francis Coppola? What part of Napa is it in?

chek out www.napa.com

Try the hot air ballooning. My husband and I did it last year, and what a great experience. We went with "Balloons Above the Valley". You spend the morning enjoying the beauty of the Valley, then when you land they have a wonderful outdoor champagne brunch (serving Domain Chandon . . YUM!)

Got married there a few years ago since we loved visiting it so much. Reception was on the Napa Valley Wine Train, but would highly recommend for a lunch or dinner excursion. I visited and at at ALL places (in search of quality info to pass on to our guests!) and loved the Greystone Culinary Institute (looks like a castle), Dean & Deluca (coffee, amazing selection of cheeses), Celadon in Napa, Downtown Joes in Napa (only real "nightlife" I've seen), Gillwood's for breakfast (and cappuccino's), Tra Vigna (lunch or dinner is so awesome here!)

V Satui Winery is great to take a picnic to (or Beringer, which is breathtaking scenery), the Grist Mill is a charnming stop just past Helena. Napa Valley Spa has some great herbal wraps (I also had a massage at at Auberge (sp?) but it was just OK)

If you've enough time, hop over to Sonoma, which is much less busy and touristy.