I'm planning a week-long trip to the wine country and wondered if anyone has any opinion about my itinerary. It's like this: Sunday-fly in, stay in San Francisco. Monday-Yountville. Tuesday-Calistoga. Wednesday&Thursday-Santa Rosa. Friday&Saturday-Mendocino. Sunday-fly out.

I'm tentative about the Mendocino part because it seems far, but I may be wrong about that. Otherwise we'll probably go to Bodega. Also, I'd like to stay in Healdsburg, but lodging is expensive (we're budget travellers).

Any thoughts, opinions, suggestions, etc. would be greatly appreciated!!

Jessica, You have more than enough time to go up to Mendocino and it's a beautiful part of the California coast. One suggestion would be that you don't have to move from Yountville up to Calistoga--they are quite close and you can easily see everything you want in the Napa Valley from one location or the other or from St. Helena which is pretty much in the middle of the valley. A very pretty drive with good wineries is on Hwy 128 from Cloverdale to the Mendocino coast. Know that if you stay in Santa Rosa, you are only at the beginning of the Sonoma wine country. I think it would be better to stay in Healdsburg or Geyerville. There are lots of B&Bs in the area as well as motels in all price ranges.Do stop for a short visit in the town of Sonoma to see the mission and the site where the "republic of California" was founded. You don't say when this trip will be, but if it's after the beginning of November, I might rethink the Mendocino part because of weather. And, if you have the option, it might be more convenient to fly in and out of Oakland to get to the wine country if you really don't want to visit SF.

A week is a long time to spend in the wine country unless you plan on spending all of your time sampling the wares.

Like Kam said, you really do not need to move about as everything is very reachable in a short time from just one location. As she also said, it depends a lot on the time of the year.

I would chop my Napa Valley time down and spend a few days in and around San Franciso.

Hi...now I'm REALLY confused! I do want to see San Francisco, but it's such a big, crazy city...uggh. This I need to think about.

I've since decided to go backward: Mendocino first (glad to hear it's not too far), then Sonoma then Napa. This cuts down our drive back to San Francisco.

The thing is: we LOVE wine. Love it. I can't wait to visit/tour vineyards like Atlas Peak, William Hill, DeLoach, etc. My husband and I toured the Loir Valley, Beaujolais and Burgundy for our honeymoon and had a wonderful time. That being said, do you still think I will spending too much time in Napa? If so, is it the tourist thing?

One more complexity: which area is best for biking? We're interested in a day-long, fun, wine-drinking tour. Do these exist?

I so appreciate your input. I've already taken your advice to look further in Healdsburg for lodging. Thank you!

Jessica, I don't know why you think of SF as a big ugly city--"ugh". At the risk of being boastful, it is the number one tourist destination city in the U.S. and a city almost everyone loves. SF is actually a very small city--third in population in California and only about 49 square miles. Of that, the part the the tourists like to see is almost entirely walkable. Suggest you do a search here to see other's reactions to San Francisco. We also love wine and have toured many areas of Europe and California tasting wines. Some of Napa is really interesting, but some of it is just plain touristy so you will want to be selective in which wineries to visit. My favorite (because it is an old fashioned winery with very nice owners as well as great wine) is Chateau Montelena up near Calistoga. Another favorite is Trefethen at the beginning of the valley. I think you can easily spend two days in Napa and two in Sonoma, Alexander Valley and Russian River. Know that most of the tasting rooms open at 10 and close about 4-5pm so the days are relatively short. And, please watch your intake as the CHP is watching as well. You can call Bryan's Cyclery at (800) 707-BIKE to ask about rentals, tours with picnics and a support van to carry wine purchases back for you. The valley itself is flat and an easy ride but as you start up some of the surrounding hills the biking can get more difficult. They have tours for beginning to experienced bikers. Then you need to decide whether you want to spend the other two days in Mendocino or take a chance on SF! If it's November, plan to spend the time in SF and if you've never visited, I think you'll soon grow to love the city.

Jessica, I have to agree with Kam on San Francisco; I am biased because I grew up in the area, but many friends and acquaintances who have visited have told me they found it one of the, or *the* most beautiful city in te US. If you haven't spent time there, I think you'll find your impressinon of it as a "big, crazy city" is just an impression. SF is easy to get around (easier without a car), and even if you're not a "city" person, SF and surroundings are full of natural beauty. A ferry ride across the bay to Sausalito, a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge (even in the winter), the Palace of Fine Arts, a stroll among the Victorians of Alamo Square, will all showcase its beauty and are mellow, not crazy, ways to spend your time. I would plan to spend a day or two there, without the rental car. I've never met anyone who visited SF and didn't like it. Also, SF has some outstanding restaurants, including some with impressive wine lists.

Souverain Restaurant at Chateau Souverain is great in Geyserville and in SF a super wine list is at Plump Jack Cafe--good prices as well.

We stayed at the Silver Rose Inn when we were in Calistoga. The rooms are nice and there's a spa on the premises. It's walking distance to the "town" area of calistoga, and an easy bike ride to a bunch of smaller family owned wineries as well as a few larger ones. Napa Valley has a great web site; silver rose has one as well.
One thing you really should do: make a reservation a graystone castle (at the Culinary Institute) for dinner. Really good food, casual/relaxing setting.
Have fun!

Like Kam, I do not understand your remark about San Francisco either. It is a very compact city with excellent public transportation.

Kam, with all due respect, San Francisco is not the 3rd largest city in California. It is 4th behind Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Jose. However it is still one of the greatest cities in world.

SF Sally, I'm surprised! I thought the city of SF was larger(in population) than the city of San Diego. Not counting all the places around the edge of either.

Hi Jessica,
I agree with Kam and Caitlin. I would definitely try to spend a couple days in SF! My boyfriend and I only had 2 nights there and we wished we would have spent more. We spent most of our time down on Fisherman's Wharf but there is so much more to see. We didn't have enough time to visit Napa but we will be going back someday to spend more time around the SF area. It's absolutely beautiful and we both loved it!

Well, I certainly didn't mean to offend re: San Francisco. I do really want to see the Golden Gate Park, Lombard St., Ghirardelli Square and certain other restaurants that I've read about. Quite frankly, I could take or leave seeing Fisherman's Wharf - The idea of all of those fish being slaughtered and/or being carried off to their death in front of my eyes makes me sad! I do question whether or not we'll have enough time to see the above places; I might have to extend our visit a day or two to tack on some more sighseeing at the end of the visit. Thanks for the input!

No offense taken, Jessica, it's simply an indication of how strongly we feel about this unique city and we wouldn't want you to hurry through or skip it all together! You needn't worry about Fisherman's Wharf and seeing fish suffer their deaths there. Fisherman's Wharf is now the touristy part of the Embarcadero in SF with carousels, t-shirt shops, little and big restaurants,the cable car turnaround, the ferry dock, street vendors etc. The only fish you meet is either grilled or swimming in cioppino! You'll probably see the live seals, however-- pesky as they are, we don't put them to their deaths either. It's very touristy but a great place for people watching and eating clam chowder or crab. Hope you'll decide to spend some time here.

Kam:

Actually San Diego city proper is officially the 6th largest city in the US with a population of 1.1+ million just in the city itself which makes it almost twice as large as San Franciso.

SFSally, I know you're correct, it just never seems to be that big when I'm down there. I also have this impression left from my days when we lived in LA when SD was the "little neighbor" rather than from now living close to SF. Funny how you can see things differently from fact!

San Diego has really exploded, population-wise, just in the past 10-15 years.

I normally don't like to visit big cities; I prefer the country. But, San Francisco is a beautiful place. It's a great place to drive (except in rush hour). And you can see some wonderful sights from practically any spot.
Also, spend some time in Mendocino. Great town, with a spectacular setting. A word of warning: It does take a while to get there if you take Hwy 1 the entire way from San Francisco to Mendocino. Having said that, Hwy 1 is a great and beautiful road.

S.F. ugly!!! I think not...I'm from Boston and we just love S.F. and yes Fishermens Wharf and Ghiardelli are touristy..but fun to people watch and to take in...Frankly, I think I'd avoid Napa and go to Sonoma..we went to Benzingers and Sonoma and found it charming..there appear to be many nicer wineries there and the little town of Sonoma is just charming..wish we could have spent more time there.. Oh yes...try olive oil tasting..I never realized there were so many varieties..

Kam:

San Diego is very deceiving because it is so spread out. It doesn't look nor feel like a large city. I used to live there. I happen to like cities and San Francisco qualifies as a true city and a great one at that. San Diego is a very nice and pleasant city but it is not a truly great city like San Francisco.

SFSally, Really interesting observation. I always think beach and golf in San Diego, never "city"! In San Francisco I have the same feeling as I do in Florence--that I'm certainly in a city full of culture and diversity. San Diego is polo shirts and khaki slacks; San Francisco is black linen blazers. I hope future tourists read your post and understand the difference in the two destinations. They are both great destinations but very, very different!