hello again everyone.
our trip to california is almost here, we leave Wednesday 8.31!

we will arrive in SF on saturday early evening. we have sun, mon, and tue to do what we want before leaving early wednesday am.

so, my big question: with monday being a holiday, which of those 3 days would be best to go up to Napa?

do most wineries require reservations/appointments?

thanks in advance for any help!

Tues. would be less traffic than Sun. or Mon. Most wineries don't need reservations, but I think most charge a fee for sipping. You just drive in and park and sip the wine. It's one of our favorite things to do in CA.
Try a wine tasting limo tour, that way you can sip all you like and not have to drive.

thanks lemon, that's what i figured. perhaps i'm answering my own question, or changing it a bit.... but would the crowds on monday be brutal/unbearable, or just noticeable?
that monday is our First wedding anniversary, so it would be nice to be up there that day. if you think monday would be absolutely horrible because of crowds, we'll consider tuesday.

I have not toured the wineries in years - so my information is a little old. Mondavi gives the best tour, and last time my aunt visited from Denmark, visitors were required to make a reservation in advance, and most of the tours were booked up the day we hit the Napa valley. We have close friends who live in the middle of the valley, and when we go up to visit them several times a year, I remember a few wineries posting the time for the next available tour.

Many of the small/boutique, and super high-end wineries always need reservations.

I would visit on a Tuesday - Sat-Mon will be a zoo.

Stu Dudley

thanks Stu.
now i'm thinking maybe we should just go tuesday....

Expect between 4 and 20 dollars per person for tasting. Anyone else remember when it was free? At least now people aren't so self-guilted into buying something after so many free sips.