The Perfect Napa Valley Recommendations (and Sonoma!)

Looking for the perfect Napa Valley recommendations from a local? I got you! Just a short drive from San Francisco, Napa Valley and Sonoma are amazing getaway trip. These renowned wine regions offer stunning vineyards, world-class wineries, and unforgettable experiences. Explore the best of wine country with my curated recommendations. Cheers to your next great escape!

San Francisco to Wine Country

One of the best parts of living in San Francisco is that wine country is only an hour or two away. This makes it all too easy to swing by for a day trip, but you can certainly stay for longer if you would like to. If you are visiting or you have friends and family in town, check out my suggested 3 day itinerary. Pre-COVID, we would actually go to wine country once a month!

Napa Valley actually got it’s start back in the 1800s, when European settlers brought grapevines to the region. However, the valley really only gained international recognition at the 1976 Judgment of Paris when Napa wines beat French wines in a blind tasting. Today, Napa Valley is a world-renowned wine region that is most celebrated for its Cabernet Sauvignon. Sonoma Valley is a much larger wine region that many now prefer to go to instead because it’s a little less snobby and more laid-back. Because Sonoma Valley encompasses so much land with both hot and cool coastal climates, it’s diversity of wine is also larger. Notably, Sonoma Valley has great Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay and many more other wine varietals.

Helpful Tips in Wine Country

Keep in mind that you may want to arrange transportation and there is no public transportation between San Francisco and Napa/Sonoma. With a car, you can take the Bay Bridge or the Golden Gate Bridge. Also note that you will need to pay a toll for either bridge.
Napa and Sonoma locations can be rather far from each other. Unless you plan on staying the night (or longer), it would be best to choose just one broader location and be sure to map out their exact locations and the driving distance between them. Broader Napa can encompass Downtown Napa, St. Helena, Calistoga, Angwin. Broader Sonoma can encompass Downtown Sonoma, Healdsburg, and Geyserville.
Most people can only visit 1-3 wineries in one day (unless you are a champion drinker) and wineries tend to close early, by 4 or 5pm.
Tastings are not cheap and many tasting rooms are by appointment only.