I'm going to San Francisco in a few weeks for the very first time and I'm sooooo excited! I have booked a flight but have not booked accomadations yet. We are looking at staying in Napa Valley for a couple nights and one night in San Francisco. Any recommendations? I hear its super expensive to park in downtown, any suggestions? What are the must see and must do things in those areas as we're only there for 3 nights and 4 days. TIA!
golden gate park, seeing alcatraz, The boardwalk (amusment park on the beach), fishermans wharf, riding the bart (like a train from place to place cheap and fun)
Wouldnt waste money on the san fransisco zoo (was there 6 yrs ago) and was super disapointed. Still had monkeys in little cages etc.
Have drinks at the Clliff house, Golden Gate Bridge/park, Fishermans Wharf and call EARLY for Alcatraz tours/boat tour of the harbour. Lombard Street.
I live in Napa. Beazley House Bed and Breakfast is beautiful! My husband usually has business associates stay at River Terrace Inn. The River Inn at Napa Mill is also cool (ask about the ghost stories).
Wine tasting is an obvious choice in Napa (highly recommend getting a driver). Sterling vineyards has a tram up to the winery. Castello di Amoroso is a castle in the hills. The Wine Train is a moving restaurant. Domaine Chandon is a sparkling wine producer that also has a great restaurant. Mumm Napa Valley and ZD Wines are next door to each other. Mumm has an art gallery. Napa Valley Museum is near Chandon and on the grounds of the Veterans Home. Check out www.napachamber.com for more ideas.
Oh, and mud baths are in Calistoga.
We have not visited Napa in 6 years, but our favorite winery is called V. Sattui It is not a huge one, but has an incredible atmostphere. They have a shop where you can buy fresh breads, cheeses, fruits, etc and an area for picnics. It is incredible to sit with the valley surrounding you, crack open a bottle of wine and enjoy the atmosphere. Check out their website to make sure nothing has changed in the past few years.
If you are bringing kids, be sure to go to the Exploratorium in San Francisco. There's also a children's museum in Sausalito (across the GG bridge from SF) that supposed to be good.
We did a similar trip for our honeymoon and here are some things we loved in Napa:
Candlelight Inn: AMAZING breakfasts (that will keep you going most of the day), plus a pool and this to-die-for chocolate cake that is available all the time from the kitchen. I dream of that chocolate cake and I'm not even a chocolate cake person.
www.candlelightinn.com
Coppola Winery: Not very expensive for the tour, which comes with a sampling and cheese tasting on the estate. The tour was really neat if you're into movies; you get to see lots of original props and the backstory to the vineyard is really interesting.
www.franciscoppolawinery.com/
Rutherford Grill: Not too expensive and sooo good. They make a skillet cornbread that you'll remember for the rest of your life.
www.yelp.com/biz/rutherford-grill-rutherford
We also rented bikes and just biked around to different places for tastings. Very fun and it's mostly flat so it's hardly any effort. The views are beautiful.
I'm so jealous :-)
If you have the time, go to Muir Woods.
Lucky you!
Fisherman's Wharf is fun and has some very good restaurants for seafood. Great chinese food and shopping in China Town. Little Italy for Italian.
Lombard (the crookedest street) is fun to see and so is the Golden Gate bridge.
Make sure you bring comfortable walking shoes.
If you are looking for an economical hotel. There is one called Mark Twain across from the Hilton downtown. The rooms were small but nice and it is close to the subway.
Hope this helps,
Victoria
