Napa, California

There’s something quaint and easy-going about the city of Napa. The hilly geography is picturesque, giving off a sense of calmness and serenity that only Napa can give you. It is also one of the premier travel destinations in all of California, marked by its luxurious wine tours, beautiful vineyards and old-fashioned resorts. Those who visit almost always come back for more.

Napa is a tourist mecca, bleeding of liquid gold. Hundreds of wineries and vineyards abound the area including the Kuleto Estate Winery and the Beaulieu Vineyard. During the day, the city offers an abundance of wine tours, fine restaurants, galleries, parks, golf courses and spas. Although many of these activities are overpriced, they are a chance for vacationers to spoil themselves. Another popular plan amongst the out-of-town crowd is to rent limousines to whisk them away to the many popular destinations Napa has to offer. If you wish to explore the beautiful landscape at a more reasonable price, the city is saturated with bike rental shops. Those who take advantage of luxury, can take their own tour and comb through the beautiful landcape of Napa, California. Or you can venture down the Napa River on rented rafts and kayaks. Visitors have plenty of lodging options as well, including hotels, popular inns and charming bed and breakfasts.

Residents boast a more laid back lifestyle and work-friendly environment than other more well-known and nearby cities such as Oakland and San Francisco. This might be due to the city’s relaxed and leisure reputation. For those that live in the area, the city is split between a white and hispanic population. The residential neighborhoods offer a variety of diverse housing options, but mostly consist of old homes, quaintly restored to keep its former low-key middle-class prestige. The area is wide-open and filled with tree-lined streets. Neighborhoods are typically safe, which makes for a good family-friendly environment.

One of the swankest, most posh and well-known places to taste wine on the planet, Napa certainly lives up to its reputation. A cute, accessible downtown area, where one can order a meal complemented by their favorite local finding, is surrounded by rolling foothills filled with wineries far and near, all willing to give you a sampling of their most popular fare – at a price.

Scenery and charm are accompanied by overpriced food, drink, lodging, and entertainment in this area that is loved by some and frowned upon for its extravagance by others. High-end hotels dominate, and it certainly is frustrating to be charged significantly more per flight (tasting of 3-4 wines) than in neighboring Sonoma, on the other side of the valley.

But let’s go back to the downtown area, where the sun shines over the hundreds of acres of wineries. One can take the wine train and sample food and drink for hours while enjoying the scenery. More active visitors can rent bikes and do a self-guided wine tour – or skip the wine altogether and spend days touring the countryside.

It’s not cheap, but maybe it’s not so bad, either.