Everything You Need to Know Before Visiting Napa Valley in 2025
Local Wally
Let’s cut right to the chase - here’s everything you need to know if you’re planning a trip to Napa or Sonoma in 2025.
WHERE TO FLY INTO IF VISITING NAPA OR SONOMA
Your choices are Oakland, San Francisco, Sacramento, and Santa Rosa. A lot depends on flights and costs but the easiest airport is probably Oakland. It’s small enough and you basically get off the plane and hop on a car rental shuttle and you are good to go.
PRO TIPS FOR OAKLAND AIRPORT: Give yourself time to get your rental - perhaps a couple of hours from the time you land to the time you have your car. Use a big name car rental company as I have been stung in the past with Dollar or Budget not having cars even though I reserved. And while I rarely pre-purchase gas, the stations around the Oakland Airport have had “issues” so if you are returning in non-daylight hours it’s not a bad option.
WHERE TO STAY WHEN VISITING NAPA OR SONOMA?
For Napa I recommend trying to find a hotel or AirBnB near downtown Napa. Quaint and trendy, downtown has plenty of restaurants and how happy will you be when you can walk out your door and down the street for dinner after a long day of wine tasting. Choose from very good moderates such as the River Terrace Inn (discount on the Priority Wine Pass) or Embassy Suites (a good one, almost resort-like) to higher end hotels like the Archer or Andaz.
PRO TIP FOR AIR BNB IN DOWNTOWN NAPA: My friend Jamie is the owner of the Priority Wine Pass company and has converted the downstairs half of her house into a legitimate AirBnB. Worth checking out and as a bonus she normally tosses in a free two for one tasting pass which is very cool. Here’s the official link - tell her Wally sent you too!
In Sonoma I like to stick to the area close to the downtown square though you will find wineries that have bungalows or rooms if you want to stay right at a winery. Here’s a good list of options for wineries in Sonoma with lodging.
HIRE A DRIVER? OR DRIVE YOURSELF?
Not going to lie, a lot of people still drink and drive in Napa. You start thinking you will be good, you say you will take a tiny sip and then dump the rest, but the reality is that almost never happens. Look, this is really good wine! And you love wine, right? So when was the last time you tossed a perfectly good glass of wine down the drain? Now make it perhaps the best wine you’ve ever tasted and do you really think you will have the willpower to toss it? Now take a few more sips and then the alcohol tells your brain to forgetaboutit and the next thing you know you’re seeing flashing red lights in your rear view mirror.
Who you hire as a driver can make the difference between a good day and an incredible day. I’ve vetted out drivers who can drive your rental, can drive you in their vehicle, and transportation companies that can get you limos and party busses. Just email me and tell me what you’re looking for and I’ll connect you to drivers who have driven my readers for the past 10+ years and have done a great job
INSIDER SCOOP: If you are coming as a group of 10 or more do not assume a driver can drive your large rental. Vehicles of 10+ require additional (expansive) insurance which most independent drivers can’t afford. So don’t book that rental until you talk to me as it might be a waste of money if you can’t find anyone to drive it.
TOURS AND EXPERIENCE FOR GROUPS OF ALL SIZES
If you are here for more than one day then I suggest you spend the first day doing a standard wine tasting day (more on that below) where you pick wineries and a driver and just go for it. But if you have 2 or more days you should do one of these Napa exclusive experiences to make your trip unforgettable.
laces + limos tuk tuk tour
My absolute favorite Napa experience, travel to back road wineries in a 3 wheeled tuk tuk. You’ll experience hidden gem wineries, maybe do some barrel tastings, and feast on a gourmet picnic lunch right in the vineyards. It’s exactly what you think of when you think of a Napa picnic, but even better once you realize that there are very few wineries that allow picnics, let alone a private picnic between the grapevines. Priced about the same as hiring a driver and having lunch at a restaurant, my friend Chel who owns the company can fill you in,
BOHEMIAN HIGHWAY TOURS
It certainly feels high end with the private luxury SUV that whisks you away to private wineries that only open their doors to people in the know, but it’s priced about the same as a driver and lunch on your own experience. Because BoHo is owned by a winery they use their connections to get you access to their friends and family wineries. Full gourmet lunch, full service, tasting fees included, you just need to book it and show up and then everything else is taken care of. Mainly on the Sonoma side but not too far from the Carneros regios.
A DRIVE FOR WINE TOUR
Sometimes you want to pick your own wineries, sometimes you want the local expert to pick for you and plan it all out. If this sounds like you then make sure you connect with Melissa who is my favorite full service tour guide. She’ll work with you to find out what sort of wineries you might like and then use her years of experience to get you reservations at spots that match your desires. She can host couples and larger groups so keep her at the top of your list if you want a custom tour. Corporate groups, bachelorette parties, she an do it all. CONNECT WITH MELISSA
NAPA VALLEY WINE TRAIN
It’s on every Napa travelers bucket list but is it worth it? You decide - here’s a review I wrote recently on the Napa Wine Train. But let me get right to the point - it’s expensive, it’s not really a good way to visit Napa wineries, and the food served is definitely not as good as a drop in to Bistro Jeanty or Bouchon or just about any well known Napa restaurant. But there’s a reason why so many people say it’s their most memorable Napa experience. OK, no BS, I think the wine train is too pricey for me and I’d rather be on a Laces + Limos tour (for a whole lot less) but hey, I totally get it if this is your jam.
WALLY’S NAPA ON A BUDGET EXPERIENCE
Yeah, yeah, if you’re on a budget (who isn’t?) and want to experience Napa but still have money when you get home then you can reach out to me and I’ll show you how to do Napa using the 2 for 1 pass. Coming with a group? Bachelorette party where every girl is paying her own way? Corporate event where the boss just gave you the impossible task of planning an event in Napa on a tight budget? I can help. I don’t charge, just reach out to me and let me help.
CHINESE SPEAKING TOURS
If you are looking for a tour with Chinese speaking guides just let me know. I can also help you organize tours of San Francisco for your Chinese speaking visitors. Email me, happy to connect you with my Chinese speaking tour guides.
NAPA WINERY INFO 101
Make reservations every 90 minutes to 2 hours. Most experiences are 60 minutes, some longer, and you want time to mull around and then get to your next stop. The days of 20 minute sip and go tastings at the bar are gone, though recently some wineries have been taking walk-in’s again. But make a plan, make reservations, and you’ll be a lot less stressed. Plan on 3 to 4 wineries in a day. And don’t forget lunch, whether it’s a restaurant reservation or a picnic at a winery. PRO TIP: Not all wineries allow food so always ask first.
Use a Priority Wine Pass if you want to save some money on tasting fees (and hotels). The annual pass is just $39 per couple and you’ll find well know touristy wineries like Sterling and Beringer on it as well as plenty of wineries the tour busses drive by. Free concierge service too, so get the pass and get the most of your wine tasting dollar without sacrificing the experience. Here’s the link to get the pass with my discount.
What to wear? A mistake many make is thinking you have to be dressed for an Instagram photo shoot to go wine tasting. Just wear nice clothes, you don’t need high heels and trendy clothes to go wine tasting. You know what you wear when you’re going out to dinner with some friends? That’s perfect.
Tip, yes, tip: Tipping has gotten a bad rap and rightly so. Everyone wants a tip these days so I understand if you think you don’t have to tip your server but you do, you definitely do. Just tip the standard 10% to 20%, and tip cash if you can. I just bring a wad of $5 and $10 bills with me when I go wine tasting and politely hand them the tip at the end. And no, just because you bought wine doesn’t mean you don’t tip. I get not tipping the Jersey Mikes guy who asks if you want it Mike’s Way, but the winery server who spent the last 60+ minutes with you telling you all about the wines and the winery deserves a few bucks.