Napa Valley, CA

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

What are the best times to go to Napa Valley, CA? Any recommendations on Timeshares to stay? Are those good times to visit San Francisco too?

[vintner Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close vintner]

Finally, a question that I can offer some input.

Are you going there for wine? Then NOW!. Pack and leave. The reason is now is harvest and now is when things are really popping. Trucks are coming to the wineries with loads of grapes, they are being destemmed and crushed and going into the tanks. Fermentation is starting and it is amazingly busy right now and into early Oct.

If you want to taste wine but not be over run by the crowds and you don't need to see the winery working, then I would suggest spring. We had a wonderful time in March. Weather was very nice, lower crowds and the winery tasting rooms are more able to serve and answer questions.

If you are going for scenery, then now or spring would be okay.

We stayed at River Pointe right in Napa, RiverPointe Napa Valley Timeshare Tours. Don't let the looks fool you, they are very nice. The people at the resort are great too. They set up 2 on site wine tastings as well as a couple winery tours. This is located right in the town or village of Napa.

There is also Vino Bello Vino Bello Resort, Napa Valley's Newest Luxury Resort that we would have stayed in for our next trip if the doctor hadn't put an end to my fun. I think this location is also very good for the whole Napa experience.

Now if you want wineries and tasting room recommendations...that is a whole other posting. But if you go to Turnbull and you meet CJ, you will have to tell her hi for me.

I have no ideas on San Fran. We fly into Sacramento rather than SFO just to avoid the city, the traffic and because that is a closer trip to Napa.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Now or spring are both great times to visit SFO. In fact, anytime is a great time to visit SFO. I was last there in February and the weather was very mild and beautiful.

There are quite a few timeshares there - I would recommend the Union Square area for central location. We stayed at Powell Place and loved it. It is right next door to Nob Hill Inn. Both are in Nob Hill (as in very hilly!) but close to Union Square. This year we are staying at the Grand Hyatt through RCI. Wyndham Canterbury looks very nice - there have been a couple of sightings there on the RCI board, though they are rare. There is also a Worldmark on the outskirts of Union Square that some of our members have been to.

Vintner, I'm a little bummed to hear about the potential crowds we may encounter in Napa this trip... hopefully we will figure out how to avoid them

[happymum Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close happymum]

Glitter, please let me know how bad the crowds are. I am supposed to be staying at Vino Bello mid-October. (Although due to my m-i-l's health the trip is in doubt )

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

Glitter, please let me know how bad the crowds are. I am supposed to be staying at Vino Bello mid-October. (Although due to my m-i-l's health the trip is in doubt )

HM, I hope you get to go and that your MIL is stable. I will let you know how we manage - I'll be back before you leave. We are spending just two nights in wine country - probably only one day doing vineyards - so my glimpse may not be all that helpful, but I will report back.

[vintner Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close vintner]

Weekends are more crowded than weekdays. Harvest is probably the heaviest crowds. Summer is active, but isn't bad compared to the fall and harvest, but spring is very nice both for the winery tastings/crowds and just that the spring is a nice time of year. The yellow mustard around the vines is still there as the leaves are out on the vines.

[JWC Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close JWC]

Typically the best weather is in September and October for San Francisco and the Napa Valley.

[Icc5 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Icc5]

October

What are the best times to go to Napa Valley, CA? Any recommendations on Timeshares to stay? Are those good times to visit San Francisco too?

Some of the best weather for San Francisco usually is in October. We happen to like staying in Windsor at Worldmark. October is also a good time to make the drive to Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Capitola. Go there to relax, sight see, eat but forget about going out into the water.
Bart

[grest Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close grest]

We went in early October, and it was perfect. We were there for the harvest, and the weather was fine!

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

I just got back. Weather in SFO was all over the place, as always. Some chilly days, some warm. I would NOT recommend the less-than-Grand Hyatt unless you can't find something else, though the location is excellent.

Napa weather was glorious!!

To avoid Napa crowds in season I would stick to weekdays (there was a ton of traffic heading up from the city on Friday as we were thankfully heading down) and avoid the larger/better known wineries. We had some excellent wines at small local family owned wineries.

I would also recommend going off-season, as we learned that even in winter the temps are pretty mild (50s, sometimes higher) and the valley is beautiful year round. And in the winter you can stay at a local inn/b&b at a great discount.

eta: If you prefer white to red, you might try Sonoma instead of Napa. Temps there are a bit lower than Napa, which (we learned this week) makes for a better white wine. Napa is known for its cabs, though we tasted some excellent blends, syrahs, and petit syrahs.