I am researching places to go in the fall and we’ve never been to Napa. I’ve been reading a bit about it, but not sure of some things. It sounds like the town of Napa would be a fun place to stay, but there are other places people stay, too.
I don’t want to be rural, so something with things to do in the evenings are more our thing. How do we get around to visit wineries without driving ourselves. We don’t want to be drinking and driving.
Any suggestions for hotels. Any tips on how to do this?
Napa is pretty rural. Even the downtown does not have much hopping nightlife beyond a couple of bars next to the Andaz. Be warned - Napa is a popular weekend destination for techies with lots of $$$$, and hotels are priced accordingly during those times. Many require 2 night min stay. We had a misfortune of staying at that downtown Andaz, which I think could fit your bill - it has a rooftop bar and is pretty hopping at night. There are plenty of wine tours offered if you don’t have a designated driver. Call the hotel and inquire after booking.
We try not to visit too many wineries. We gone to Napa and Sonoma several times. Generally we hike in the morning go to a few tasting rooms and then have a nice dinner. Last time we stayed in Napa itself, Castiloga Springs is really nice and you can go to the spa there. I’ve had a couple of threads. http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1777911-another-vacation-suggestion-thread-napa-sonoma-p1.html (My report of what we actually did is post #35)
and in this thread post #42 http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/1892594-where-to-stay-in-napa-area-p3.html
I would be more worried about drinking and driving over a dinner meal than I would in the tasting rooms. Most wineries charge a fee and the pours are minuscule.
We last stayed at the Napa River Inn this past year. Downtown location, moderately priced (mid to high $200s which is a bargain for Napa), Celadon restaurant on the property, Morimoto, and Cole’s Chop House nearby so you don’t have to drive. FREE PARKING and car charging if you have an electric vehicle. It is not your traditional hotel with a lobby, pool, exercise room, etc. but a great location just a few minutes walking distance to the center of downtown. Another recommendation is the newish Archer Hotel, right in the center of downtown.
I’m heading down to Paso Robles week after next. This is another excellent wine region that should also be explored!
We haven’t been to Napa or Sonoma in awhile as we much prefer wine tasting in Paso Robles now. Love the central coast area and it is not a bad drive for us from Southern California. Great wineries and lovely places to eat. We usually do a wine tour one day and then do our own thing the next day and use Uber if we are tasting.
I am going to add some of my personal favorite Napa region restaurants, hope they are all still in business. My go-to restaurant, where we took many of our out of town visitors, was Tra Vigne BUT THEY ARE NOW CLOSED. The other go-to restaurants for us are:
Redd’s (in Yountville)
Don Giovanni (Napa)
Hog Island Oyster (Napa- I love their grilled cheese sandwich!)
Boon Fly Cafe (just outside Napa on the way to Sonoma)
Brix and also Mustard’s Grill (Hwy 29)
If you want to splurge:
Restaurant at Meadowood
If you want to REALLY splurge and somehow are lucky enough to get a reservation in the small window of time months in advance:
The French Laundry (Yountville)
Edit: We love walking the vegetable and herb garden across the street from the restaurant. They grow their own!
We really like the Lodge at Sonoma’s cottages with fireplaces. There is an on-site wine tasting every evening, and the lodge provides a shuttle to the downtown area. There are bikes that one can use to ride around. Good place but not cheap. It does take Marriott points.
Agree about the $$$ tasting fees and pours… if you want to taste and drink, come to Woodinville, WA! The tasting fees are only $10 and are generally waved if one buys a bottle. 
Our friends from Marin County have stayed at BunsenBurner’s recommended lodge multiple times and love it.
A lovely destination and one on my bucket list…but I originally read the title as Let’s Talk Naps and got really excited!
We stayed in Yountville at the Villagio. Really nice, spacious rooms and included a great breakfast buffet (which is essential if you are going to spend the day drinking wine). There were a lot of restaurants in walking distance (Bottega and Bistro Jeanty). We used a car service to get around but look into UberWine which is supposed to be much less expensive. As far as wineries go, my favorites were Schramsberg and Jarvis but I don’t think you can really go wrong! Have fun!
Redd is now closed! Bummer…
We loved the Madrona Manor (an old inn) in Healdsburg. You can do tastings around the square there too. If you go to madrone manor, eat in their dining room - a 5 or 6 course with local wine pairings. was fabulous.
Also love Napa and Sonoma (Healdsburg is north of there) but this is a treat!
There are a lot of really nice AirBnBs in the area. Otherwise, I’ve usually stayed in Santa Rosa if I’m doing a wine tasting weekend - it’s cheaper than Napa. I don’t have any specific hotIt’s an easy drive from Santa Rosa down through the Sonoma vineyards.
If you don’t want to drive and don’t want to bike from winery to winery, there are wine tasting ‘trolleys’ or ‘trains’. I’ve never been on one (a connoisseur friend likes to put together elaborate tours for us). If you don’t have specific wineries you know you want to see, you should at least think about the type of winery you want to visit (small production, large production, family-run, organic, with art gallery, with cave, etc.) or the type of wine you want to try - it’ll help you narrow down which tour and which part of wine country is right for you.
These are all such great suggestions and posts. Can’t wait to research, my favorite thing to do. It’s between Napa and Santa Barbara. If we go there, we would just do one day versus several in Napa. Oh the decisions…
There is also a Stone brew pub in downtown Napa as well as another place across the river. Not just wine now. There are several tasting places in downtown Napa. So different than it used to be 40-50 years ago. The lively area used to be dead and rundown.
Brixx…best brunch I’ve ever eaten.
Baby kid and her BF enjoyed the Wine Train.
Yes, there are tasting rooms in Napa downtown! Wine is everywhere.
We’ve never actually been in Napa on the weekend, so no Brixx brunch but, did enjoy dinner there. I liked Meadowood better than French Laundry - or at least two or three years later I remember the meal better. The French Laundry garden is worth visiting weather or not you go to the restaurant. My favorite winery for visiting was Benziger (in Sonoma not Napa) - it was family owned an organic at the time. They actually got sold off the day we visited, so I don’t know if they’ve sold out. Imagery down the road - same family is also fun and they grow some unusual grapes.
Last trip we went to Monterrey and drank a lot of Pinot Noir. In many ways an even nicer place for a trip.
There are also good places downtown that don’t cost an arm and a leg too if you don’t want to spend a fortune every meal. Taylor’s Refresher, Taqueria Maria, and Don Perico come to mind.