A Wine Country Escape
Living in New York is a hustle within itself, not to mention waking up everyday to hit a 9-5 and being an adult. I've vowed to myself to try to see as many states as possible and enjoy the beauty within each state. For sometime some reason I have the hardest time trying to figure out what part to visit and what part suits me. Meaning find a place where I can travel while feeling comfortable and not worrying about the awkward feeling of not being wanted there has been hard. I decided I wanted to take a trip to California and experience the Kardashian life lol. Instead of visiting typical cities within California such as Los Angeles and San Francisco, I decided to visit Napa Valley. Napa Valley is located in the northern portion of California north of San Pablo Bay. It's considered one of the world's great destinations for great wine and beautiful greenery fields. HotelTonight is one of my favorite apps to browse for hotel deals. Not only do they have awesome deals on hotels, they also categorize the hotels from Luxe, Hip or Charming to help you find the best hotel that suits your needs. I immediately fell in love with SENZA Hotel and booked my trip to Napa Valley.
Day 1
Since there's no direct flight to Napa I flew into San Francisco and drove an hour to to Napa Valley. The drive was beautiful. Unlike the garbage smell that I'm used to smelling in New York the air in Cali smelled refreshing. SENZA Hotel its right in the middle of everything in Napa Valley. The check in process was quick and I was informed the hotel has wine tasting every night. Free wine I'm in lol. My room was huge with a king size bed, with a beautiful fireplace, soaking tub and large balcony that overlooks the hotel vineyard. I was in heaven. Instead of exploring the grounds of the hotel I decided to take it easy my first day and check the hotel amenities out first. I spent the rest of the day relaxing in the hotel heated pool and took a nice soak afterwards in their hot tub. As I was heading back to my room, I decided to check out the free wine tasting. I took a glass of wine back to my room and spent the rest of the night toasting in front of the fireplace.
Day 2
My second day in Napa Valley was rainy. The perfect day to shop and eat lol. The hotel provided me with an umbrella so I was good to go. As I was driving around and exploring Napa Valley, I came across a little town not too far from the hotel called Yountville. Yountville has a population of no more than 3000 people. It's very modern, quaint and cute. For a small bite I stopped in at the Bouchon Bakery and then went to Pacific Blues Cafe for lunch. Yountville has a nice mix of locals and tourist. I got a few stares, but nonetheless, I felt comfortable. I refueled and headed on to my next venture of wine tasting at Durant & Booth.
Durant & Booth winery was remarkable. The decor is to die for and the experience was top notch. From the chandeliers to the modern, charming, sleek and hip touch. I felt right at home. Their assorted wine and cheese selection were amazing. This winery is a must see if you're ever in Yountville. You won't regret it.
Day 3
Day three I realized I have a Starbucks addiction. The New Yorker embedded in me woke up craving for Starbucks lol. I wasn't ready to start another day without my artificial flavored Starbucks coffee so I drove downtown Napa. Who knew a "city" country life could still be so relaxing and beautiful. A quick stroll around downtown reminded me I'm nowhere near home with the mountains and creeks in near sight. I had two wine tasting reserved one at Liana Estates and another one at Clif Family.
Liana Estates is owned by two sisters, Lisa & Ariana. I got a tour of the property and of the press machines. They served sparkling wine with their wine tasting. I specifically fell in love with their Rosé. I had to take a bottle for myself back to New York. Being around two sisters that embarks women empowerment made me think about how awesome it would be to own a winery with my sister.
Moving along to Clif Family owned by the same family that makes Clif Bars. I decided to have lunch with my wine tasting. I had an option of ordering wings, bruschetta and a salad with my wine. I order wings, a fresco and ended it with chocolate for dessert. I was feeling slightly tipsy lol and I already knew I wasn't going to be able to check out the next day on time. So I decided to reach out to my HT concierge on my HotelTonight app asking to have the hotel move my check out to a later time.
My experience at The SENZA Hotel was a fabulous. The staff made me feel right at home. I was happy, comfortable and pleased by their generosity. These pictures don't do justice to how beautiful it is in Napa Valley. I can't say enough about how pleased I was staying at SENZA Hotel. I'm definitely coming back to stay. If you are heading to Napa and have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
