Lettie Teague, in the Weekend Edition of the WSJ, expresses extreme disappointment at the rising cost of hotel rooms and tastings in Napa Valley. Having recently returned from Napa, of course, I get it. And yet . . . I had several wonderful experiences and can’t subscribe to the anti-Napa crusade. AirBnBs are significantly cheaper than hotels, especially when sharing the cost with a friend, and there are tastings that are not in the triple digits. Pride @ $60 is a good value as is Keenan @ $50. Paloma, Solorio Family and Otra Vez are free. Chiron @ $50 is a steal! And there are others . . .
And restaurants: We found Torc to be first class and reasonably priced. Truss, embedded in the Four Seasons Calistoga, offers surprisingly good value. Bistro Jeanty offers good food and a fun vibe at good prices.
I would appreciate–and celebrate–an article about how to navigate Napa without feeling like you are bleeding cash. It is possible!
We stayed at the North Block Hotel about 6 weeks ago in Yountville. My wife and I were expecting a small suite at $850 a night. The room was small but nicely appointed. We thought it was overpriced.
Yeah, not exactly an investigative journalism coup there.
I certainly understand her point, and there is no shortage of preposterous prices and overblown experiences.
It’s really like travel in general, though. If you’re willing to do some research/legwork on your own, you can have fun without feeling fleeced.
Also, +1 on Chiron. We had a fantastic experience there with Bobby. Proof that there are still lots of great finds to be found there.
Napa is fine as long as you think of it as Disney World for wine. The hotels are overpriced and so are the wineries. But you are paying for the experience.
The core areas aren’t interested in developing middle market hotels, basically its luxury only. We tend to stay at the faded DoubleTree in Santa Rosa as well as the newer HIX in American Canyon. If we’re in the area, we’re going to be driving everywhere anyways, so they work for our priorities (and purse).
I agree that the preponderance of Napa wines are overpriced relative to their quality. Equivalent quality wines can be found in virtually all global appellations at more attractive price points. I do not begrudge proprietors given the absurd cost of land and doing business in Napa, but I find the oceans of mediocre $200+ Napa wines borderline offensive.
Just because you can quote 5 wineries that have reasonable prices out of the more than 400 wineries in Napa, does not mean she missed her mark. All prices in Napa have skyrocketed over the last three years both for locals and tourists: home price, gas, hotels, restaurants, by the glass wine prices, bottle prices, corkage fees, tasting room fees etc…
Of course you are right–I am not suggesting otherwise. My point is that there is more to say than just ‘Don’t go to Napa, it’s too expensive, go somewhere else.’
Frankly, I also don’t think the mindset of most people going to Napa view it as “bargain hunting”. Sure, some do, but I think for the vast majority it’s a trip they take every so often and they do it to have what I would call “adult time”. I get the reasoning behind someone saying “Napa is expensive”, I just think it largely falls on deaf ears and isn’t going to stop people from going.
Interesting second hand anecdote- One of my closest friends went with his wife, and she doesn’t drink at all. He found plenty of non-wine things to do that she enjoyed.
Maybe I am from a different generation, but unless it’s business travel or I am for some reason solo, VRBO and AirBnB are the first two options. Always. Hotels in general are either run down or overpriced or both. A quick search shows you can easily get a house for $750 a night.
Not that I think anyone is vacationing in Napa and looking for a deal.
Typically you’re paying for a lot of services / facilities as part of a hotel price, plus those points schemes. Typically I don’t need those services / support staff in their smart uniforms. Whilst I prefer local agencies over aggregators like air bnb / vrbo, I very much see the value in having extra space, extra freedom and something a little more ‘real’ than the identikit hotel rooms. That hotels are typically more expensive merely reinforces my preference.
The last time we went to Napa (2018) we decided to share tastings. It worked well. Besides not needing a nap later in the day, we could visit more wineries. The prices were also a consideration. One place we joined the wine club to avoid the $100 tasting fee. Bought them for a year and cancelled. Love the wines but don’t need any more bottles at that price.
The Paso Robles last fall (first time in 15 years) left us with stocker shock at tasting prices.
Someone mentioned it in another thread, I’ll paraphrase here. At $850 per night plus tasting fees, you can buy great wine and take it to a less expensive but just as pretty location. Or you could get 3 nights Vrbo in Florence.
Funny, I’m exactly the opposite. I look forward to the opportunity to get away from my own dishes or make my own bed in an AirBnB and stay in a hotel and have that taken care of for me, plus room service.
The article was more about the cost of visiting than the cost of the wine. I dont have a problem with wine prices but visit less because the cost of visiting has gotten out of hand
Napa became too expensive for us to enjoy the experience a few years ago. The cost of accommodations, food, tastings and the traffic and crowds drove us away. Walla Walla and the Willamette Valley have replaced Napa for us. The scenery is beautiful. The prices of accommodations and food are much lower. You have a greater choice of accommodations. In most cases, the food is farm to table and of high quality. The cost of tasting is less in most places. The wine is very good to excellent. There is no traffic and most tasting rooms are not overcrowded. Winemakers are more likely to open their libraries for an interested taster too. On average, the prices for quality wine are less. IMO Napa has turned itself into a wine Disneyland. Prices keep going up but the experience doesn’t improve enough to match.