Planning a trip to Napa Valley? Start Here. (dog-friendly)
Planning a trip to Napa Valley, California can be overwhelming as there are SO many wineries and things to do. I have been lucky enough to visit Napa Valley several times over the last few years for family trips or bachelorette parties. Napa Valley is one of my favorite places to visit and each time I go I do new things. Napa Valley is not as posh as you may think if you have never been. Everyone who works in the wine and tourist industry that I have interacted with has been incredibly kind, informative, and genuine. Napa Valley is also incredibly dog friendly and I felt like our dog was allowed in 99% of places we went. I would highly recommend visiting Napa Valley as you are sure to have a fun & relaxing time!
My four biggest tips for wine tasting in Napa are:
Do not book more than three wine tastings in one day. You will be exhausted from driving all over, pretty tipsy, and not able to relax because you will be on a time crunch rushing to your next reservation time slot. I recommend 2 or 3 and start early and give yourself 2.5 hours minimum between tastings.
Book your tastings well in advance. The majority use Tock for reservations. Especially if you have a larger group or are visiting on a weekend. There are very few wineries that allow walk-in tastings and the reservations fill up early!
Make sure you have a driver! It changes everything and lets everyone in your party relax.
Make sure you have a stop for food on the agenda between your tastings! Food recommendations below!
My Favorite Wineries I have Visited in Napa
All these wineries allow dogs on the grounds. Some allow them to come inside or on tours but others only allow them on the patio for the tasting. I noticed most wineries allow dogs on the grounds at a minimum, but I recommend calling the specific winery to get the most accurate details on what they allow with dogs.
Peju- Completley subjective, but I think Peju has the best wine I have tried in Napa Valley. I love their red-and-white blend so much. The property is peaceful with interestingly shaped trees and bushes, beautiful sculptures in the garden, and pink architecture.
Beringer - The grounds at Beringer are worth visiting alone. A great afternoon could be spent wandering the gardens sipping wine and stopping to read on a bench in the shade. Our tasting was in the old house which is gorgeous on the inside & out.
Nickel & Nickel - This property stole my heart the first time I drove by. It is a white house with beautiful horses out front. We did a tasting and sat outside which was lovely in October. I learned the horses are all rescues too. Our server actually sat down with us and taught us proper ways to do tastings and told us stories about the land and vineyards.
Piazza Del Dotto - I highly recommend booking the cave tour tasting. Your guide will take you to the barrels and fill your glass directly from the barrel. Our guide was SO fun and hilarious. After the tour, they sat us at a table and served us any other wines we wanted to try and pizzas. All this was included in the tour & tasting fee.
Grgich - This winery is a bit too busy for me & I did not love the wine, however, it made my list of favorites because you can participate in a grape stomp here. I thought this was such a fun experience!
Castello di Amoroso - Okay hear me out, this spot is typically very crowded and “touristy” and you have probably seen it all over social media, but it is worth visiting at least once. It’s unreal how they built this 14th-century Tuscan castle in Napa Valley and incredibly cool to walk around the property. The views from the top are beautiful and there are several animals on the property. The employees here are also so sweet and it was an overall very fun experience.
Where to stop for food while wine tasting in Napa Valley
Gotts Roadside - This is THE BEST place. Burgers, fries, & milkshakes. Need I say more? You can order ahead of time and pick it up. Then enjoy your meal in the back picnic area. They also have wine you can purchase and it’s dog-friendly!
Oakville Grocery- You can pick up a quick lunch at this cute grocery store & market. You can also do a wine tasting while here!
Rutherford Grill - The Rutherford Grill has the best veggie burger! You can enjoy a very peaceful lunch sitting out on the patio. Dogs welcome!
Where to Stay?
You really can’t go wrong when it comes to accommodation in Napa Valley/Sonoma area. I have stayed at both hotels and Airbnb and it completely depends on how big your group is and what you are looking for during your stay. The Airbnb will be more private and typically the ones I have stayed at have a pool and beautiful views. If you want to hire a private chief or have a larger group this may be the way to go. The hotels will have more things to do right on the property, more amenities, and can arrange activities for you. Two hotels I would recommend are The Meritage Resort and Spa in Napa and The Lodge at Sonoma in downtown Sonoma. Both are dog-friendly and have great restaurants.
Take time to explore Downtown Napa
I was told downtown Napa has had a huge facelift in the last 10-15 years. I was very impressed by downtown Napa. There are many shops, restaurants, bars, and of course, small wine-tasting stops all within walking distance. One place that was a great stop for lunch was the Oxbow Public Market. This is a big food hall and market that has nice outdoor seating an views of the river. My partner got oysters from Hog Island Oyster Co. and said they were delicious. I got a vegetarian sandwich from the Jewish deli, LoveSki’s Deli, and was very impressed.
Morimoto Asia Napa and Morimoto Napa are two locations right next to each other but one offers Asian fusion and the other offers more of a Sushi menu I highly recommend either of these places if you are craving yummy Asian food!
There are many places with wine tastings that you can enjoy while walking around downtown Napa. Many just let you walk in and taste! One spot we stopped at that I highly recommend was Gamling & McDuck. It is a small spot where you can belly up to the bar and catch up with the owners. They were so nice and this was a unique spot for a wine tasting. Dogs are allowed inside.
If you are craving something besides wine then make a stop at ArBARetum. This is a stylish cocktail bar that makes tasty and visually pleasing drinks! We saw dogs here too!
Spend a day exploring Sonoma
On my last trip, we stayed in Sonoma at a beautiful Airbnb. This was incredibly relaxing and Sonoma is slightly cheaper than Napa and less touristy. Sonoma was about a 30-40 min drive to Napa Valley and if you have extra time to spend a day exploring Sonoma I highly recommend it. The downtown area of Sonoma is smaller and quieter than Napa but it still has many shops and restaurants to explore. Two places I recommend for food are the girl & the fig and The Red Grape. Both these restaurants are right downtown and you can then stroll through the historic park & plaza.
If you prefer white wine over red then Sonoma will be a good spot for you to check out. Now I am no Sonoma winery expert so here is a website to check out award-winning wineries to help you plan your visit.
What else to do in Napa besides Wine? A lot.
If you are done with wineries, there are still many other things to enjoy in Napa Valley. Unfortunately, most the items below are not dog-friendly.
French Laundry: French Laundry is the best restaurant I have ever been to. Yes, ever. Everything is perfect and 100% visiting at least once in your life. The food, service, staff, the atmosphere, and small thoughtful moments. French Laundry is a 3-star Michelin restaurant in Yountville. Yountville is about 15-20 minutes from downtown Napa. It’s incredibly difficult to get a reservation and very pricey. Reservations are released on the first of each month for the following month at 10 a.m. Pacific Time. A reservation for 2 people or any odd number is the hardest to snag. Reservations are gone within seconds of them being released. If you are lucky enough to snag any reservation you will have the most amazing experience.
Hire a private chef for dinner: We booked with Nourished by Natasha one night for dinner at our Airbnb and couldn’t recommend her enough. Her food was fantastic and having someone cook you a private meal in Napa is a great way to spend a relaxing evening in.
Hot Air Balloon Rides: An amazing way to spend a morning is a hot air balloon ride over Napa Valley with beautiful views of vineyards.
Kayaking: Spend a morning stand-up paddling or kayaking down the Napa River.
Biking: The Napa Valley Vine Trail runs 12.5 miles from Napa to Yountville. You can rent bikes from many places around Napa. This can be a very fun way to get active in Napa.
Murder Mystery Dinner on the Napa Train: The Napa Valley Wine Train runs from downtown Napa through the vineyards. They have lunches and dinners most days, but they also hold special experiences. The murder mystery dinner is an immersive dinner theatre with different themes like Midnight Masquerade where guests wear Masquerade Ball Attire or Til Death Do Us Part where guests wear Wedding Dress/Suit or Wedding Attire. This could be a very fun activity for a wedding or bachelorette/bachelor party.
Enjoy your time in Napa!
