Girlfriend Getaway in California Wine Country

Sandwiched between the charming town of Calistoga and the food mecca of Yountville lies the upscale Harvest Inn, situated smack dab in the middle of St. Helena, California. You could easily spend an entire weekend checking out the shops along St. Helena’s Main Street or visiting the St. Helena Farmers Market. But when in wine country, you’ll want to go wine tasting.  Fall is the best time to visit the Napa Valley because many of the summer tourists have returned home.  September and October are also back to school time. What better place to re-connect with girlfriends than a Napa Valley girlfriend getaway?

WINE COUNTRY SLUMBER PARTY PACKAGE

Our girlfriend getaway started with a private five-hour wine country tour and exclusive tastings at three Harvest Inn  winery partners. Our day began with liquid sunshine, (another word for rain) but it didn’t matter because we were ushered  into Markham Vineyards private tasting room. One of the Valley’s oldest and most beautiful wineries, Markham’s tour included a peek into the barrel room and a one-on-one tasting with the knowledgeable, yet approachable, tasting room manager. After a tasty boxed lunch from Michael Chiraello’s Napa Style, we were headed up St. Helena’s Spring Mountain Road to chat with Fred Schweiger, the owner of Schweiger Vineyards and meet his side kick, six week old Lucy, a friendly yellow Labrador Retriever puppy. Our afternoon ended in glorious sunshine and a tasting at the appointment-only Fleury Estate Winery in Rutherford, California. While the wines are high-end, the wine tastings end with chocolate-dipped fortune cookies holding fortunes that might read something like, “100% good juice.” It’s clear that the Fleury family members enjoy what they do. However, they don’t take themselves too seriously.

Spa Day at Harvest Inn

After an evening dinner at Cindy Pawlcyn’s Brassica Restaurant, we retreated to our King Fireplace Room with a pull out sofa bed sleeper, changing into our Harvest Inn robes and continuing our Girlfriend Getaway talk into the wee hours of the morning.  We awoke to a hearty complimentary continental breakfast from the Wine Country Kithen. After breakfast, we changed back into our cozy robes (that you get to keep if you purchase the package) and headed to the spa for our 60-minute massage treatment. My friend enjoyed the Harvest Inn massage, while I selected the deep tissue massage – heaven on Earth. Weather-permitting, you may opt to have your massage in a therapy room or in the al fresco cabana tucked into the Inn’s private Redwood Grove, or in your guestroom for an additional charge.  In the afternoon,  shop the boutiques on St. Helena’s Main Street, stopping at Woodhouse chocolate if you need to restock the box of chocolates provided by the Harvest Inn. We were so busy catching up with each other, that we never did visit the swimming pools, but we did enjoy walking the Inn’s eight acres of gardens, fountains and ponds.

Go with a girlfrend – return again with your boyfriend

The two-night package included a King Vineyard View room, a chilled bottle of Schramsberg sparkling wine and handmade Woodhouse chocolates. The guest room featured a wood burning fireplace, oversized bathroom, and patio overlooking the adjacent vineyards and Mayacamas Mountains. Each girlfriend may keep one of the Inn’s bathrobes as a memento. While I loved my together time with my girlfriend, I look forward to returning to the Harvest Inn with my husband. This wine country getaway also doubles as a romantic hideaway!

‘Wine Country Slumber Party – Unplugged’ starts at $1999. for two nights, based on double occupancy; taxes and gratuities are not included. The package also includes a daily breakfast, on-site parking, unlimited access to the Fitness Center and two heated swimming pools. The Inn also has complimentary wired and Wi-Fi internet access.

• Two nights in a King Vineyard View guest room
• One hour reception featuring local wines and cheeses in the Great Room
• Private five-hour wine country tour in a luxury sedan and exclusive tastings at two Harvest Inn preferred winery partners
• Tour, tasting and two picnic lunches at Markham Vineyards
• Two 60-minute massage treatments of choice, in the massage therapy room or al fresco cabana tucked into the Inn’s private Redwood Grove or in the guestroom for an additional charge
• One  bottle of Schramsberg sparkling wine and a selection of handmade Woodhouse chocolates
• Two of the Inn’s bathrobes
• Daily European-style breakfast in the Wine Country Kitchen
• Complimentary on-site parking
• Unlimited access to the Fitness Center and two heated swimming pools
• Pet-friendly Property

More Details:

Harvest Inn is on Twitter and you may friend the resort on Facebook. Harvest Inn is a four star member of the AAA Diamond Program.

If You Go:

Harvest Inn (707) 963-4402 or (800) 950-8466

One Main Street, St. Helena, California 94574

Article written by and photos courtesy of  Travel Destinations Expert Nancy D. Brown of What a Trip, Travels from Northern California.

I was a guest of Harvest Inn.

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