Hotel Villagio
Urban glamour and spaces for socializing distinguish the recently renovated Hotel Villagio in Yountville, a short walk to the French Laundry and other elite restaurants.
Shoot pool in the lobby or have a cocktail garnished from the lobby bar’s new herb garden before retiring to rooms with hand-knotted rugs and mahogany headboards.
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Soak in the glow of your bathroom’s illuminated, freestanding bathtub, or lounge by the pool in a private cabana.
6481 Washington Street, Yountville. 707.944.8877
MacArthur Place
Built as a private estate near Sonoma Plaza in 1869 and a bed-and-breakfast hotel since 1997, MacArthur Place turned 150 with a bang: a top-to-bottom transformation of its 64 rooms and public areas. Farmhouse and industrial elements blend easily in the sophisticated interiors, some with wood-burning fireplaces or spacious outdoor shower gardens.
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The hotel’s former Saddles steakhouse is now Layla, an airy oasis for shakshuka and other sumptuous Middle Eastern/Mediterranean fare from executive chef Cole Dickinson.
29 E. MacArthur Street, Sonoma. 707.938.2929
The Setting Inn
Formerly the Napa Vineyard Inn, this historic landmark farmhouse built in 1901 has been renovated and reborn as The Setting Inn. Now under the ownership of The Setting Wines founders, the property boasts new furniture, fixtures and decor and a private tasting area inside the on-site barn where guests can enjoy a glass of wine and a cheese and charcuterie plate on arrival.
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Other additions include luxe amenities, breakfast from Bouchon Bakery, L’Occitane bath products, heated bathroom floors, in-room electric fireplaces, soaking tubs and a fitness room with a Peloton bike.
1205 Hillview Lane, Napa. 707.927.3909
Travel and features writer Jeanne Cooper fell in love with Marin and the Bay Area as a graduate student at Stanford University. After 20 years as an editor and writer for the Washington Post, Boston Globe and San Francisco Chronicle, she began a freelance career that has taken her from the Austral Islands to Zimbabwe, with many visits to Hawaii in between. Her stories have appeared in numerous national and regional magazines, including Hemispheres, Sunset, San Francisco and Nob Hill Gazette, as well as Marin and Local Getaways. The author of several Frommer’s guidebooks, she now lives on the Big Island, where she’s active in animal rescue. She still enjoys exploring Northern California with her husband and friends.
