sonoma, california
Race-cation Celebration – Three Days in Sonoma
This trip was planned as a race-cation celebration following my first full Ironman race in Sacramento, CA. I was determined to celebrate my Ironman journey whether I crossed the finish line or not and booked everything in advance to make sure I did! While my husband had to head home following the race to get back to our kids and his work, my best friend and parents journeyed on with me. We traveled an hour and a half to Sonoma from Sacramento, and it was the perfect post-race location for some R&R and incredible food!
We stayed in The Lodge at Sonoma Resort, Autograph Collection and felt it was in a decent location close to the historical district. Though breakfast wasn’t included, they have a couple restaurants on-property to enjoy. We secured a room with two double beds and were excited for the hot tub and pool amenities. We didn’t use their spa, but it looked serene. Their lobby was also nice and offered some evening wine tastings during our stay.
Day 1
I visited the Osmosis Day Spa Sanctuary with my bestie where I had a sports massage and my most unique spa experience to date – soaking in a hot cedar enzyme bath. Prior to our treatments, we relaxed in a room with a beautiful garden view, trickling water fountain, and enjoyed a cup of hot herbal tea. I would recommend this experience. It was a dreamy way to recover following such a rigorous endurance race. I will emphasize that soaking in the hot cedar enzyme bath was HOT, but cold washcloths were provided to put on our foreheads, as well as a cup of cold water to drink. We also both got the cedar mixture stuck in every crevice of our bodies, but it is very soft, not rough or itchy, and we exited into a large shower room with many brushes and tools that helped wash us clean.
After our spa experience, we savored a delicious dinner at a restaurant called The Girl and the Fig. We enjoyed this restaurant so much that we returned for lunch the following day! My favorites were their charcuterie board, wild flounder with caper brown butter and potato puree, and crème brulé.
day 2
Today I splurged on my first ever hot air balloon ride! This experience has been on my bucket list for quite some time and it was a breathtaking area to enjoy from an arial viewpoint. We were impressed at the size and mechanics of the hot air balloons as they inflated and were prepped for flight. We climbed in and soared over several vineyards in the Carneros region and saw the San Francisco Bay and Pacific Ocean in the distance. We admired the sun as it rose. We were interrupted from our trance when we heard our pilot communicating over his walkie talkie to determine his best option for landing. We became a bit nervous when he started reviewing our body positioning required for landing since we didn’t have wheels and were informed we may experience several bounces…or could even tip. We all looked at each other like, “What have we gotten ourselves into now??” Thankfully, we found a landing spot and came in fairly smooth and upright.
We enjoyed this experience with Sonoma Ballooning. We felt they were well organized and kept our safety a priority. Following our hot air balloon ride, we found a little café to eat breakfast and then enjoyed shopping in the town square and visiting the original Williams Sonoma store. When we made it back to our resort, we relaxed in the hot tub to unwind from the day.
day 3
Today was a fun day touring a couple wineries in the area. We booked the Gundlach Bundschu Winery and Cave experience and followed it with a flavorful garden-fresh meal at Scribe Winery in their Hacienda. Since these two wineries are close to one another, it was the perfect pairing for the day!
The Gundlach Bundschu Winery, also known as Gun Bun, is the oldest family-owned winery in Sonoma. This tour included a lot of family history and it was special to learn of the six generations that have been involved in keeping this winery going. Walking through the underground wine caves made this tour unique and interesting, and capping it off in their cave dining room with a tasting of one of their vintage reserve wines was equally enjoyable. We were blessed with a beautiful day outside, so our tour also included a walk through some of the vineyards while we learned about their regenerative organic vineyard, sustainability practices, and old vines. The tour lasted about 90 minutes, as promised. We left impressed and my mom, who has a palate for dry wines, brought home several bottles of their Chardonnay. Even the non-wine drinkers in our group enjoyed this experience and received some money back at the end for bypassing the samples offered throughout the tour.
The Hacienda experience at Scribe Winery included breathtaking views and delicious garden snacks made with produce grown right on property! We sat outside on their patio at a corner table that overlooked their vineyards, palm trees and olive trees. We could even see their garden area in the distance. The property is simply beautiful. They provided a choice of a food-only option, or the full experience that included a tasting of four Scribe current release wines. We had takers of both options in our group, and everyone was pleased. It was not too crowded or noisy, we were not rushed, and we were able to soak up the sun, fresh bites, drinks, and each other’s company. None of us were Scribe winery members either, so this is an experience you can book in advance without membership.