Soak in the season
Relax, renew, regenerate with mud baths, spice-infused dips & more
We admit it: We’re picky spa divas. Fortunately, Wine Country exceeds our standards, offering some of the best, especially when it comes to treatments with seasonal flavor.
One of the newest destinations is Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa. Here, Asian traditions meet vineyard-infused treatments, and we’re booked for the Bali Spice Sacred Soak, billed as a warming, weather-busting bath designed to melt muscle knots. Oh, and did we mention you’ll sip ginger tea while you meditate? Also on the menu are the Java Lava Foot Reflexology massage featuring purifying volcanic mud, and the Pacific Fusian, a green tea and grape-seed body wrap.
Also in the Napa Valley is the posh Carneros Inn and Spa. Get a bliss blast from the cozy goat-butter massage (yes, it comes from local herds), or breathe deeply for maximum benefits during a eucalyptus-scented rubdown.
More granola than glam is Osmosis Spa, in Freestone, our favorite spa sanctuary, and an especially worthy spot if you’re exploring Petaluma, pastoral West SoCo and perhaps heading for the views of the Pacific. We love the blend of a pleasant Japanese vibe and seriously top-notch services. Don’t expect trendy; do expect understated excellence. This time of year we usually opt for the outdoor pagoda massages (equipped with heaters) where you’ll feel snug while you’re kneaded into serenity. Osmosis first gained distinction for its Cedar Enzyme baths, still one of the best ways we know to chase the chill.
Expect a chic environment, all-organic ingredients and a celeb clientele at the Hotel Healdsburg Spa. (This is also home to uber-chef Charlie Palmer’s Dry Creek Kitchen.) We can personally recommend the yam-and-pumpkin facial peel, a gentle treatment for those with sensitive skin (just about all of us, right?). Choose the pumpkin crème body wrap to hydrate your whole body, or go for the glow with the skin-polishing pear-and-apple scrub.
Vinotherapie (via the exclusive Caudalie product line) is the specialty at the French chateau-style Kenwood Inn and Spa. A wintergreen bath will brace you to face the season with extra energy, but we prefer to bring on the romance with an in-room, candlelight, fireside massage a deux.
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What insiders know
Many Wine Country spas have discounts – certain days and certain treatments – for locals.
But you have to ask to discover if you qualify for a reduced rate.
Plus, if you’re staying with a friend or relative who lives in WC, that can be enough to earn you a less spendy spa experience.
Just be sure you have the details of your pal’s particulars (address, phone) with you.
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Winetravel Regions
- Sonoma
Sonoma Valley, Sonoma, Kenwood, Glen Ellen
- Napa South
Carneros, Yountville, Napa, Rutherford
- Russian River
Guerneville, Forestville, Green Valley
Russian River, Santa Rosa
- Napa North
Calistoga, St. Helena, Spring Mountain
- Dry Creek
Healdsburg, Alexander Valley, Chalk Hill,
Dry Creek, Diamond Mountain
- Napa Central
Oak Knoll, Oakville, Rutherford
Stag's Leap, Yountville
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