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One of the best parts about living in the Pacific Northwest is probably the fact that it's quick and easy to do a weekend getaway to California. In efforts to escape the rain, my boyfriend and I decided to go to Berkeley, California! One of our favorite bands, Rufus du Sol was playing at the Greek Theatre so we decided to hop on a plane and go see them live. We made an adventure out of it and decided to rent a car and head to Napa Valley the next day as well. We didn't have enough time to go to the Golden Gate Bridge and do the "touristy" San Francisco things. But if you want a more "off-the-beaten path" itinerary of things to do in Northern California then keep on reading!
First things first was booking a hotel in Berkeley, I partnered with Roomkey.com to search and find my hotel. Planning a trip is one of my favorite things to do, but it can also be kind of stressful when booking a hotel to make sure you have the best price and location. Roomkey.com is a search engine for hotels, it's not a middle man or a travel agency site so there are no hidden fees. You can filter by price, loyalty program, brand of hotel, and particular amenities. It also shows the hotels on a map so you can choose the best location. In this case, I was looking for a hotel closest to the Greek Theatre (where the show was playing). Once you pick a hotel, you are transferred directly to the hotel's website to secure a legit room, the best rate, and loyalty points. I would highly recommend to check out their site for your next vacation!
We picked the Double Tree Hilton Marina, it was the best option in Berkeley because it was a nice hotel right by the Marina! It was such a pretty and relaxing hotel. We got a king room with the balcony view of the marina. It was amazing to wake up to this! You could even see the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance. This hotel also had a courtesy shuttle that takes you to UC Berkeley area, which was perfect to get to and from the show.
Walking around the hotel property and seeing all of the boats on the water was so relaxing. We went mid-July and the weather was great, sunny with a calm breeze. It was such a chill way to experience Northern California.
The best part of the hotel was the pool. The pool was indoors with a wood ceiling with a hot tub and even a sauna. It was the perfect way to relax before the show. Also, as if it didn't get any better, the pool water was heated!
After the pool sesh, we got ready to go out and pre-game before the show. We took the hotel's courtesy shuttle to Telegraph Avenue. We decided to grab a drink and eat dinner here, it was a super lively street with bars, restaurants, and street vendors. We went to a bar called Pappy's, it was a sports bar that poured some stiff drinks. Then we had dinner at Muracci's Berkeley and had some amazing chicken katsu curry. After dinner, we walked across the UC Berkeley campus to get to the Greek Theatre for the show.
If you are going to a show at the Greek Theatre and the doors open at 5pm but the show starts at 7pm, I would say the sweet spot time to get there is around 6:00pm to 6:30pm to grab a good seat. The venue is huge so there's plenty of seats to choose from, but it is first come first serve. So if you are a big fan like we are, you'll want to get a little closer and have a great view.
The Rufus du Sol show was simply magical! I never wanted it to end. The sound at the Greek Theatre was incredible and I loved the venue so much. The crowd was super fun and friendly too, good vibes all around. I would highly recommend catching a show at the Greek Theatre the next time you are in Northern California!
The next day, our flight wasn't until 10pm so we decided to rent a car and drive an hour and a half to Napa Valley! We had enough time to drive past Napa to Calistoga to check out the Castello di Amorosa castle.
This place was gorgeous from the outside, such a cool castle. But when we went it was packed with people. It's about $30 to go inside the castle and wine taste, no reservations required. But in efforts to avoid the crowds, we decided to just wander around the castle property and take some pictures.
The next winery we went to was Vincent Arroyo. This was just a 10 minute drive from the castle. Tastings here are $20 but you have to make an appointment before hand. Vincent Arroyo is a family owned and it was not your stereotypical winery. It was such a great experience, it was a more intimate tasting and engaged tour of the vineyard.
Vincent Arroyo wines are only available for purchase direct-to-consumer. That means you can't find their wines anywhere but there. We tried about 5 different wines with a tour of the winery in between tastings. The property was beautiful and I learned so much about wine in the 2 hours we were there. If you do decide to go, make sure to get Jeff as the tour guide. He was so passionate, super informative, and had great stories. We ended up buying 3 bottles to take home, Petite Syrahs and Cabernet Franc. They pack it up nice and secure to check it in at the airport so it was really easy to take home!
For dinner we made reservations to Morimoto. The restaurant of Masaharu Morimoto, the Japanese chef best known as the "Iron Chef". The food was amazing, we ordered the hamachi tacos, the oysters, the chasu pork ramen, the braised octopus, and the sticky ribs. Every dish was so good and nicely executed. The restaurant is located right by the Napa river waterfront, it was the best way to end the trip.
After dinner we headed towards the Oakland airport and returned the rental car. It was such an easy and smooth itinerary! I had such a fun time in Berkeley and Napa and would highly recommend going if you want a fun weekend getaway.
<3,
Laura C.
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