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Our Favorite California Travel - Napa Valley Websites
Magnificent wines, picturesque wineries, gently rolling hills, and landscape that makes you catch your breath -- no wonder Napa Valley is a world-class tourist destination. (Doesn't hurt that it's just an hour from San Francisco, either!)

We've got lots more to share besides the wines (though once you've heard Alan Arnopole yodel to the oaken casks at Peju Province Winery, you'll swear we've all been a tad too close to the fermentation tanks.)

Come and savor the rest of Napa Valley... and here are some of the better sites to help you find your way.

Digital Daily--The Local Paper Scores
If you're looking for festivals, events, news and the flavor of Napa's daily life, this is the site. Check out their Calendar, Art Notes and free Napa Valley screensavers. Of course, once you read the fishing report, you may be inclined to pack your rod and reel...
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star
A World-Class Winemaker's Site
This is a real "wow" of a site -- the local vintners have created a show-and-tell that will have you entranced. Everything from why Napa's great for grapes, what each of the appellations mean, maps, harvest reports, and some of the coolest flash effects that will have you drooling in your cabernet...
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star
A Napa Visitor's Guide
This was one of the earliest online visitor's guides to Napa, and is the official site of the Napa Visitor's Center. NapaValley.com is part of the WineCountry series of websites. It has recently been beautifully redesigned, and has lots of great resources for your visit (though it tends to feature the pricey stuff). And it's my competition, so I won't necessarily rave about it -- but do check it out. It's a wow site.
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star
Peep at a Real Live Vineyard
Somebody had to do it, and fortunately it was National Geographic photographer Charles O'Rear who put the webcam out in the vineyard so you can watch the vines cavort in their own Survivor's soap opera. The image updates hourly, so you can actually watch the mustard grow, assuming that you don't have anything more pressing...
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star
Your guide's Own Everything Link to Napa Valley
I'd be remiss if I didn't disclose right up front that this is my own company's site, and yes, I'm totally biased. It's a comprehensive visitor's guide and regional directory, including links to discounted online travel reservation systems, accommodations, wineries, and anything else you can think of (like if you're a visiting Rotarian and want to know what clubs are here).

Plus, we've partnered with WineXplorer.com to provide you with reviews of wineries, visitor hours, tasting room charges, and all that stuff. And if you don't see what you want, we've got HumanClick so you can ask!
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star

California Travel - Napa Valley Online Magazine
I, too, find it hard to believe that there aren't a ton of worthwhile e-zines and discussion groups about Napa Valley, but maybe they're all out at the tasting rooms. Here are two that are fun to read.
WineXWired Magazine
Though not strictly just a Napa Valley site (they are located in next-door Sonoma Valley), this irreverent and pleasantly obnoxious bi-monthly magazine covers the Napa Valley wine scene. Biggest grin: their "X-rated" wine reviews poke fun at the more serious and pretentious wine rags. For example, don't you just want to try a wine that's described as a "door to door sod salesman -- aggressive, grassy and persuasive"?

Subscribe over the 'net and get 7 issues for the price of 6 issues - $21. Wine X also has a free weekly email blast. Every Friday you'll get five new wine recommendations, a hot topic of the week and news on what's happenin' at the only wine magazine targeting young adults. Send an email to winex@winexwired.com and write "Sign Me Up" in the subject box and you're on the list.
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star

Paul Franson's Napa Life
Paul Franson is a a columnist for the local paper, and this is the Register's compilation of his weekly articles on happenings around the valley -- focused mainly on wine and food. Check him out for the latest restaurant reviews.
Avg. visitor rating 4.5 star
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