Wine country has become a lot more hip in the past few years, and many hotels in Napa and Sonoma have followed suit. Gone are the rich burgundy and brassy-gold hues, the mahogany, the heavy fabrics—they’ve been replaced by airy color palettes, reclaimed wood, and a generally more playful vibe. We’re all about new hotel openings here at AFAR—see our excitement about this inn-restaurant-farm concept coming this summer—but we’re equally jazzed about our old favorites getting a bit of new life. Here are the most exciting wine country hotel renovations we’ve experienced.
The Grove Room at Harvest Inn
Photo courtesy Harvest Inn
1. Harvest Inn by Charlie Palmer
When Charlie Palmer and his partners acquired The Harvest Inn in 2014, they set out to bring the classic Napa property into the current zeitgeist. The first phase was to renovate the reception area and the connected Harvest Table restaurant to give them a more modern, welcoming look with neutral hues and brushed-nickel fixtures—a place where you’d love to linger over an afternoon drink. Aside from renovating the existing 55 rooms with new lighting, soft upgrades, USB outlets, and a bright, airy color palette, the property is debuting its new Vineyard View Collection rooms on June 6, 2016. These 22 rooms have patios that overlook Whitehall Lane Winery’s Leonardi Vineyard and have exclusive luxury features—some even have vineyard-view hot tubs.
A cottage at Carneros Resort
Photo by John Russo
2. The Carneros Inn
Over the course of a $6.5 million renovation set to wrap next year, The Carneros Inn’s 86 cozy stand-alone cottages and 10 larger suites will get big upgrades in their bathrooms, such as heated-tile flooring and soaking tubs. They’ll also see some soft renovations, including Eames-inspired lounge chairs and a more neutral, relaxing color palette, which plays on the tiny houses’ great natural light. 40 cottages are getting their facelifts in 2016, with the rest coming in 2017. The biggest change at The Carneros Inn, however, is the new Guest Reception building, which is much closer to the entrance than the former reception area. Napa-based design firm Shopworks designed the space and fitted it with limestone flooring, white batten walls, and a beautiful walnut front desk with a Carrera marble top—so you’ll feel relaxed and right at home as soon as you check in.
A newly renovated room at Hotel Healdsburg
Photo courtesy Hotel Healdsburg
3. Hotel Healdsburg
In the heart of Healdsburg, boutique property Hotel Healdsburg couldn’t be better positioned for a weekend in Sonoma. Its newly renovated rooms are clad in soft lavender, blue, and neutral tones, and outfitted with locally crafted artisan pieces, including ceramic mugs and plates from Jered’s Pottery, fixtures by Pritchard Peck Lighting Designs, and custom beds made from bay laurel trees by David Baker Architects. The pool, which was also recently refreshed, now features a custom zinc and concrete pool bar from Berkeley design firm DeFauw Design+Fabrication—a perfect place to unwind after a day of wine-tasting.
