48 Hours Solo in Sonoma: What to See & Do!

Last month, I booked a trip to wine country to meet up with a girlfriend. She was starting an epic road trip from Seattle to Houston, and I was desperate for some sunshine. I booked my flight almost 2 whole days before she would arrive, because the airfare was cheaper. Which, lead to me spending roughly 48 Hours Solo in Sonoma!

The minute I got off the plane, the sun hit my face and I was the happiest I’d been in months. If there’s one thing you can always count on, it’s the California sun in this region… and she’s brutal!

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Table of Contents

48 Hours Solo in Sonoma: What to See & Do!

I’m ready to hop in. Are you? Let’s go!

How to get to Sonoma/Napa Valley

To be honest, this might differ depending on where you’re coming from, and your price range. I’m a budget traveler. So, I did a lot of research before purchasing my plane ticket. I was able to find an early morning, direct flight, from SeaTac to the Santa Rosa/Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport (longest name ever) for a great price. It was the easiest 1-hour and 55-minute flight!

Not only that but the airport was so tiny. It was effortless. If you can get a good deal, I highly recommend flying in.

After I got my luggage, I booked an uber to my accommodations. The drive was seamless and it was about $65 (including taxes, gas surcharge, & tip). Though that seems like a lot, I looked up renting a car for those 2 days and it was laughable. It was more than my flights in and out of the Napa Valley.

If I didn’t have plans to meet with my friend, I would have definitely chosen to fly out of Santa Rosa because of how simple the whole venture was. But, since J was on her road trip, I choose to drive down with her to San Jose. There, she dropped me at the airport and started her leg to LA.

I love the idea of taking a road trip and having multiple friends join me along the way! Storing that genius idea away, for future adventures.

Where to Stay in Sonoma

I ended up finding a great deal on the Best Western Sonoma Valley Inn & Krug Event Center. This was the nicest Best Western I’ve ever stayed at. It might be the first and only Best Western, actually… but not the last!

You can tell it used to be an old family-friendly inn and they kept that vibe. I had such a charming experience with the staff and the other guests staying there. I genuinely recommend this motel.

It was around the corner from everything, including the main downtown area. I loved it, especially their pool. Where I spent way more of my tine that I thought I would at. Honestly, I’m happy I did. I really needed the time to finish my book & the R&R.

Pros & cons to staying Downtown:

Again, the downtown area is small but if I had a car, I don’t know if I would have stayed downtown. I might’ve tried to find even cheaper accommodations on the outskirts but this was perfect for my car-less trip.

Pros:

Totally walkable and close to everything you need. Whole Foods, CVS, Gas Station, Movie Theater, etc.
Tons of local wine tastings
Amazing restaurants to choose from
The main street park is adorable and the perfect picnic spot

Cons:

A LOT of people around you constantly
More drunk drivers at night than expected
Downtown shuts down early on the weekdays

What to do in Sonoma

Sonoma is small. Like, cute, quaint, “was there a Hallmark movie filmed here?”, small. Especially around the downtown area and because of the charm, I felt super safe traveling alone there.

The people are wonderful and if you don’t do anything, at least try and support their local businesses. They have everything you need and expect from a little wine town.

Day One

After I got to my motel and unpacked, I made a quick supply run to Whole Foods. I was expecting 104* heat the following day and I had already landed in 98* (when I was coming from 53* 🙄). I grabbed a gallon of water, some goat cheese, crackers, and a lovely bottle of Napa rosé…

The next thing on the agenda was to go to the pool! No joke. I got to wine country … and I went straight to the pool. Again, I got there so early that I wasn’t hungry for lunch yet. I decided to take my time and open the pre-chilled rosé and enjoy the sunshine.

After a few hours at the pool, I rinsed off, get dressed, and hit the town. I went on a nice two-mile walk, weaving in and out of neighborhoods, and getting acquainted with downtown. There were some hidden wine tasting rooms scattered throughout, like:

Auteur Wine (in a darling bungalow off the main strip)
Highway 12 Winery (hidden but in this cute barn house, and it’s only $20 tastings!)
Sebastiani (might be the closest winery from the strip. Totally walkable and beautiful)
Sojourn Cellars (though on the main ride, adding because I loved their crisp and modern vibe/tasting room)

If I had a do-over and was in more of a “drinking mood”, I would have made the entire day dedicated to wine tasting but, I knew I had a full day of tastings when J got to town. I didn’t want to overdo it. Especially due to the heat. In short, I took the single-woman traveling approach and I played it safe. I don’t regret that either because there were a lot of drunk drivers on the road later in the evenings.

As the day progressed, I realized downtown closes up early on weekdays. Including the tasting rooms and even the restaurants! As it was a Thursday, I hadn’t planned for all the restaurants to be closed. The only place open was the movie theater and the last showing was at 6 pm!

So, if you’re coming on a weekday, make sure to book a reservation for an early dinner, or else, you’ll have to I called it quits early as I did. I went back to my hotel room, watched Jurassic Park, and passed out.

In short: I didn’t do anything special but if I had a do-over…here’s what I would have done and advise you to do:

Have a snack lunch at Sonoma Plaza park
Go wine tasting at one of the wineries mentioned above
Rent a bike or scooter and go up and down Sonoma
Get dinner at El Dorado Kitchen

Day Two

Day two was different because I knew J was picking me up around 3:30 pm. I got up, brushed my teeth, grabbed my book, and headed to the front desk for continental breakfast! I always try and take advantage of this because it helps save a little money.

If that’s not your ideal breakfast, I recommend hitting up the Sunflower Caffé or Homegrown Bagels.

After, I wished my room well and kindly asked the front desk to hold my luggage while I got lunch. They were SO kind and even said I could lay at the pool while I waited for my friend. You guys, I cannot recommend the Sonoma Inn enough. I really can’t. I had the best experience. Especially considering it was my first motel experience.

To be honest, I had every intention of booking one of the three tours below but the two bike/scooter ones don’t allow you to book as a solo traveler. Which was really disappointing but because I was meeting J, I wouldn’t have been back in time anyway. Regardless, I highly recommend using Viator for tour. Whether you’re going alone or with a partner, etc. The tours below look amazing and I’ve never had a bad experience with the company.

After snapping photos of the town, I walked to the girl & the fig and was able to get a table outside in the sunshine. I had the kindest server who kept checking on me. I got the fig & arugula salad (toasted pecans, pancetta, Laura Chenel chevre, fig & port vinaigrette) and a glass of their very own the girl & the fig 2021 Old Vine Rosé. It was SO good you guys! I loved it and would have gone back the next day for the same thing if I could.

When I was done, I sat with another glass of wine before paying and heading back to my hotel for some more pool time. I finished my book and waited for my friend. She picked me up and we drove to downtown Napa, checked into our hotel, and then went to Brix for dinner. Which, 10/10 highly recommend. If you can get Denise as your server, even better. She was amazinggggg!

In short: I didn’t do much on day 2 either but here’s what I would do if I had a do-over:

Go to one of the two breakfast spots mentioned above
Book a Viator tour and maximize the wine tasting experiences
Go to Sonoma Grille and Bar for dinner (if I was staying another night)

Trip Expectations vs Reality

Sonoma Valley is expensive. At $50 a wine tasting (minimum) and the average price of a bottle is $55, you’re looking at a hefty bill. Especially when you need to check a bag on your way home due to said wine. Three-four rooms is roughly $200 spent in a day… and you’re not even going home with anything! That’s also not including snacks for when you need to soak up everything you drank.
Wine > Pool Time. False. I was shocked at myself but so happy I played it safe on this trip. I genuinely thought I was going to do everything possible and kept myself wine-bee-busy. Alas, no. I truly needed a vacation and not an over-booked adventure. I’m sorry to disappoint everyone for not doing the most, but I hope you find my suggestions useful.

Trip Highlights

I actually took an airplane in 2022 and laid at a pool and did nothing for hours!
the girl & the fig was SO good!
I finished my book, exactly as I’d hoped to.

Thanks so much for reading, you guys! This was so much fun to look back at my pictures and get to write about. Hope you enjoy it.