The things to do in Napa Valley besides wine tasting that we could check are the Napa Valley Wine Train, the Oxbow Public Market, Castello di Amorosa, the Calistoga mineral spas, the Old Faithful Geyser of California, Bothe-Napa Valley State Park, Yountville and a balloon flight. You can reach Napa from San Francisco without a car, by the $10.00 ferry to Vallejo and a $2.00 bus. We read each official page on 15 October 2026.
The sights, with address, hours and price
Wine tasting, and why to book
Note: Visit Napa Valley's first-timer guide says "a good rule of thumb is to assume that a reservation is most likely required." It says many tasting rooms, especially in downtown Napa, take walk-ins, and it tells you to check the winery's website or call first (Visit Napa Valley, first-timer's guide, read 15 Oct 2026)
This guide is about the other things to do. If you do taste wine, book each room ahead and plan your ride home first.
Napa Valley Wine Train
Address: 1275 McKinstry Street, Napa, CA 94559. Phone 1-800-427-4124 (Napa Valley Wine Train home page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The home page says journeys last about 2.5 to 6 hours. Dinner trips are 2.5 hours, lunch trips about 3 hours, and the Legacy Experience is 6 hours (same page)
Price: "From" prices on the experiences page for the next open date, read 15 Oct 2026: Gourmet Express Dinner $284.25 and Gourmet Express Lunch $337.43 (1 guest minimum). Vista Dome Dinner $420.14, Tasting on the Rails Dinner $429.77, Tasting on the Rails Lunch $465.22 and Legacy Experience $694.31 (2 guest minimum). The page does not say whether a price is per person, and it shows no children's rates. Prices change by date
Oxbow Public Market
Address: 610 and 644 First Street, Napa, CA 94559. Phone 707-226-6529 (Oxbow Public Market website, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Every day, 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. (same page)
Price: The page lists no entry fee. Each stall sets its own prices, and we did not check them
The market is in downtown Napa. The website gives no walking time to the river or to the Wine Train, so we do not give one.
Castello di Amorosa
Address: 4045 St Helena Hwy, Calistoga, CA 94515. Phone 707-967-6272 (Castello di Amorosa visit page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The site says "OPEN: BY RESERVATION," daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Closed on Thanksgiving Day, open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on 24 December, and closed on 25 December (same page)
Price: Tour and tasting prices are not confirmed, because they load in a booking tool our reader could not see. The site says online bookings carry a flat $4.95 fee, and you get a full refund or change up to 24 hours before the booking. Prices can change without notice and tax is extra
The site calls it a castle winery built in the style of 14th-century Tuscany. Age rules for tours are not confirmed.
Calistoga hot springs and mud baths
Address: Visit Calistoga's spa directory lists these spas. Calistoga Spa Hot Springs, 1006 Washington Street. Indian Springs Calistoga, 1712 Lincoln Avenue. Baths at Roman Spa, 1300 Washington Street. Golden Haven Hot Springs Spa and Resort, 1713 Lake Street. Dr. Wilkinson's Backyard Resort and Mineral Springs, 1507 Lincoln Avenue. Solage, an Auberge Resort, 755 Silverado Trail. MoonAcre Spa and Baths, 1880 Lincoln Avenue (Visit Calistoga spas page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Price: The directory lists no mud bath prices and no hours. Prices and hours are not confirmed, so check each spa and book ahead
Old Faithful Geyser of California
Address: 1299 Tubbs Lane, Calistoga, CA 94515. Phone 707-942-6463 (geyser website, plan your visit page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Open 365 days a year, rain or shine, from 9 a.m. The site says it closes around 7 p.m. from late spring through summer and earlier in the off-season. Call for holiday hours. The geyser erupts about every 15 to 30 minutes (same page)
Price: Adults 12 to 61 $18. Seniors 62 and over $15. Children 4 to 11 $12. Under 4 free. Military, students and teachers with ID $15. People who arrive by bike $15. Online bookings add a small fee (same page)
Bothe-Napa Valley State Park
Address: The page says the park is 5 miles north of St. Helena and 4 miles south of Calistoga on Highway 29/128. It gives no street address. Phone 707-942-4575 (California State Parks, Bothe-Napa Valley State Park page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: Daily, 8 a.m. to sunset (same page)
Price: Vehicle day use $10. The pool costs $5 and is open Saturdays and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. with a lifeguard. The page does not say which months the pool is open, so we did not confirm it is open now (same page)
The page says the campground is open all year and that booking through ReserveCalifornia is recommended.
Yountville
Note: Yountville is a small town between Napa and St. Helena on Highway 29, and Vine Route 10 stops at the Yountville Veterans Home. It is not a single ticketed sight, so there are no hours or prices. The balloon company below checks in at 6525 Washington Street in Yountville (Vine Transit Route 10 page and Napa Valley Aloft, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hot air balloon flights
Address: Napa Valley Aloft's Premier Balloon Experience checks in at 6525 Washington Street, Yountville. Phone 707-944-4400 (Napa Valley Aloft, flight options page, read 15 Oct 2026)
Hours: The page says about 4 hours in all, with a 45 to 60 minute balloon ride. It lists no start time, so the time is not confirmed
Price: $300 per person for the Premier Balloon Experience. Private flights and large groups are "call for pricing." The page says discounts are available for children, military and seniors, with no amounts given
Where to stay in Napa Valley
We did not check any hotel rate or room list, so we give no prices.
| Area | What it is near |
|---|---|
| Napa | The Wine Train at 1275 McKinstry Street, Oxbow Public Market, the riverfront, the Soscol Gateway Transit Center for Vine buses |
| Yountville | The balloon check-in on Washington Street, and a Route 10 stop |
| St. Helena | Between Yountville and Calistoga on Highway 29. Bothe-Napa Valley State Park is 5 miles north of it |
| Calistoga | The spas, the geyser and Castello di Amorosa |
Getting there without a car
We read the SF Bay Ferry Vallejo route page and the Vine Transit fares, connections and route pages on 15 October 2026. Vine is the Napa County bus.
Getting there: From the ferry. SF Bay Ferry's Vallejo boats leave from Gate E1 at the Downtown San Francisco Ferry Terminal. The operator says the trip takes about 60 minutes. The adult fare is $10.00 one way since 1 July 2026, the same on Clipper, paper or mobile ticket. The discount fare is $5.00 (65 and over, 17 and under, and other groups), and children under 5 ride free. On weekdays the first boat to Vallejo leaves San Francisco at 6:35 a.m. and the last at 8:10 p.m. On weekends the first leaves at 10:25 a.m. and the last at 8:40 p.m. (timetable effective 9 March 2026). At Vallejo, Vine Route 11 meets the ferry seven days a week. Vine's adult fare is $2.00 a ride, and an adult day pass is $7.00. On the weekday timetable, Route 11 takes about an hour between the Vallejo Ferry Terminal and the Soscol Gateway Transit Center in Napa
Getting there: From BART. Vine Route 29 meets BART at El Cerrito del Norte station Monday to Saturday, not Sunday. The fare is $6.00, and Vine's day pass is not valid on Route 29. On weekdays, buses to Napa leave El Cerrito del Norte from 5:40 a.m. to 7:05 p.m. and take 54 to 69 minutes to the Redwood Park and Ride in Napa. On Saturdays they leave from 8:15 a.m. to 5:40 p.m. and take 57 minutes (Vine Route 29 timetable)
Our San Francisco without a car guide covers BART, Muni and the ferries in the city. With the ferry and Route 11, you do not need a rental car to reach the town of Napa.
Do I need a car in Napa Valley?
You do not need one to reach the town of Napa. Moving around the valley is harder. Vine Route 10, the Up Valley Connector, runs every day between Napa, Yountville, St. Helena and Calistoga, with stops such as the Yountville Veterans Home, the St. Helena Post Office and downtown Calistoga. Many wineries, the geyser and Bothe-Napa Valley State Park are away from those stops, and we did not confirm the walk from a stop to each sight. Visit Napa Valley lists rideshare apps, taxis, shuttles and limousines for getting around.
If you plan to taste wine, do not drive yourself. Visit Napa Valley's first-timer guide says to arrange other transport ahead of time.
The best time to visit
Normals are from NOAA's 1991 to 2020 data for the Napa State Hospital station, read through the NCEI data API on 15 October 2026. It is a valley-floor station near the city of Napa, and Calistoga can be different. Temperatures are in degrees Fahrenheit.
| Month | Average high | Average low | Precipitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 58.6 | 40.1 | 4.98 in |
| April | 72.1 | 45.6 | 1.72 in |
| July | 83.3 | 55.5 | 0.00 in |
| October | 78.1 | 49.3 | 1.34 in |
Visit Napa Valley says there is not much of an off-season. It calls spring mustard season and fall harvest season, and its events list puts harvest in August to October. Summers are dry and winters are wet. These are averages, not a forecast.
What we checked and what can change
Read on 15 October 2026: Visit Napa Valley's first-timer guide, the Napa Valley Wine Train's home page and experiences page, the Oxbow Public Market website, Castello di Amorosa's visit page, Visit Calistoga's spas page, the Old Faithful Geyser's plan your visit page, California State Parks' Bothe-Napa Valley State Park page, Napa Valley Aloft's flight options page, SF Bay Ferry's Vallejo route page and July 2026 fare change page, Vine Transit's fares, connections, Route 10, Route 11 and Route 29 pages, and NOAA's NCEI 1991 to 2020 monthly normals.
Not confirmed: Castello di Amorosa's tour prices and age rules, Calistoga spa prices and hours, the Wine Train's per-person price and children's rates, the balloon start time, the walk from a Vine stop to each sight, the BART fare to El Cerrito del Norte, holiday ferry times, and every hotel rate. Prices and hours change, so check each page for your date. We did not visit Napa Valley for this page.
