Wine, Dine and Lighthouses

Another beautiful area of the United States, the west coast of California and Oregon, an area with many vineyards, four star restaurants and historical lighthouses. Along the West coast is one of the National Park wonders, the Redwood National park, which is an awesome visit in the shaded park during the mild California summers. Summer vacations to the west coast are breath taking both from a tour perspective and a self drive vacation. This self drive designed vacation from Star Banquets and Travel is another best of the best vacations of 2011. A Globus tour is also detailed that expands a little further east to additional National Parks and further North through Washington to Seattle. We will detail a few of the incredible wineries in both California and Oregon. Read about some of the best hotels starting in San Francisco then heading North and some of the best four star restaurants. Such incredible vacations make some wonder if going overseas is necessary to find the best of the best vacations.
 Knowing that wineries is part of this West coast vacation article, the Sonoma Valley will obviously be a major focus but, we first get settled in San Francisco, one of the best culinary cities in the U.S. A choice locations to settle in San Francisco for a couple days is the Hotel Adagio, which is a Joie de Vivre Boutique Hotel. The hotel is located near Union Square, which offers an astonishing selection of antique shops, art galleries, bars, cafés, coffee, department stores and some of the best restaurants in the country. Take a stroll after dinner and choose from five ice cream and sweet shops. First choice for dinner is simple, Fisherman’s Wharf and Star Banquets and Travel offers many selections on our San Francisco website, www.sanfranciscoreservations.info for Fisherman’s Wharf than include Fog Harbor Fish House, Fishermen’s Grotto #9, Alioto’s, Ana Mandara who is  on our top 2011 picks. Ana Mandara is our top pick for the first night in San Francisco. With 171 reviews on OpenTable.com alone, a menu that is as unique as they come, and a menu layout that is just quite interesting and will bring the curiosity out of anyone. Highlights of their menu, starting with appetizers, Vietnamese crispy rolls, crabmeat, shrimp, & Shiitake mushrooms; or another that will catch the eye, seared beef Carpaccio, julienne Papaya – green Apple, Tamarine sauce and Shrimp crackers. The menu offers many choices, it is quite large and entrées include fish of the day dusted with Wasabi, sautéed Brussel sprouts and fried green tomatoes served with chili – honey mustard sauce. Those who are not seafood fans, the menu brings a Prime Filet Mignon with grilled pineapple, sautéed mushrooms, crunchy sweet rice cake and pineapple sauce or try the slow  roasted Sonoma duck breast with Daikon (Turnips) cake and long beans served with Pinenut sauce. Whether a long day of travel was required for your visit to San Francisco will determine as to one or two nights in San Francisco. So, when you are rested, excited, ready to move on, the next leg of the vacation is heading north to a tour of Sonoma Valley wineries.
 The plan for Sonoma winery is a day of touring of your choice of Vineyards to visit while driving
 through beautiful countryside then settling in at The Lodge at Sonoma Resort & Spa by Renaissance. Guided tours of Sonoma and Napa Valleys are available through California Wine Tours, which you can view online at www.californiawinetours.com. If you prefer to discover the vineyards/ wineries yourself, some of the key vineyards are Benziger Family Winery, Gundlach Bundschu Winery, St. Francis Winery, Bartholomew Park Winery, Kenwood Vineyards, Valley of the Moon Winery, B.R. Cohn Winery and Ravenswood Winery.  Planning to stay two days is important so to also enjoy the amenities of the resort, The Lodge at Sonoma Resort & Spa. They advertise to come and relax, indulge, play and savor. That is so true with what the four star resort offers. The Raindance Spa is exhilarating as they offer body scrubs, messages and go as far as to offer astrology readings. “Raindance Spa offers treatments that draw upon the natural healing properties of the region’s herbs, plants, minerals and fruits, including lavender and grape seed.” But, there is much more the resort offers that include an outdoor pool, spa tub, sauna and fitness center. The onsite Carneros Bistro Wine Bar was named one of the top 50 restaurants in the Bay Area by San Francisco Magazine. The restaurant is our top pick after the long day of vineyard touring. The second day though, after a day of relaxing you should feel fit to venture off to our top pick restaurant for the evening. Redd is one of our top picks for dining, located in Napa Valley, the restaurant could be a choice pick for lunch as well. Redd has also received the Diners Choice award from OpenTable.com. Two highlights of their dinner menu are, a prime New York steak and short ribs, salt potatoes, bacon and Cipollini onion ragout; and second, Berkshire pork chop, sage polenta, roasted artichokes and root vegetables. Menus will be part of the vacation planning package supplied by Star Banquets and Travel. Direct online booking is available at www.vacationsnationalpark.com or you can call Star Banquets and Travel for assistance in planning
 a personalized vacation.

Now onto to the start of the sight seeing part of the vacation, which first is Redwood Forest National Park. “Most visitors know Redwood National and State Parks as home to the world's tallest trees—icons that inspire visions of mist-laden primeval forests bordering crystal-clear streams. But did you know that the parks also protect vast prairies, oak woodlands, and nearly 40 miles of wild coastline, all of which support a rich mosaic of wildlife diversity and cultural traditions?” (U.S. National Park Service) If you wish to break up the drive to Oregon, then a couple choice spots are available from Eureka to Crescent City (see our booking links above). Two hotels in the area, the Carter House Inns, which is a luxury hotel is rated 3.5 stars but, a Red Lion Hotel that is 1/3 of the cost is rated near the same at three stars.  Details on Redwood National Park, things to do, trails is offered on VacationsNationalPark.com as well as dining stops along the way.

Self Planning Vacations

January 3, 2012, Star Banquets and Travel restructured to 1 Touch Reservations and closed our travel agency. Founder, Mike Rizzo continues to be all about travel and dining but, the main focus now is mobile reservations. PC based travel and dining websites have been split into two websites, www.finedining.ws and www.trips.ws. FineDining.ws is now officially converted and restructured to fit 1 Touch Reservations and the website is an amazing self planning source for dining out or dining at home. Trips.ws offers many sources for self planning vacations from hotels and all-inclusive vacations to adventure vacations, bus and train reservations and airline reservations. As stated at the beginning of this blog, our magazine, National Park Vacations was closed but, vacation articles will continue to be posted here. The fate of the first core travel website of Star Banquets in Travel, VacationsNationalPark.com created in 2009 is not determined at this post and continues to run. Many of the state pages were updated before the restructure. Trips.ws will be overhauled and updated. The updates will be completed by May 15th. 1 Touch Reservations now offers the best of online travel and dining planning services.
1 Touch Reservation's consumer website is offered for free to consumers with no registration required. The mobile website is www.1tr.mobi and auto detects eight different models of smart phones. The same website was converted to a PC/ Laptop structure and the website is the core reservations system for FineDining.ws. The website offers 1 touch calling to restaurants, GPS coordinated directions to restaurants from the user's current location, GPS coordinated hotel reservations, airline reservations, an iPhone bus reservations app, mobile event ticket sales, online reservations and the future includes online menus and coupons, which already is offered in the Houston area. The website now lists over 13,000 restaurants in 70 cities across the U.S. The sources for planning travel, whether for business or pleasure is endless, whether at home or in an office or on the road with a smart phone.

Alabama Trips

Alabama was one of our first states we posted vacation information on but, since the focus was on National Parks, trying to determine how to present Alabama was difficult.  2011 brings our best foot forward on Alabama vacations showing the worthiness of Alabama that includes the Gulf Coast and golf resorts, from Mobile to Fort Payne, which is just a few miles from the   Little River Canyon (photo right), Dauphin Island and direct links to vacations in Alabama. The Little River Canyon Preserve is a 12-mile-long canyon and is the largest canyon east of the Mississippi and a scenic drive is available with look out points to enjoy the beautiful scenery.  One such look out point is Lynn Overlook, which is the head and starting point for the Beaver Pond Trail.  The three quarter mile trail is a bird watchers paradise.  The Canyon beauty includes, "sweeping  anoramas of the canyon walls and the raging Little River below. Scan the walls of the canyon and you will see natural bridges and amazing formations created by the action of the river and the elements." (Alabama Tourism Department)  Enjoy relaxing at the end of the scenic drive at Canyon Mouth Park, which is a day use park and a relaxing place to enjoy a picnic.  The park offers grills, a beach and swimming in the crystal clear waters.  Fishing is also permitted at the park. The preserve is detailed with vacation options on our Alabama National Park page. Lookout Mountain is the ideal location for a quality couple get-away, perfect for a peaceful anniversary vacation or summer family vacation. A one-week vacation is ideal but, nobody can become board for a vacation to this area of Alabama/ Tennessee even during a two week vacation.  The Little River flows for early the entire length atop Lookout Mountain.  The area offers scenic views of forested uploads, canyon cliffs and bluffs and pools where waterfalls flow into.  The cliffs are of sandstone and have stunning beauty.  Just a couple examples of fun and vacation fulfilling things to do include Ruby Falls and the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway.  Ruby Falls is the deepest commercial cave and has the highest underground waterfall at 145 feet in height. Guided tours are available and they end with an incredible panoramic view from the Lookout Mountain Tower.  The Lookout Mountain Incline Railway trolley ride is a one mile ride at a 72% grade straight up the mountain.  Tour Civil War sites such as the Battles for Chattanooga Electric Map & Museum, Point Park and the Chattanooga National Military Park system is only a short walk.  The bottom or start of the ride offers many stores to shop and good restaurants.  The good dining though can be extended by a short drive to downtown Chattanooga.  The one restaurant that has stood out when we researched Chattanooga restaurants is 212 Market St. Restaurant, which you can view at www.212Market.com who offers fine dining at its best in a casual atmosphere.  The menu is one of the best I have ever read. Starters include Grilled Georgia Quail Breasts served with Blueberry Compote & Rosemary Shortbread, a Mediterranean Sampler and Fire & Ice, which is Rock shrimp Gazpacho, Cilantro Sorbet and Avocado but, the best of the appetizers is their fried green tomatoes served with Cajun slaw and Creole Remoulade. One salad example is their Baby Spinach salad topped with Hazelnut vinaigrette, spiced pecans, Gorgonzola, Apples and smoked bacon.  Their entrées, desserts and rewards I am leaving to your imagination.  Little River Canyon is a choice vacation spot with so much to offer for a romantic vacation or a family vacation.  The featured accommodations is the Weiss Lake House in Cedar Bluff.  Visit our Alabama section of VacationsNationalPark.com for details and many vacation options. Included for Alabama vacations in this issue of National Park Vacations is the Marriott Grand Hotels in Mobile, which is near Dauphin Island.  Mobile Alabama may not be top pick for a anniversary vacation or honeymoon but, once you view this hotel that could very well change.  Located in Fairhope Alabama, near Mobile, the hotel has their own private beach. The dining options are fruitful even not leaving the hotel with five restaurants and a bar/lounge. The four star  hotel does offer room service as expected for this quality of resort but, is limited to specific hours. The golf course is 36 holes and the hotel offers an outdoor pool, an indoor pool, a children's pool, and a health club. Spa amenities include spa services, massage/treatment rooms, facials, and body treatments. The golf course is the legendary Robert Trent Jones Golf trail.  The hotel is known as the “Queen of Southern Resorts” and is legendary for weddings.  So, for those who do not live in Mobile, know that the hotel is the quality many seek for a honeymoon or anniversary vacation.    The hotel is also family oriented with amenities such as the children’s pool and family activities offered in the surrounding area and beaches.  Family oriented adventures for Mobile include the USS Alabama tour – www.ussalabama.com, the Mobile Carnival Museum (Mobile was the birthplace of Mardi Gras) - www.mobilecarnivalmuseum.com, the Mobile Zoo -  http://www.mobilezoo.cc, and the Mobile Mystery  Dinner Theatre – http://www.mobilemysterydinners.com, which can be part of a romantic vacation as well.  Planning a romantic vacation in the Mobile area, many sources of accommodations are available but, the two main hotels we are mentioning here are the Grand Marriott and the Holiday Isle Resort and Marina on Dauphin Island.   Dauphin Island offers much for a romantic vacation and family vacations from the Holiday Isle Resort and Marina to camp grounds on sugar sand beaches, Dauphin sanctuary, historic fort and a professional golf course. Star Banquets & Travel can plan your vacation and you can view online options at www.vacationsnationalpark.com. To start self planning your visit to Dauphin Island, start with the Chamber of commerce at http://dauphinislandcoc.com.  The Islamorada Hotel Resort is world famous for its fishing at the Marina, with Dauphin Island offering the only living barrier reef in North America. An 850’ fishing peer offers premium fishing and lots of room.  Charters are also available directly from the Marina. Dive and snorkeling trips are offered as well to nearby ship wrecks and the reefs.  The golf course is a premium 6,600 yard 18-hole scenic adventure and the golf course, although a professional golf  course it is offered to the not so professional. Direct information can found at www.dipoa.com/golfcourse. The Chamber of Commerce website offers details on the Dauphin Island Audubon Bird Sanctuary, which offers 164 acres of woodlands with trails through a mix of pines, live oaks, magnolias and stretches along the Gulf of Mexico. Dauphin Island is known is one of the top spots to observe tropical migrating birds and butterflies including song birds and humming birds.  The Dauphin Island Sea Lab is an extraordinary place to visit, which should be top on your list. The Estuarium offers wonders of Alabama that include habitat details, aquariums and interactive exhibits. Last but, not least, for the nature enthusiast and outdoors man, camping on Dauphin Island is offered at the Dauphin Island Camp Ground. The park offers 150 sites that have power and water, 75 of which have sewer, onsite bathhouse with hot showers, washers/ dryers, an onsite store, a group pavilion with large barbecue grill, walking trails, bicycle rental and on. All the information on these fun places to visit can be found at www.dauphinisland.org. Fine dining on Dauphin Island I am not too certain about. First, I believe that restaurants on Dauphin Island may not know the Internet exists.  The only restaurant I could find that appears to be at all appetizing is the Island Rainbow, who has a 92% rating on Urban Spoon but, no online menu.  Mobile is the best bet for romantic fine dining. Two restaurants that stand out for fine dining is Noja, www.nojamobile.com and Café Royal, www.caferoyalmobile.net. Jesse’s Steakhouse is also a very good choice.  All three are rated four star, Noja has 72 reviews, Jesse’s 30 and Café Royal 54 reviews. My opinion from reading the reviews is I give all three restaurants a 4.2 rating on quality of food, experience and ambiance but, a lower 3.8 rating on their menus.