Kim Palacios is a Bay Area transplant whose epicurean tendencies are matched only by her wanderlust. She is quadrilingual and holds an M.B.A. in Finance. While not mourning the death of free markets, she enjoys film.
Everyone—I mean everyone—loves Post Ranch Inn. So, what’s with all the hype? What decadent luxury makes Post Ranch Inn stand out among California cliffside resorts?
It’s not the spa (though the spa...
Does volcanic ash from the Iceland eruption have you stranded in Stranded in San Francisco? If so, the Orchard and Orchard Garden Hotels have something just for you. A $75/night rate is available to guests who can show an...
You've heard me rave about this spa before, and it continues to have the best deals in the East Bay. Its everyday prices are far more reasonable than those at other spas of its caliber, and it...
I love luxury hotels as a mother loves her children—each for its own distinct beauty. I rarely claim favor for one above another because I have room in my heart for them all. When I go to Las...
October is a great time to visit Carmel-by-the-Sea. With high tourist season passed and the worst of the foggy weather behind it, October promises an unhurried pace and the best of conditions to enjoy its natural...
With a population of ~3,000 and city limits that barely graze highway 29, Yountville is easy to miss. A simple green highway sign marks its exit—this, a far cry from conspicuous estates with fetching plaques that...
The highest form of praise from a connoisseur is not a good review—it is a return visit. When I evaluate destinations for my writing, I am working. Yet, where I choose to...
I won’t lie: travel writers get special treatment. That’s exactly what I thought explained my e-mail from the Oak Knoll Inn a few days before my stay. I assumed that I was...
Healdsburg is the gateway to north coast wine country. Just 30 minutes northwest of Calistoga, it sits at the junction of the Russian River, Alexander, and Dry Creek Valley wine regions. With a quaint main street lined with...
When Bay Area people want to get away, they head to the Napa Valley. But, where do wine country people go when they want to get away? They go to Meadowood.Sitting upon 250 acres in St. Helena...