Things to Do in Napa, California
In short
Napa is the city at the south end of Napa Valley, about 75 minutes north of San Francisco. Eat at Oxbow, walk the downtown tasting rooms, and reserve a Stags Leap tasting on the Silverado Trail. The 19 homes we manage are condos at Silverado Resort on Atlas Peak Road. Downtown is a 10-to-15-minute drive, not a stroll.
Written by the Casago Sonoma team — we manage 19 homes at Silverado Resort and answer guest texts about dinner and tastings seven days a week.
Last updated August 18, 2026 · Last checked on the ground August 18, 2026
Know before you go
- You are staying at Silverado, not downtown
- Every home we manage in Napa is a privately owned condo at Silverado Resort, 1600 Atlas Peak Road. Oxbow, the Wine Train, and the tasting rooms on Main Street are a 10-to-15-minute drive. Read your listing for golf, pool, and tennis access. Those privileges are not automatic.
- No flames on the patio
- Silverado does not allow grills, fire pits, or candles outside. That is stricter than the rest of wine country, and it is not us being fussy. The hills around Atlas Peak have burned before.
- Reserve the Trail. Walk downtown.
- Stags Leap District rooms on the Silverado Trail are almost all appointment-only. Downtown tasting rooms are the walk-up exception. Book the vineyard stops before you leave the resort, and leave the car if you have already been tasting.
- The grocery is on Trancas, not at the resort
- Nob Hill Foods at 611 Trancas Street, in Silverado Plaza, is the supermarket on the way into town. The market and bakery on the resort grounds cover coffee and a forgotten bottle. They do not replace a real shop.
- Summer is hot, and Memorial Day weekend is BottleRock
- Afternoons regularly climb past 90. Bring water for Skyline and a layer for the air-conditioned rooms. BottleRock takes over the Expo every Memorial Day weekend. If you didn't come for the festival, stay off First Street that Friday through Sunday.
- Napa the city is not the whole valley
- Yountville, St. Helena, and Calistoga sit farther north. Calistoga is about 30 minutes up-valley from downtown. Say Napa when you mean the city. Say the valley when you mean the rest.
Things to Do in Napa, California
Oxbow Public Market
Start here if you have one hungry afternoon. Oxbow is a 40,000-square-foot market on the Napa River at 610 and 644 First Street, with a deck over the water and counters you can eat from without a reservation. Gott's, Hog Island, the Model Bakery, and Fatted Calf are the names guests text us about. The hall is open daily and closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day. Vendor hours vary, so don't count on every stall at 8 PM.
610 and 644 First Street, about 15 minutes from Silverado.
Official siteDowntown tasting rooms
Downtown Napa has dozens of tasting rooms you can walk between once you park. That is the day you skip the car after the first pour. First Street and Main Street hold most of them. A few rooms still take walk-ins. The rest want a reservation on weekends. Taste here if you want to stay in town. Drive the Trail if you want the vineyard.
First Street and Main Street, downtown Napa.
Official siteSilverado Trail and Stags Leap
From the resort, the closest serious tasting is north on the Silverado Trail in the Stags Leap District, not downtown. Most rooms here are appointment-only. A few estates on the district list are closed to the public, so book a specific winery, don't show up hoping. This is the cabernet run guests make when they don't want to sit in 29 traffic.
Silverado Trail north of Atlas Peak, 10–20 minutes from the resort.
Official siteSkyline Wilderness Park
Skyline is the hike when the tasting calendar has a hole in it. The park at 2201 Imola Avenue has about 25 miles of trail through oak and grassland, and the Lake Marie fire road is the walk most people finish. Parking is $6 per car. Dogs are not allowed on the trails. Summer afternoons get hot, so go early and carry water.
2201 Imola Avenue, about 20 minutes from Silverado, south of downtown.
Official siteNapa Valley Wine Train
The Wine Train leaves from 1275 McKinstry Street, in the Oxbow district, and runs a 36-mile round trip toward St. Helena. It is a reserved meal on rails, not a drop-in. Book the date before you arrive. If you already have a vineyard appointment that afternoon, pick one or the other. You will not comfortably do both.
1275 McKinstry Street, about 15 minutes from Silverado.
Official siteNapa Farmers Market
The market sets up in the city parking lot at 1100 West Street, downtown. Saturdays run year-round, rain or shine. Tuesdays run April through December. Both days are 8 AM to noon. Park on the street or in an adjacent lot. This is produce and prepared food, not a second Oxbow.
1100 West Street, downtown Napa.
Official siteEat & drink
Gott's Roadside at Oxbow
Gott's at 644 First Street is the burger and ahi-taco lunch next to the market. No reservations. Dogs are welcome on the patio. Come when you don't want a two-hour table and you still want to sit down.
644 First Street, Oxbow district.
Official siteZuZu
ZuZu at 829 Main Street has been the downtown tapas and paella room since 2002. It is mostly walk-in. A few tables for six or fewer go up on Tock. Weekend nights run a wait. If the line is long, their sister bar is two doors down.
829 Main Street, downtown Napa.
Official siteBistro Don Giovanni
Don Giovanni at 4110 Howard Lane is the Italian room on the way up-valley, open daily for lunch and dinner. Book the weekend dinner. Lunch is easier. It sits between the city and Yountville, so it works when you don't want to park downtown again.
4110 Howard Lane, north of downtown on the way to Yountville.
Official siteGroceries & essentials
Nob Hill Foods on Trancas
Nob Hill at 611 Trancas Street is the full supermarket in Silverado Plaza, on the drive between the resort and downtown. This is where you shop for the condo. The resort market covers the gap, not the week.
611 Trancas Street, Silverado Plaza, about 10 minutes from the resort.
Official siteQueen of the Valley Emergency Department
For a medical emergency, call 911. Providence Queen of the Valley at 1000 Trancas Street has a 24-hour emergency room and a Level III trauma center, a few minutes from Silverado on the same road as the grocery.
1000 Trancas Street, Napa.
Official siteHeat, fire, and the hills
Summer afternoons in Napa run hotter than a coastal weekend. Drink water on Skyline, and treat the park as a morning walk in July.
Silverado does not allow open flames on the patio. No grill, no fire pit, no candle. Use the indoor kitchen. The Atlas Peak hills have already shown what a spark can do.
The Napa River in town is a walk and a deck, not a swimming beach. Stay on the paths at Skyline. The trails close at sunset, and the gate does not wait for you.
What a Saturday morning here actually looks like
We leave Atlas Peak early, hit Nob Hill for fruit and coffee, and park once near Oxbow before the market fills. Gott's if the kids are hungry. The river deck if they aren't.
If we reserved a Stags Leap tasting we drive the Trail and skip downtown until dinner. If we didn't, we walk Main Street, put our name in at ZuZu, and get back to the condo before the afternoon heat makes the parking lot feel like a mistake.
From our team
- No grill, no pit, no candle on a Silverado patio. The kitchen is inside. That rule is the one we will not bend.
- Read the listing for pool and golf access before you pack clubs. Those privileges are not part of every condo.
- Book Stags Leap before you leave the resort. The Trail is appointment country.
- Skyline does not allow dogs on the trails. Plan the hike and the dog walk as two stops.
- BottleRock weekend is its own town. If you didn't buy a ticket, pick another weekend or stay on Atlas Peak.
Napa questions
What is there to do in Napa?
Eat at Oxbow Public Market, walk the downtown tasting rooms, and reserve a tasting in the Stags Leap District on the Silverado Trail. Skyline Wilderness Park is the hike when you want a morning off the wine. The Wine Train leaves from McKinstry Street if you want a reserved meal on the rails. The farmers market on West Street runs Saturday year-round and Tuesday from April through December.
How far is Napa from San Francisco?
Downtown Napa is about 50 miles and roughly 75 minutes north of San Francisco without traffic, longer on Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons. Oakland is about an hour. Sacramento is a little over an hour. Silverado Resort adds about 15 minutes east of downtown. Calistoga, at the top of the valley, is about 30 minutes north of the city.
Is Napa or Sonoma better for a wine trip?
Napa the valley is tighter and more reserved, with cabernet and appointment tasting rooms along the Trail. Sonoma County is wider — Healdsburg, the Russian River, and the coast can fit in the same week. We manage homes in both. From Silverado you can day-trip to Sonoma or Healdsburg in about an hour. From Healdsburg, Napa is the same drive the other way.
Can you walk downtown from the Silverado homes?
No. The 19 homes we manage are condos at Silverado Resort on Atlas Peak Road, a 10-to-15-minute drive from Oxbow and Main Street. Once you leave the car downtown, the blocks around First and Main work on foot. You need a car for the resort, the Trail, and Skyline. Rideshare works in town and thins out late on the resort roads.
Do you need a car in Napa?
Yes if you are staying at Silverado. Downtown tasting rooms and Oxbow work on foot after you park. The Stags Leap rooms, Skyline, Don Giovanni, and the grocery on Trancas all want a car or a ride. Don't drive after tasting. Book a driver for the Trail or taste downtown and walk.
How far is Calistoga from Napa?
Calistoga sits at the north end of Napa Valley, about 30 minutes from downtown Napa and a little longer from Silverado. St. Helena and the Wine Train's turnaround sit between the two. It is a half-day up-valley, not a stroll from the condo.
