Napa Valley Vacation Rentals: Vineyard Houses, Harvest and Rates

What a Napa vineyard house costs

Napa prices by weekend, not by week. A Friday-to-Sunday in October, when the fruit is coming in and every winery is running its release dinners, can cost as much as five midweek nights in February — and the good houses are held by returning groups long before the vintage is picked.

The bands below are indicative nightly rates for four- to seven-bedroom houses, exclusive of staffing and tasting fees. Two-night minimums are standard; three nights are usual on holiday weekends.

The houses we hold in Napa Valley

Four houses in the Collection, from a walkable garden villa in Yountville to a fully staffed ridge estate above the fog line. Capacity is stated on every listing, so a party of ten knows before enquiring whether the house fits.

• Vineyard House, Rutherford — 5 bedrooms, sleeps 10

  Stone and glass in working cabernet vines on the Rutherford bench, with a heated lap pool, cellar and an oak terrace built for harvest dinners. From USD 1,450 a night.

• Howell Mountain Estate — 7 bedrooms, sleeps 14

  A ridge estate above the fog line with valley views to Mount Saint Helena, infinity pool, cinema, tasting room and full staff. From USD 3,200 a night.

• Yountville Garden Villa — 4 bedrooms, sleeps 8

  Two blocks from Washington Street and the valley's best restaurants, with a courtyard, pool and chef's kitchen. From USD 980 a night.

• Calistoga Ranch House — 6 bedrooms, sleeps 12

  Twelve acres at the quiet north end, geothermal hot pools, a barn for long dinners and bicycles for the Silverado Trail. From USD 1,750 a night.

Where to base the stay

• Yountville

  The valley's restaurant village: The French Laundry, Bouchon and a dozen tasting rooms inside four walkable blocks. The only base where a car is optional after dinner.

• Rutherford and Oakville

  The heart of cabernet country, five minutes from the benchland estates. Quiet lanes, big vine views, and the shortest drive to the appointment-only wineries.

• Calistoga

  The north end: geothermal springs, mud baths and a small-town main street. Lower rates, bigger plots, and the hot-air balloons overhead at dawn.

• Howell Mountain and the hillsides

  Above the fog line on the eastern ridge, ten degrees cooler at night and a world away from the Highway 29 traffic. Best for large groups who want the view and the privacy.

• ✓Harvest weekends — late August through October — are committed six to nine months ahead; midweek in the same months is far easier.
• ✓Most serious wineries are appointment-only; book tastings when you book the house, not on arrival.
• ✓Two-night minimums are standard and three nights are usual over holiday weekends.
• ✓Arrange a driver for tasting days: the valley is thirty miles of two-lane road and enforcement is strict.
• ✓Houses quote housekeeping in the rate; private chefs and in-house tastings are arranged alongside the booking.

The best time to visit Napa Valley

Harvest — crush, locally — runs from late August into October and is the valley at full volume: fruit trucks on the roads, cellars open, release dinners every night, and the highest rates of the year. It is worth it once; after that, most repeat visitors move to the shoulders.

May and June give you green hillsides, long light and a valley that has not yet filled. November, after the fruit is in, is the insider's month: the vines turn gold, the winemakers finally have time to talk, and rates fall by a third. January to March is cabernet weather — fires lit, tasting rooms empty, and the lowest rates of the year on the same houses.