California has established itself as one of the most prolific producers of fine wines in the world and nearly 90% of all American wine comes from California. The Napa Valley, located in Napa County has a Mediterranean climate, geography and geology that is highly conducive to growing quality grapes. Indeed, the wine production in California is more than double that of Australia and ranks as the world’s fourth largest wine producer in the world.
The lush green landscape of the Napa Valley makes an alluring destination for wine lovers, and combined with other attractions in the region it is a popular area to explore by road. Throughout the Napa Valley there are many wineries to explore, such as Ravenswood and Clos Pegase, where visitors will have the opportunity to sample some great wines and learn about the entire wine making process – from the growing of the grapes to the fermenting, bottling, marketing and distribution of the finished product.
The American Centre for Wine, Food and Arts is another fantastic place to continue the wine country experience. Here visitors can treat themselves to a cultural adventure with generous helpings of food, wine and art from many famous wine producing countries such as France, Italy and New Zealand.
After a few days of exploring the Napa’s wine county, begin to head inland and make a stop off at the incredible Yosemite National park. Located in the central Californian Sierra Nevada mountains, the park encompasses an incredible 1,170 square miles of spectacular natural scenery. Here you can see mountains that rise to over 13,000 feet above sea level, as well as granite cliffs and waterfalls, such as Yosemite Falls which is one of the tallest in North America and the fifth highest in the world with a total drop of 2425 feet.
Wildlife is abundant in the park and visitors have the chance to observe black bears, mule deer, coyotes, mountain lions and marmots. The park is also an outdoor activity playground, offering hiking and camping, rock climbing, biking, rafting and skiing in winter; as well as less strenuous activities such as nature and history programs, guided bus tours and even golf.