Go West! Our Spring 2026 Coastal Adventure
Part 3
I’m back after a wonderful weekend in New York City, which I’ll post about in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, we’re talking about the great itinerary we enjoyed from April 4 to 11.
The first stop was Catalina Island, which I was initially excited about seeing, until I heard from reliable sources that it’s a tourist trap, and not terribly interesting. Since we’re always looking for a great excuse to stay on the ship, that’s what we did! We ordered a gorgeous room service breakfast that we moved to the balcony, since it was a beautiful sunny Easter morning. Here’s the pic of Catalina from there:
The next day we woke up approaching San Francisco! After sailing under the Golden Gate bridge at breakfast time, and taking pics of Alcatraz, we docked in the mid-morning. The view from our balcony of the bridge and entry to the harbour was breathtaking. Neither of us had explored San Francisco before, so we were pretty jazzed.
We were there from Monday morning until Tuesday evening, so we took 2 cruiseline-provided Shore Excursions. The first was the Hop-On, Hop-Off bus tour, which we always love to do in a city that’s new to us so that we get a real sense of everything there is to see. Here’s the description:
“Discover the vibrant city of San Francisco with our fully narrated Hop-On, Hop-Off tour, offering you the flexibility to explore at your own pace. With 17 convenient stops, you can hop on and off the open-top double-deckerbus to visit the city's most popular attractions, museums, galleries, shopping districts, and restaurants.
Tour Highlights:
- Flexible Sightseeing: Enjoy the freedom to hop on and off at 17 of San Francisco's top sites, including Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square, Little Italy, the Golden Gate Bridge, and The Presidio. Customize your itinerary to match your interests and explore the city at your leisure.
- Stunning Views: The open-top double-decker bus provides fantastic views of the city, creating a lively and enjoyable atmosphere for your sightseeing adventure.”
We were sitting up top and most of the time, it was beautiful, except for the chilly wind while crossing (and returning across) the Golden Gate Bridge. It was COLD!
The next day we took a bus tour to Sonoma County and did some wine tasting at 2 wineries, plus we had a wonderful lunch in the charming town of Sonoma. Here’s the tour description:
“Today, you'll visit two prominent wineries in the Carneros district and the town of Sonoma. These are part of beautiful, idyllic Sonoma County, which has become a producer of internationally acclaimed wines.
Travel across the famed Golden Gate Bridge, with a brief photo stop at Vista Point. Weather permitting, you'll see sweeping views of San Francisco Bay and the city skyline, Alcatraz, Angel Island, Yerba Buena Island, Berkeley and Oakland.
Sonoma County is divided into several significant AVAs (American Viticultural Areas), with some benefitting from a cool marine influence that brings early morning fog and cold nighttime temperatures, making them ideal Pinot Noir and Chardonnay growing areas. Others are warmer and produce superb Cabernet, Syrah and Zinfandel.”
Here’s the description of the first winery: “Founded in 1984 by Bruce Cohn, manager of the Grammy award-winning band The Doobie Brothers, B.R. Cohn is rooted in California rock ‘n roll. Our winery venue has hosted countless concerts over the decades and always blends exceptional wine with stellar music. After selling the grapes from his Olive Hill Estate for many years and seeing the numerous awards the wines made with his fruit were receiving, Bruce began producing his own wines in 1984. Charlie Wagner then bestowed the greatest honor upon the winery, permitting the use of Caymus’ trademarked “Special Selection” on the best lots from the estate. B.R. Cohn Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as the entire portfolio, continues to receive strong reviews and accolades. In the 1990s, Bruce embarked on the journey of processing the olives at the Olive Hill Estate, creating California’s first single-estate olive oil in over a century, and founding the B.R. Cohn Olive Oil Company.” (the winery was lovely but the wine didn’t inspire any purchases)
“Enjoy some free time in the pretty, character-laden central square of Sonoma to appreciate this very cool, homey California town's laid-back atmosphere. Explore the boutiques, tasting rooms and cafés for lunch (at your own expense).” We had lunch on the patio at a lovely Mexican Restaurant. https://www.lacasarestaurants.com/home
Sonoma is truly gorgeous - wish we had more time to explore - perhaps on another trip.
The next stop : “At Roche Winery, enjoya tasting experience with a guided walking tour of the Roche family’s vineyards. Enjoy sipping a selection of Roche wines and taking in the view of the thousands of acres of vineyards planted on the western slopes of the Sonoma Valley.” We purchased a bottle of their Merlot, Chardonnay, and Cabernet.
After that, I played Tony Bennett’s “I left my Heart in San Francisco” on the balcony as we sailed under the Golden Gate Bridge one last time.
Next week, we’ll wrap up the trip with the final stops on the cruise, Astoria, Oregon, and Victoria, BC, and then I’ll tell you about our 2 days each in Vancouver and Calgary.
Where do you plan to go in 2026 and 2027? (I’m looking at 2028-2029 bookings too!)
May I help you?
Happy Travels!