Hilton Hotel Sonoma Wine Country Santa Rosa (California)

I stayed at this property about 4 years ago and vowed never to return. I decided to give it one more try just last week and was wowed! This hotel is now gorgeous and very comfortable! It has obviously been recently renovated and is now worthy of the Hilton name.

The hotel is very large and sprawled out into separate building wings with cute wine-themed names like "Burgundy" and "Chablis." Parking is ample and convenient at each building. The hotel itself is nestled in the foothills and has a real chalet style feel to it. The rooms are huge with large bay windows. Since the hotel is on a hill, you get great views all around.

The decor is pleasant and very wine country-esque with the perfect combination of both space and storage. The bathrooms only have one sink, but the counters are granite-topped. The carpet is plush and soft as are the linens and bedding. There is ample room to move around -- this is one of more spacious rooms I've ever stayed in!

I was also pleased to find an individually controlled thermostat in the room which was TRULY guest controlled -- no program timers or buttons that would shut off the a/c (this is a huge pet peeve of mine, but I am pleased to report that I could keep the room as cool as I wanted).

The hotel is in a very safe area and as a woman traveller, I would not hesitate to stay here by myself. I felt very safe and secure. There are lots of suburban malls nearby for an inexpensive chain restaurant dinner or a quick stop to pick up forgotten items during your travels.

The major downside of this property is that it really is far away from the main wineries. While it is right off the 101 (literally), to get to Napa it takes about an hour. There are some wineries that are close; Korbel and Kendall Jackson are about a 25 minute drive away. Healdsburg, the Russian River Valley and Sonoma are also quite a drive.

This is more of a relaxing hotel, not a place you'd want to stay if you are planning a bunch of sightseeing (unless you want to drive and drive and drive some more). I think a first-time visitor to the California wine country would be extremely disappointed in the location of this Hilton.