San Diego, California’s Famous Wineries

Fine wine is a staple in California and the California Wine Country is a beautiful place to spend your honeymoon destination. San Diego’s North Country area is full of vineyards. Some of them have large wineries that allow tours and there are also mom and pop places.

The majority of these places are located up to an hour away from San Diego’s downtown area from the north. If you’re into outdoor scenery, you might be able to see some of the vineyards that overlook some of San Diego’s hills. There are others that are located among winding dirt roads.

Here is a sampling of some of the more well-known wineries:

If you’re looking for an Italian dish to compliment your wine, look no further than Bernardo Winery. You can get olive oil, homemade pasta and other items that they have available. Their red and white wines are the most popular. Their shops are open Tuesday through Saturday and their tasting room is open daily. The winery also offers tours to the public and picnic facilities are available for use.

Nestled in Temecula Valley, top notch wines are made at Falkner Winery. This winery has grape vineyards that are produced on their property. Some of the well-known wines they produce are Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and other exquisite wines. The winery also offers daily wine tasting and tours of the estate.

Orfila Vineyards is set in an agricultural area in the San Pasqual Valley. It’s also not too far from the San Diego Wild Animal Park. The winery offers daily wine tasting and tours. A gift shop and a picnic facility are available for use.

If you’re not up for driving during your wine tasting experience, Destination Temecula will help visitors to plan wine tasting excursions to North County. These trips include rides to and from the wineries from certain points in Southern California. During this trip, the guides will talk about the winery history and scenic areas. You will also be able to see ranches, massive estates, fruit orchards and lots of vineyards. Of course, you would see the most important part of the trip, the top notch wineries and you’d get to do some more wine tasting.

Downtown San Diego also has a wine tasting facility. The San Diego Wine & Culinary Center has great wine tasting sessions accompanied by food. They also offer private label wines sold in cases. You can also purchase them as gifts and they can be custom wrapped to your specifications.

One of their food and wine excursions, the Behind The Scenes Winery Tour, is held at Fallbrook Winery. You will learn the way wine is made from start to finish. You will actually see how the grapes are grown to how they are processed and turned into wine. Also included in this excursion is a picnic lunch outdoors and a private wine barrel tasting.

At the Culinary Center, there are group excursions for 10 or more people. The excursion can be public or private. Participating in something like this can be fun and educational at the same time.

San Diego’s wineries are some of the best undisclosed hideouts. Before you know it, you too can be a wine connoisseur.

Barcelona Tours

Traveling to Barcelona is an exciting trip. Barcelona is very rich in history and you can enjoy staying here for your honeymoon destination. After word was confirmed of Barcelona hosting the Olympics they started to work on making Barcelona a safe place to be. Improving the sidewalks and streets to make the accessible by car and by walking was one of the many ways that they improved Barcelona. It is still being cared for today in order to maintain the hard work that they put in to Barcelona in order to make it beautiful.

The first place to travel to is called Sagrada Familia. In 1882 Gaudi started to work on the temple. Today it still stands uncompleted. The original purpose of this structure was to be a Neo Gothic Church. Today it is the most popular tourist attraction in Barcelona.

Rambles is another place to see. This pertains to several streets that are attached and adjoined to each other. Because the streets are close to the river it was used to channel the water down from the hill above in the 13^th century.

Go visit The Cathedral while you are out in Barcelona. The Cathedral is one of the older temples that still stand today. The Cathedral was started in 1298 and finally finished in 1913. Be sure to notice the details that you can find in the work when you visit the Cathedral. You can enjoy a tour of the beautiful historic landmark while you are visiting Barcelona.

Travel to Barcelona to find out where Picasso worked on his art while in Barcelona. He wasn’t born her but his best work was created while he lived in Barcelona. The museum displays Harlequin, Las Meninas series. But there are also other art that you can see. Find out how he did research on landscapes in Barcelona. Visit the museum to see work created and inspired by the Avant-Garde movement.

You will also want to see Casa Mila. This structure was built somewhere between the years 1906-1910. The Mila family had the home built to be beautiful and for everyone to notice. They were met with the opposite reaction from the residents of Barcelona and were insulted. In 1984 it was determined that the Mila house would be called a World Heritage Site. It is also known as the world’s largest abstract sculpture.

Castell de Montjuic is a beautiful castle that you can visit located on top of Montjuic Hill. This castle was originally built in 1640 in order to resists the Felipe IV troops. In 1751 additions were added and again in 1779. Today you can see the result as one big castle. It was once a prison for the Military and today it is a museum of the Military.

Barcelona has a lot to offer visitors that are both landmarks and historic places of interest. Visiting museums in the area will give you a sense of what that particular place is all about. When visiting Barcelona make sure that you call ahead to make sure that you can get reservations if they are required.

A Tour of London For Your Honeymoon

Traveling to London for your honeymoon destination could be quite an adventure in itself. You may enjoy traveling to Europe and seeing the Grand Palace and other historical landmarks that are still being used today. In order to plan your honeymoon carefully you will need to know a little more about all the places that you should visit while in London that is highly recommended. Here are some places to add to your itinerary while you are in London.

London has something called the London Eye. The London Eye is also known as The Millennium Wheel because it was opened in the year 2000. The London Eye is a Ferris wheel that allows you to see all of London while you are riding it. The views can be seen for up to 25 miles around when it is a clear sky. The ride takes thirty minutes so that you have time to see all around you while you are going around. Each capsule can hold up to twenty five people.

You should also go to the Tower Bridge. This is the famous bridge that has a lot of history behind it. Tower Bridge was designed to be raised for tall ships that would pass by. You can see the raising of the bridge several times during the week if you are interested. It also offers a closed in walkway that you can enjoy during every season.

You should also visit Tower of London. This is not the same thing as the bridge. The Tower of London has a lot of history behind it. During Medieval times this was the place of imprisonment, torture and execution for prisoners. You can view the Crown Jewels when you visit the Tower of London. Watch out for the ravens that have made the Tower of London their home.

Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens is a great way to end your long journey. Feel the peacefulness as you visit the royal parks. The Hyde Park is the largest park of the three parks in London. It offers a place to boat, swim, play and it also includes a pet cemetery for all the pets who have enjoyed the park continuously.

The famous Big Ben is something that you will want to see before leaving London. This is a clock that was built into a tour that has a distinct ring. You can hear the ring all around the world in phones, watches, clocks and more. When the House of Commons is in session you can see the light on above the clock.

Last, but not least, you will want to swing by Buckingham Palace to view the royal family’s house. Since 1837 this has been the home to the British Royal Family. Get there in time to see the Changing of the Guard. See the horses and carriages used by the Queen. You can also see certain parts of the palace during certain times of the year so if you want to tour Buckingham Palace you may want to call first.

The California Wine Country for Your Honeymoon

How about a visit to California’s wine country for your honeymoon destination?

When you visit California you can’t help but make a stop at the wine country. California has 58 counties and out of those 58, there are 46 counties that are producing wine. California’s climate allows for optimal soil and growing conditions. With so many counties involved in growing wine the state of California offers several different events and activities geared toward the wine. Wine tasting can be quite enjoyable and educational as well. Sampling the wine is very important in order to appreciate the difference in the wines. California wineries are a old business that have been around for generations. Winery’s take a long time to perfect and to raise the grapes just right for picking.

If you want to arrange for a tour of the winery you need to do some checking around to find out the schedule, be sure to tell them you are on your honeymoon for that extra special service (and trust me, they will do just that!). Each one offers a schedule of tours and wine tasting and some require an appointment before touring. The wineries take their tours seriously and they offer the tourists several different options. When wine tasting is in season you will be able to access an endless amount of wineries. Each winery is different and they have their own set of rules. These rules include the number of guests per party and hours available to tour some require an appointment ahead of time.

Wine tours are scheduled around harvest time when everything is ready and being processed. Other events you may get to see while at the winery include crush events, concerts and auctions of vintage wines, balloon rides over the vineyards, gardens for the perfect atmosphere, museums of the winery and the vineyards, local restaurants come to the festival to display their variety of dishes, and other recreational activities that will make your visit to the winery the most enjoyable.

Because after several wine tasting events you may find that driving is difficult, you and your newly wed spouse may decide to rent a limo which will offer you a safe ride to and from the winery.  If you drive yourself, a lot of the roads leading to the wineries include long, narrow winding roads. It is important to drive slowly and carefully if you decide to drive yourself. They are well off the beaten path and you may not realize how long it takes you to travel to each vineyard. There are also hotels, motels and fantastic resorts to stay at near the vineyards that make beautiful honeymoon stops. Stay at just one or travel up and down the area and enjoy a few.  Many of the hotels and resorts offer spa packages as well as wine tasting tours, so check with them before booking your tour to save a few bucks.

Because California is so big you may not know where to go in order to find a winery. Here is the way that it is divided out:

Northern California offers the Napa Valley and Mendocino Wine sections

Central California offers Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Monterey Wine and Santa Barbara wine sections.

Southern California offers Temecula and San Diego wine sections.

The Central Valley offers Livermore, Clarksburg, Amador, Calaveras, Lodi, and Sierra wine sections.

There are so many places to enjoy during your stay. Viewing each vineyard is a picture perfect memory that will last you forever.

Planning Your Honeymoon Destination

When you begin to plan for your wedding you will need to plan for all the details of your big event. In fact, you also need to plan for something after your wedding, your honeymoon destination. Traditionally the honeymoon should be planned by the groom. However, it will make more sense if both you and your husband-to-be are planning the honeymoon together.

How to Plan a Honeymoon Together:

Similar to your wedding planning, the best way to plan for your honeymoon is to plan together. Since it is the first time you two travel together as a married couple. You do not want to be disappointed during your honeymoon. As a result, it will be better if all the decisions about the honeymoon is agreed by both of you.

The Honeymoon Destination

There is no definite formula to choose your honeymoon destination. You should just choose the destination based on both of your preferences. If both of you would like adventures, you might want to consider a honeymoon in Africa or Europe. Perhaps something quite and adventurous, Antarctica can be quite romantic in with the white scenery and all the little penguins and other animals in the area.

If you believe your honeymoon is meant to be relaxing, you might prefer a place like Bali as your destination. Sometimes just enjoying the sun shine on the beach and the beautiful tranquil views is the perfect plan. On the contrary, you may also consider places like India or Nepal if you love to explore different cultures. The key is that you should select a destination that both of you feel interested.

The Season

Another issue you have to consider is the season in your honeymoon destination. It may not be a good idea if you plan to join the hiking tour in Nepal during summer, which is the monsoon season. The season is even more important if you really choose to go to Antarctica. You can only go to Antarctica during the summer (in the southern hemisphere). Of course there will be less problem if your honeymoon destination is places with equatorial climate, such as Indonesia and northern Brazil.

The Budget

As for your wedding items, you need to consider the budget for your honeymoon. The tradition is that the groom should pay for the expenses of the honeymoon. However, I will suggest you forget all this tradition and try to plan the budget together. There is nothing wrong if both of you contribute to the expenses.

Undoubtedly, the destination will affect your expenses a lot. Traveling to Antarctica is certainly more expensive than traveling to Mexico (if you are living in the U.S.). However, you can try to save some money from your wedding items and use the extra for your honeymoon. At the end of the day the cost for your honeymoon is usually only a fraction of that of your wedding.

Planning for your honeymoon is not an easy task. If you can plan it well, however, I am sure that you will have a really memorable honeymoon.