Help me shop til I drop in Sacramento!

May 1, 2006 11:35 AM

How should I shop my way from Calistoga to Sacramento?

I am flying in to Sacramento this weekend to visit a friend near Calistoga. I will have a rental car. I am planning on leaving Calistoga Monday morning and taking my time driving back to Sacramento for my 6:45 p.m. flight home. How should I spend my day? What cool areas/shops are there between Calistoga and Sacramento? (IN Sacramento is cool too.)

I am 35, female, single, in the midst of losing weight so no clothes buying for me, not rich, into books, funky jewelry, cool tchokes.

posted by clh to shopping (5 comments total)

You can't drive from Calistoga to Sacto without enjoying the fine foods - guess you'll have to put the wine n he trunk until you get to Sacto :-)

Calistoga and most of the Napa/Sonoma Valley wine towns are not very large - usually with a town square and quaint downtown - very European - lots of tiny one-of-a-kind shops - boutiques, high end gifts, etc ... so you can't miss. There aren't as many antique shops as before.

Starting from Calistoga, simply drive south on Highway 29 (can't miss it - only major highway in town) to St. Helena then further south to Yountville then to the "big" city of Napa. There's an outlet mall on your right (going south). Turn left at American canyon Road to Interstate 80 (north) to Sacto.

So, it's maybe 40-50 miles from Calistoga to 80 (in the city of American canyon).

In sacto, the shopping is scattered - not that familiar so maybe others can help (lots of malls and such but that's anywhere).

But you'll probably find the cool stuff in Napa/Sonama - go to a winery site and print out maps - wineries very scenic and you can get wines not avail at retail. have fun!
posted by jbelkin at 11:58 AM on May 1, 2006

The Jelly Belly Factory Tour is worth an hour of your time (even if you don't indulge in the product - it's cool to see all the machinery).
posted by hsoltz at 12:16 PM on May 1, 2006

J Street through downtown Sacramento has some cool little shops and cafes, and I think L Street, too?? They run one-way, so you can go down one and up the other.
posted by tula at 12:37 PM on May 1, 2006

Yeah, concentrate your time in Napa area -- nothing cool once you hit 80. Wait, nevermind, downtown Davis is fun. You could check out the hours for their farmers market.
posted by salvia at 1:23 PM on May 1, 2006

As tula mentioned, in Sacramento the cool shops are on J (not so much L). There are tons of good used bookstores downtown, but they're a bit scattered -- there's not a single area to park and go book shopping, for example. Old Sacramento is very touristy, but if it's weird tchokes you want, that's where they are.

The other suggestions above (Napa, Davis, and the Jelly Belly factory, in particular) are your best bet if you only have a day and want to make the best use of your time. I live in Sacramento and mostly enjoy it, but I wouldn't really recommend it as a fun tourist destination.

If there's anything more specific you're looking for in the Sacramento/Davis area, feel free to email me (address in profile).
posted by Acetylene at 2:27 PM on May 1, 2006