Friday, January 31, 2025

One Night in Sonoma

Friday, January 31, 2025  , , ,  No comments

Inna and I planned a two-day weekend at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa from Friday, January 31, to Sunday, February 2, 2025. However, due to the impending rain system (aka Pineapple Express), we decided to shorten the trip to one day.

Friday, January 31, 2025

We started the long drive to Sonoma in the late afternoon. There were periods of heavy traffic on I-280 and in San Francisco, and we arrived at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn at around 19:00. As I was tired, Inna drove the Tesla Model Y the entire way there (and I was able to rest). 

It was raining quite heavily, and it was difficult to see the road ahead. We managed to reach the Fairmont in under 3 hours.

After checking in, we dropped off our luggage at room #142 and played checkers in the lobby. I had made dinner reservations at the El Dorado Kitchen for 20:00 (about 10 minutes away by car), and we played checkers until it was time to leave. There was a light rain outside, but visibility was a bit better.

We drove for about 10 minutes to El Dorado, finding parking nearby. Upon checking in, we were immediately seated at our table. It was a bit noisy indoors, but our waiter was welcoming and brought us water and a freshly printed menu. After looking it over, we ordered the following items:

  • Appetizer: Roasted Maitake Mushrooms
  • Boris: Butternut Squash Soup, Pan-seared Wild Salmon, Hot Tea
  • Inna: Butternut Squash Soup, Seared Scallops, Hot Tea
  • Dessert: Molten Chocolate Cake
The Pan-seared Wild Salmon was excellent, and Inna liked the Seared Scallops. Inna also raved about the Roasted Maitake Mushrooms.


After dinner, we walked a bit around downtown Sonoma, to walk off all the calories and to get some exercise. It was lightly raining and the streets were mostly empty. We heard some distant music from nearby Irish pubs. Unfortunately, most of the shops were already closed.



We drove back to the Fairmont Sonoma Inn & Spa, using valet parking to park & re-charge our Tesla (Note: Tesla chargers are available at the self-park too). 

We also played a game of Scrabble in the lobby, but did not finish, as we were both quite tired. I was slightly ahead when we decided to quit.


Saturday, February 1, 2025
 
We woke at around 08:00, showered, and dressed. We decided to eat breakfast at Sante, downstairs. 

After being seated, we ordered the following breakfast items:
  • Boris: California Scramble, Hot Coffee
  • Inna: Avocado Toast with 2 eggs, Hot Coffee
  • Dessert: 1 Pancake
The Scramble was delicious, and the pancake was not bad either (but not at the same level as Solbar's Lemon Ricotta Pancakes).



After breakfast, Inna and I decided to try out the Fairmont Spa.

We first started indoors, following the recommended steps below:
  1. Scrub with a Hot Shower
  2. Sauna with Mineral Salt
  3. Cold Bucket Plunge
  4. Steam Room
  5. Cold Bucket Plunge
  6. Warm Pool
  7. Cold Bucket Plunge
  8. Jacuzzi
  9. Cold Bucket Plunge
  10. Relaxation Room
After finishing the indoor spa, we spent the rest of our time at the two outdoor, thermal pools. Although it was drizzling, it was still fun to be floating around in the pools. The top pool even had umbrellas to block the rain.

Fairmont Spa’s enviable location atop an ancient thermal mineral spring makes this a spectacularly unique destination, boasting naturally heated geothermal mineral pools for year-round enjoyment.


We finished the spa at 11:30 and rushed to check out of our room. Our room key stopped working (as we were late), and we had to stop by to get it working again.

We drove to Healdsburg to see the Stella Swings Ella concert. I write about it separately here:
  • https://www.wisetrips.net/2025/02/review-stella-swings-ella.html
After the concert, we stopped by for a quick lunch at Troubadour Bread & Bistro, where we ordered the following:
  • Boris: Chicken Salad Sandwich, Americano
  • Inna: Chicken Salad Sandwich, Latte
The chicken salad sandwich was delicious, and the bread was especially excellent.

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