5-star hotel guide to California
The Golden State is home to two amazing but very different cities: Los Angeles and San Francisco, plus one of the world's great winemaking regions. In the warmer south, LA seduces with movie-star glamour and palm-lined streets, while hip San Fran exudes a decidedly European flavour. In the wine country, Napa Valley offers some of the finest wines in the world and an almost Provençal flavour, not least in its excellent cuisine.
California's two urban heroes are awash with icons – from San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge to Hollywood's Walk of Fame – as well as trendy restaurants and legendary hotels. Guests at the Beverly Hills Hotel will often rub shoulders with A-listers, while Mondrian on Sunset Strip caters for the hip crowd on Sunset Strip. Campton Place showcases some of the state's finest cuisine at its Michelin-starred San Francisco restaurant. What's more, outside the cities you'll find breathtaking national parks and some of the best wine estates in the New World.
For a drive of your life, hire a Corvette and head north from LA or south from San Francisco (best views), on Pacific Highway 1 to Big Sur and experience mesmerising views at every turn, stopping off at the Post Ranch Inn, nestled into the cliffside, 1200ft above the Pacific Ocean.
With its cooling breezes the Napa Valley is one of the most beautiful wine growing regions in the world, producing some of the finest wines wines, many achieving the ultimate 100 point score. For wine lovers, an escape to Napa is a must-do wanderlust experience and there is no better base to explore Napa's treasures than dreamy Auberge du Soleil, the original - and still the best - Napa Valley 5-star escape.
Check out our first hand reviews to get California dreaming...