Luxury guide · California
Luxury California: Our Favourites
The finest of California: cliff-top rooms above the Pacific at Big Sur, vineyard resorts in Napa and Sonoma, a Montecito beach hotel, the state’s three-MICHELIN-star tables from San Francisco to San Diego, and the destination spas that California made famous.
Cliff-top retreatPost Ranch InnBig Sur
Resort hotelAuberge du SoleilRutherford, Napa Valley
Beach resortRosewood Miramar BeachMontecito
Resort hotelRosewood Sand HillMenlo Park, Silicon Valley
Fine diningSingleThreadHealdsburg
Fine diningSingleThreadHealdsburg
Destination spaGolden DoorSan Marcos, San Diego County
Resort hotelFairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & SpaSonoma
WineryInglenookRutherford, Napa Valley
WineryRidge Vineyards, Lytton SpringsHealdsburg, Sonoma County
Cliff-top, vineyard and beach resorts
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Video
On the cliffs above the Pacific
Post Ranch Inn
Cliff-top rooms high above the Pacific on Highway 1.
47900 Highway 1, Big Sur, CA 93920Explore View on map
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2 photosRedwoods and ocean views
Alila Ventana Big Sur
A Big Sur retreat among redwoods and meadows above the coast, formerly Ventana Big Sur.
48123 Highway One, Big Sur, CA 93920Explore View on map
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Video 6 photos
Above the valley on Rutherford Hill
Auberge du Soleil
A hillside Napa resort with a starred restaurant.
180 Rutherford Hill Rd, Rutherford, CA 94573Explore View on map
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6 photosA wooded valley resort
Meadowood Napa Valley
A resort set in a wooded valley outside St. Helena.
900 Meadowood Lane, St. Helena, CAExplore View on map
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6 photosAbove Healdsburg
Montage Healdsburg
A resort in the oak-covered hills above Healdsburg, in Sonoma County wine country.
100 Montage Way, Healdsburg, CA 95448Explore View on map
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Video 3 photos
On the sand in Montecito
Rosewood Miramar Beach
A Rosewood beach resort on the sand at Miramar Beach in Montecito.
1759 S Jameson Lane, Montecito, CA 93108Explore View on map
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Video 6 photos
In Silicon Valley
Rosewood Sand Hill
A Rosewood resort on Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, at the heart of Silicon Valley.
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5 photos
The Victorian beach resort
Hotel del Coronado
San Diego’s famous Victorian beach resort, with its red turrets on the sand at Coronado.
1500 Orange Ave, Coronado, CA 92118Explore View on map
Three MICHELIN Stars
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Three MICHELIN Stars
Quince
Californian-Italian tasting menus in Jackson Square.
470 Pacific Ave, San Francisco, CAExplore View on map
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Three MICHELIN Stars · new 2026
Californios
The world’s first three-star Mexican restaurant.
355 11th St, San Francisco, CA 94103Explore View on map
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Three MICHELIN Stars · new 2026
Enclos
Wine-country cooking with a modern edge, promoted to three stars in 2026.
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2 photos
Three MICHELIN Stars
Addison
William Bradley’s restaurant at the Fairmont Grand Del Mar.
5200 Grand Del Mar Way, San Diego, CA 92130Explore View on map
Destination spas
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Video 8 photos -
Hot springs above the Pacific
Esalen Institute
The Big Sur retreat of 1962, with cliff-top hot springs.
Shopping
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San Francisco’s shopping heart
Union Square
San Francisco’s grand shopping square, with a winter ice rink.
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Gardens and department stores
Stanford Shopping Center
An open-air garden shopping centre in Palo Alto.