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It’s also becoming an increasingly gay place to do business, with several prominent and out GLBT entrepreneurs flocking to this open-minded and welcoming town. Three lodgings in the area are run by gay couples, as are several of the town’s best restaurants and a variety of shopping and health-related businesses.

As you make your first decision—“where should I stay?”—you’ll soon become aware of how many gay couples have chosen to do business in Calistoga. Prime among the properties is the lovely Chateau de Vie, set among acres of vineyards just outside the main part of town and run by Felipe Barragan and Peter Weatherman. It’s a perfect base for a Calistoga sojourn. Driving up to CDV (that’s how it’s marked on the sign), you might almost pass it by, so unassumingly is it signposted. Once inside, though, you’ll never forget it, from the large and lovely rooms to the deck overlooking vineyards where Felipe and Peter grow the grapes for their Cabernet Sauvignon (sample it in daily afternoon wine/cheese tastings). It’s hard to imagine a better setting for the beautifully-prepared breakfast than on their deck overlooking the sun rising on the grapevines and Mount St. Helena. Hosts Felipe and Peter are as helpful and welcoming as you could possibly imagine, and if you’re here on business you’ll appreciate the WiFi throughout the property, as well as the swimming pool and hot tub.

Want to leave your clothing as well as your cares behind? Check into the Meadowlark Country House, yet another gay-run business, where Kurt Stevens and Richard Flynn welcome you to the large rooms (many with private decks) of this naturist resort on the way to the Petrified Forest, just a ten minute drive from town. Rent a fully-equipped guesthouse, and you can pretend you’ve moved to Calistoga (and still use the clothing-optional pool and hot tub).

Want a more upscale spa experience, with a great restaurant and gorgeous designer rooms in a series of cottages? Try Solage, the town’s most upmarket lodging. It’s the newest major property to debut and already a winner. It’s also become a favorite spot for businesspeople, with 15,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space and everything you’d need for your get-together, whether it’s a private meeting of half a dozen, or a theatrical presentation to a big group.

Whether you’re here on vacation, taking a break from meetings, or the spouse of a workaholic looking to fill your days, Calistoga offers a wealth of activities. The town is blessed with a quintessential California small town feel, surrounded by green clad mountains and fields diagrammed by geometrically perfect grapevines. Its main street, Lincoln Avenue, looks like something from a century ago, with low lying stucco and brick buildings housing galleries, restaurants, and shops. Small town? Indisputably, but one with a large number of attractions. There are spas in town, wineries in all surrounding parts, great shopping, and astonishingly good food. This town of 4,000 has half a dozen top notch restaurants, and several others that aren’t bad at all. While there isn’t exactly a hopping nightlife, there’s an energy here, a sense of people out and about, that is lacking in some of the more staid Napa Valley towns. As one local notes, “In Calistoga, you can find people on the streets at 1 A.M. In St. Helena, you could shoot bowling balls down the middle of the street at 8 P.M. and you wouldn’t hit anyone.”

Above all, Calistoga is a welcoming and gay-friendly town, its GLBT residents agree. “From my perspective as a doctor,” says Chris Henderson of the Optimal Health Center, “I certainly am out to patients, and in my dealings with the community. My partner and I are members of Rotary, and go to those events, and I haven’t had any problems or issues come up, or rumor mills, or anything of that sort.” Take advantage of Chris’ expertise and let this naturopathic doctor (and licensed acupuncturist) set up a wellness program incorporating all Calistoga has to offer. He’s used to working with referrals from hotels and spas, and after an initial assessment, he’ll provide a wellness program especially for you that incorporates everything from spa treatments and exercise programs to hiking and biking possibilities, local yoga facilities, and a nutritional look at the menus of Calistoga’s restaurants.

Hopefully he’ll include a little retail therapy in the mix, for Calistoga has a nice selection of shops. Check out Ca’stoga Galleria, the creation of artist Carlo Marchiori, who’s responsible not only for the amazing ceiling fresco but the eclectic selection of paintings, tiles, pottery, and other art. It’s less like entering a gallery than stumbling upon an entirely new world, just off Calistoga’s main street! Do make a trip to the Calistoga Depot, built in 1868 (the year before the Transcontinental Railroad was completed). The second oldest remaining depot in California, it was restored in 1978 and now holds a series of shops. Be sure to stop in gay-owned Calistoga Florist, in one of the vintage train cars now set up next to the depot. Here Michael Thomas and Walter Thompson offer not only flowers, but a winning variety of home décor items, as well as a menswear section from casual to chic. At the other end of Lincoln Ave., don’t miss Hurd’s Beeswax Candles for the most amazing assortment of light-ables you’ve ever seen, from miniature ovals designed to float in a bowl of water to huge, twisty numbers that are a conversation-starter for any table or sideboard. If you need to lubricate the decision-making process, there’s even a tasting table from a local winery in the corner of the shop.

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