Cakebread Cellars Celebrates 50 Years Of Napa Valley Winemaking

Do you already have 2024 New Year’s Eve plans? What if you could celebrate the ball dropping twice in one day? The Napa Valley Wine Train is partnering with the legendary Grgich Hills winery for “Midnight In Paris: A Legacy NYE Celebration” to commemorate not only the new year but also to honor Winemaker Miljenko “Mike” Grgich who recently passed away at the age of 100.

Just 75 miles north of bustling San Francisco, and surrounded by Napa Valley and Sonoma County’s world-class vineyards, Calistoga is home to geothermal hot springs, wellness resorts, and mud baths featuring volcanic ash and natural peat. There’s hiking that ends at a mineral pool at Bothe-Napa Valley State Park, and, of course, incredible dining and drinking experiences with a local focus. An escape for a weekend getaway or longer to one of the many wellness resorts here is the perfect way to return home completely refreshed. It’s no wonder Calistoga is Matador’s Wellness Award winner.

In 1836, George Calvert Yount planted the first wine grapes in the Napa region. Wild grapes grew in the area, but Yount saw the potential for winemaking, and subsequent settlers followed suit with their own vineyards, including traditional European vitis vinifera grapevines.

Alaska Airlines has launched a new partnership with a Canadian airline, soon benefitting passengers across both sides of the border. 

Looking down from Utah’s sheer Wasatch Range, I feel relieved to have made it to the end of one of America’s most challenging roads. Rising to nearly 2,500 metres, State Route 210 is no stranger to avalanches. Snow ploughs can’t keep pace with the blizzards and cannons trigger slides to mitigate risk. Travel can be slow and unpredictable — but manage to get here, and the skiing is arguably the finest in North America.

Low-cost airline Breeze Airways is adding to its warm-weather routes next year with seasonal flights from Connecticut to Orlando and new service from the New England state to Orange County, California.

New York City is practically synonymous with New Year’s Eve. The entire world watches and waits for the ball to drop in Times Square, while revelers at the crossroads of the world and across the boroughs celebrate the upcoming New Year. Plenty of restaurants far away from the chaos are also hosting celebrations for festive meals, toasts and a fun ambiance to ring in the 2024. Here’s where to celebrate:

Mountain spas. Dog-sledding. Hot springs. Mulled wine by a roaring fire. Many ski resorts offer much more than just skiing. If you're looking for a winter weekend break filled with fun and cozy activities, you don't need to hit the slopes to enjoy the charms of a ski resort.

For most New Yorkers, Times Square is a place to be avoided at all times—especially and unequivocally on New Year’s Eve. The Ball Drop looks fun and exciting when watched from the warmth and privacy of your couch but in real life, it looks like a million people packed between police barricades and squished up against each other in the cold for way too many hours, waiting for a 10-second countdown. And there are no public restrooms.

Sri Lanka has finally announced its plans to roll out its global tourism marketing campaign urging tourists “You’ll Come Back For More,” marking the first such campaign since 2007.  

Imagine the darkest time of year in Sweden, when the sun never climbs above the horizon in the northernmost part of the country, and in Stockholm, the capital, there’s a scant six hours of daylight. Every day is shorter and gloomier than the last until the nadir — the darkest day of the year — when a young woman appears dressed in a white gown with a blazing crown of candles on her head, singing a familiar song and spreading warmth and light on a frigid winter morning.

Officialy named by its co-Godmothers – Bravo TV’s Captain Sandy Yawn and her sister Michelle Dunham.