Family Fun in the “Napa” Next Door

Wine country weekends and family road trips are typically not part of the same vacation-planning conversation. However, Fairfield is intent on breaking some of those stuffy foodie destination rules. When people think of Napa, they’ll think of 4- and 5-star resorts, ultra-exclusive restaurants like The French Laundry, and wineries where it can cost more than $50 just to walk into a tasting room. These tropes alone can make it hard to believe that Fairfield, located just a few miles to the east of Napa, can give parents a taste of wine country sophistication (at more reasonable prices) while delivering food and nature-focused fun appealing to an all-ages crowd.

Currently, Fairfield’s most famous family-friendly attraction is the Jelly Belly Factory, which blends together a bit of American history (the American immigrant experience, Ronald Reagan’s passion for the mighty beans) in films and photos, how’d-they-do-it behind-the-scenes action, jelly bean art and interactive smell stations and games. In addition to the factory itself, there is also a café where you can buy bean-shaped pizzas and sandwiches and private rooms and special event services for weddings, bar/bat mitzvahs, birthdays and other family occasions.

Fairfield Jelly Belly Pizzas © Elyse Glickman

On the savory side of the palate, Sonoma Harvest Olive Oil (opened roughly a year) now has a “discovery area” for kids, allowing parents to get some sampling and wine tasting in. The charming and more upscale Il Fiorello Olive Oil Company, meanwhile, offers tastings as well as tours and cooking classes, which makes it a good choice for budding chef teens or parents wanting college-bound teens to pick up some good life skills when they leave the nest. There is also Cal-Yee Farms, whose dried fruit and nut shop is a tiny but fun throwback to the mid-20th century with its no-frills setting, old tractors, samples and magazine clippings documenting the success and ingenuity of another immigrant family attaining the American dream.

Food at Family-Friendly Brewery © Elyse Glickman

Several up-and-coming, family-owned wineries (whose products benefit from similar soil and growing conditions to Napa) are not only more wallet friendly but also stage tours and beautiful picnic areas where an entire group can take in the gorgeous expanse of wine country minus crowds and tour buses. A handful of craft breweries are also thriving, and while Heretic Beers offers tours and over-21 beer tastings, the owners devised their hidden gem to be a place beer lovers could bring their kids for a lingering lunch or dinner. In addition to a kitchen producing superb burgers, wraps and sides (artichoke fritters, garlic-y fried Brussels sprouts), there are plenty of magazines and games to keep kids entertained while adults taste.

The mild climate and numerous parks and hiking areas (Suisun Wildlife Center, Suisun Marsh, Rockville Hills Park) will keep active families engaged and moving throughout the year by foot, bike and kayak. Scandia Family Fun Center, meanwhile, provides indoor fun. The Bird Landing will bring an additional dimension of nature appreciation and education to kids and families when the project is complete and opened sometime in 2020.

Tractors in Fairfield, California © Elyse Glickman