If you have narrowed down the location of your proposal to Viansa Winery, it’s time to decide on the exact spot on the property itself - here are proposal location options at Viansa Sonoma!

How to make it a more private experience-

This winery tends to get busy/fill up fast with tastings, people wandering the property, having picnics, etc., so if you want any privacy for your big moment, the best time to come is at 10am. This is right when they open, so people are just slowly starting to trickle in. It will be quieter and calmer then!

The best way to fit in the proposal and not have your tasting time interrupted is to book your tasting at 10:30am, and arrive at 10am for your proposal. This gives you adequate time for the proposal itself, and then to walk around the property a bit for more photos, before heading back in to do your tasting. Just tell your partner that the tasting is set for 10am!

That said- there are two main spots that are used for proposals at Viansa.

- First is the Olive Grove. It’s to the far left of the property, near the parking lot, and as you walk to the end, you can see a “clearing” in the middle of two trees, which has a great overlook of the valley/vineyards. When you book your proposal with Viansa, let them know you want to arrive early to propose at the Olive Grove, and when you arrive that morning, they will make an “excuse” that your table isn’t ready and lead you out to this spot to wait. The walkway is a semi circle, and has white picnic benches along the path, and I will sit at one of them, acting like I am waiting for my table, too - and then I will pop up when I see you get in position!

As you can see from most of these photos, the girl is on the right. I feel like it has worked out the best that way, so I can see her reaction from my angle. If they are on the left, it’s almost like you have to “back them” into the spot, which may not feel as natural, unless you walk up with them on your left.

I wanted to show you photos from different times of the year, and with floral decor and without. There are some bright summer days, and a winter, drizzly, overcast day.

Proposal with no florals at Olive Grove at Viansa Sonoma.jpg

Winter Rainy proposal at Olive Grove at Viansa Sonoma.jpg

Summer Proposal at olive tree grove at Viansa Sonoma.jpg

Proposal in Olive Grove at Viansa Sonoma with Floral hoop decor marry me sign at olive grove.jpg

Proposal at Olive Grove at Viansa Sonoma with floral ground arrangement.jpg

The other well used spot is the Private Outlook, which you would reserve with the events coordinator at Viansa. The outlook can be decorated, here are a few shots of what that can look like. I am obviously not a florist, and prices change based on season, type of flowers, install, etc., but most of these bigger arrangements start at $1500. Here is a direct link for booking the outlook, as well as more photos of the outlooks from different angles.

As far as “where” to propose in the Outlook, you can see there are several ways people have done it.

-On the walkway, in front of the Outlook. I feel like this tends to be the easiest spot. There is plenty of room for you to kneel, plenty of room to see the side view of both of you, and you still see the Outlook in the background. This might be best also if you don’t opt to add a floral installation that you are wanting to make sure is a part of the photos.

-Just inside the Outlook, in front of the table. The tricky part of this is that once you are walking in, you will have to stop them front going to sit down, and line yourself up with the opening so I can still see your body kneeling (and not just your face popping up front the side). The plus of this spot is that if you have florals installed, they will for sure be showcased well in your photos surrounding you!

-On the stairs/walkway leading into the Outlook. This is honestly my least favorite option. I feel like the stairs make it awkward for everyone to kneel, and the space is narrow, so its hard to fit both people. The proposer ends up almost having to sit on the stair, or “pushing” the proposee in front of them so that I can still see their face, but then I end up just seeing the back of the proposers head and foot.

There are 3 outlooks, and the easiest one to use for photos is the one on the far left (it’s actually the one that is closest to the Olive Grove area). That said, if you propose at 10am, no one will be seated above for tastings yet, so any of the three outlooks are fine. I just need be to able to stand above with a clear shot, without interrupting other tastings.

**A note that the coloring of each photo below is different, and dependent on the lighting and the time of year.