Sonoma, California

Valley of the Moon

Downtown Sonoma
Downtown Sonoma
Sonoma Plaza Park
Sonoma Plaza Park
Sonoma's 4th of July Parade
Sonoma's 4th of July Parade
Sonoma Plaza Holiday Lights
Sonoma Plaza Holiday Lights

10,644

Population

Sunny Days: 262
80100 Affordability
80100 Schools
60100 Diversity
100100 Safety

LookyLOO Review of Sonoma

One of the ironies of the Great Migration when many people fled big cities is that ultimately they craved smaller cities and towns with characteristics of the places they left - like city centers with lots to do. Sonoma’s 8-acre plaza, the largest in all of California, at the center of town is a gravitational core of the entire Sonoma Valley. `It is surrounded by amazing restaurants, cafes and bakeries, art galleries (including the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art), bars/wine bars, pizza places, boutique shopping and more. The Plaza hosts Tuesday night farmers’ markets in the summer, live music other community events, and more. Ultimately if you want to live in a town in Sonoma that has a true commercial center then this is the spot.

It’s a cliche to complain about tourist season if you live in a city that is at the center of a tourist economy. The city of Sonoma pulls in a great majority of the wine tourists, and fall is the height of the wine tasting/festival season. If you live in Sonoma then everything gets harder during this timeframe. Locals tend to avoid the Plaza during these months and once you hit November all returns to the chill bliss that makes this one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

Lifestyle

Sonoma lifestyle, as with many wine-centric towns, feels split between two different ways of life. You have “locals” who live here year-round, work in the area in the wine or agricultural industries (or are retired), raise their children in largely suburban/rural neighborhoods, and love the land from which they make their living. The other way of life is comprised of wealthy owners of 2nd homes, or empty nesters who appreciate the warm climate and healthy, fun lifestyle of the valley, and who probably made their wealth in the Bay Area.

Regardless of which group you fall into expect to enjoy some universal truths about living here. The ocean is nearby so taking the short drive to the Pacific is common, daily hiking/biking on the nearby trails and nightly walks among the beautiful blocks are universal. It’s important to remember though that this is a working family town also. So little league games, playing at all the beautiful local parks, biking around town, and just enjoying the intimacy of a small town still overrides all the tourist mishegoss for those who choose to live here.

Check out the Sonoma calendar of events to see what's going on throughout the year.

We highly recommend visiting Sonoma and staying in the community in a VRBO rather than a hotel to get a feel for living among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our partnership with Expedia as well.

Worklife

Plenty of locals work in the wine industry and enjoy short-ish commutes to work. Many newcomers work from home and so face no commute. If however, you are going to live here and try to commute to one of the tech hubs you will be unhappy. Sonoma is a beautiful town that is built for people who work in the agricultural/wine/hospitality industries or the newly crowned, untethered class of those who don’t need to commute anywhere. That is the work-life culture of Sonoma and much of these bucolic wine country towns.

Why You Should Move Here Now?

If you want to live in a wine country town that has the most active town center then Sonoma should be on your short list. While many Sonoma Valley cities can feel sleepy, and that can be a positive, Sonoma also offers a truly magnificent town plaza that give the town a more active energy than some of the others. If you crave that type of energy then Sonoma should be on your list.

Reviews of Sonoma from Locals

estistudent
10mo ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

City of Sonoma is quaint with pretty views of rolling hills, vineyards, lots of trees, farms/agriculture and cute neighborhoods. Great restaurants, small businesses, adorable downtown area/plaza and nice wine tasting options but few bars. I do like the proximity to the rest of the Bay Area and the community Sonoma provides. That being said there are a lack of big businesses/chains like Costco/Target etc. - our only fast food/chain places here are Taco Bell, McDonald’s, and Jack in the Box. Safeway, Lucky’s, and Whole Foods for grocery but Sonoma Market is cool (and pricier for the most part). There is a lack of nightlife and even on weekends things aren’t open very late here.

I really love our small businesses/independent restaurants. However the city of Sonoma caters a lot to tourists and is lacking in diversity. Many retired people and mostly middle aged and older Caucasian population - although Boyes Hot Springs (<10 mins from city of Sonoma) has more diversity with some great restaurants - good Thai, Lebanese, plenty of delicious Mexican food, an amazing donut shop, bakeries, ice cream, coffee - and it’s practically a sub division of Sonoma but has a little more of a down to earth neighborhood feel.

Sonoma is a beautiful small town within reach of larger and more populous cities like Petaluma/Santa Rosa, as well as parts of Marin - but to live here you have to be prepared to drive at least 25-30 mins away for more amenities and more affordable stores and restaurants. Great dining options here as well as nice parks and nature, and a little pricier, but an overall very nice town. Having lived here for a few years I can see why so many people choose to retire here. It has its limits but it’s a beautiful and welcoming place to be.

For more reviews of what living in Sonoma is like from locals, check out The Reviews.

Neighborhoods in Sonoma

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Downtown

Young Professionals/Empty Nesters/Retirees/WFH’ers

Downtown Sonoma is of course most notable for the Plaza but it is also the neighborhood with many of the largest most historic homes in the area. If you can afford and can buy one of these beauties then more power to you. Living near the Plaza means glasses of wine on front porches and leisurely strolls to dinners and trips to the farmer’s market. Living in Downtown Sonoma feels most like the “urban” wine country life many imagine when they seek out homes in the area.

Also, if you are a young professional or couple working in the wine or hospitality industries then the apartments and condos in the Plaza area are choice ones to snag. There aren’t as many as you’d expect for a “downtown” but those on the Plaza or within walking distance provide a pretty cool and chill lifestyle.